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“Social success” means something vastly different to each of us. Pop culture, and especially social media, has made us feel like a successful social life equates to a large circle of close friends who are always out doing stuff together. For some us (looking at you, extroverts), spending lots of time with groups of friends may genuinely be healthy and fulfilling. For others of us, this can be incredibly draining.
When it comes to socializing, we each have unique needs. And therefore, the way we define “social well-being” has to be unique. Instead of succumbing to the ever-present pressure of social media telling us what our social life should look like, it’s time we look inward at what types of relationships and social activities truly give us energy and improve our overall well-being.
Instead of defining social success by how often we see our friends, or how many friends we have, let’s try defining our social success with these guidelines instead:
Social well-being means you can be yourself and feel accepted by your friends. You feel connected to and supported by your community. Your social and recreational activities enhance your life.
With this new definition in mind, you may be wondering how you can actively improve your social well-being. The answer might not be as simple as “make more friends,” or “be more social.”
In this episode of Cup of Joy, Laine and Elizabeth, two self-proclaimed introverts, are joined by Joy Society member Amber, an extrovert, to discuss what social success looks like for each of them. Elizabeth only recently discovered that she’s introvert, and in this episode, she shares how that discovery has been life-changing.
There are many myths about what it means to be extroverted or introverted.
Knowing where you fall on the introvert/extrovert scale is an important factor in improving your social well-being. You may have heard that introverts are shy, antisocial, don’t like to be around people or out in public. Maybe you think all extroverts are bad listeners, hate being alone, and have tons of confidence.
The truth is that none of the above qualities determine where you fall on the introvert/extrovert scale. Extroverts can be shy, and introverts can be extremely outgoing. The only real difference between the two is thatintroverts get their energy from being alone, and extroverts get their energy from being around other people.
We all need time alone and time with other people, but that balance looks very different depending on how introverted or extroverted you are. Making informed choices about your social life with this knowledge can allow you to improve your social well-being, have more energy, fulfill your social needs, and supports your overall well-being.
For the full episode, and an opportunity to discuss this topic (and more!) with Elizabeth and Laine in weekly group coaching sessions, please join us in the Joy Society Membership Community.