Does your stomach drop just thinking about this? So many of the introverts I work with, and I include myself, face this challenge.

It can be hard to keep ‘showing up in the outside world’ when our natural inclination is to want to ‘stay in’!

I’ve so many times felt the reluctance to show up and be seen on social media, a video, a workshop I’m hosting, my blog or my newsletter. And I know many other sensitive introverts face this very challenge.

We can become inconsistent as a result of this internal pull. It’s a bit like ‘now you see me, now you don’t‘.  And I really get it of course, because I face the same challenge. We need your downtime away from the world, away from stimulation. I don’t want to be available all the time.  We do after all, recharge in solitude and silence.

The challenge: Trust

One challenge with this approach is that we don’t engender trust. People (whether they’re fans or possible future clients) don’t have the proof that we’ll keep showing up and still be there in the future. It could even unconsciously leave a little taste of “Are you really reliable?”

In the work I do (working with sensitive inner parts and traumas from the past), trust is an important ingredient in the healing process. So it feels important to me to behave consistently in ways that will show trustworthiness where I show up.

What can we do to overcome our visibility reluctance as introverts?

Maybe some of my thoughts are useful to you.

One:

Remind yourself of the benefits of showing up regularly.

What are the benefits for you?

For me, it’s building trust and rapport, practicing my self-discipline muscle, exercising my writing muscle, practicing non-attachment to outcome, and a gentle reminder to fans that I exist and are doing work that I love.

Two:

Limit the amount of time you spend on social media. ‘Showing up’ doesn’t mean scrolling endlessly through the feeds. That empties out our emotional and mental energy tanks as introverts. The stimulation we get there is often not the uplifting type! Define for yourself what ‘showing up’ means. Do more of that, and limit the other exposure in balanced amounts.

Three:

Use EFT tapping to calm down any nervous system activation (stress) about showing up. Work with all the fears, concerns, yes-buts, and resistances. When we’ve calmed them down, we still have a choice. We can choose to show up –  and now it’s a choice from a place of freedom, and not from a subconscious mind that won’t let us do certain things.

Was this helpful? What are your thoughts about being consistent in how you show up?