The Perks of Shyness

“A shy face is better than a forward heart” said Miguel de Cervantes, when talking about shyness, and I think he might have had a point. Shyness is generally seen as a bad thing, and if you go on the internet, chances are that most of the results will be about how to deal with it, or explain how it can affect people socially. In this paper, however, shyness will be analyzed from a different point of view. We will see three ways in which being shy can actually serve as a tool in our lives.

One of the characteristics of shy people is that they tend to reflect on their inside. They usually keep a lot of things to themselves regarding situations, people, circumstances and others. However, according to Barr Taylor, professor of psychology at Stanford University, all that thinking may not always be a bad thing. She thinks that people who are better thinkers also have a greater ability to make more well-thought out decisions. This is a good advantage about being shy, as long as it is used wisely, and doesn’t turn into overthinking, which is a completely different thing.

Another thing about bashful people is that they observe a lot. According to Taylor, a shy person could be silent or not paying attention while others are having a chat around him/her; however, that doesn’t mean they can’t pick up parts of the conversation that others may not. This can actually be a source of strength as you are the observer in the room. Actually, researchers of Southern Illinois University at Carbondale found an association between college-age adults who were shy and the ability to better identify expressions of sadness and fear compared with those who weren't shy. They found out that more reserved individuals also have a superior ability to read people’s facial expressions. Because of this, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to focus on this strength.

Last but not least, it’s a fact that timidity is normally associated with not taking part or being involved in a conversation. Nevertheless, timid people are indeed listeners. In an in-depth essay on the cost of shyness, psychologists Bernardo Carducci and Philip Zimbardo explain that while shyness can hold someone back, a shy person's innate drive to absorb a conversation can be his or her greatest strength. Therefore, based on this study, we can determine that the listening skill of a timid person, can work in his/her favor.

In conclusion, there might be some truth in what de Cervantes said. I’m not trying to imply that being shy is the best quality, but that it is not always a negative one. The same as other personality traits, shyness has its clear benefits which we can take advantage of. So, maybe, the next time you think of this behavior, you might want to look at it in a different way, learn what it can teach you and how it can actually help you sometimes.

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