Before moving into my new home, the seller and I met up at what would soon be my place to sign a few papers, with both of our realtors in tow. As we chatted casually about our jobs, she mentioned that, being a professor, she considered herself an excellent judge of character.

“You’re like an open book,” she said pointing to me. “You’re an extrovert, and love being the center of attention. You were probably really popular in school too. My guess is, you’re in a job where you interact with the public a lot.”

In my head, I said, “Darling, don’t quit your job and become a profiler for the FBI.” Out loud, I said:

“What makes you say that?”

“You’re good at making conversation and you’re funny and friendly. I’m right, aren’t I?” she said with an air of over-confidence.

“No. I’m actually the complete opposite. I’m an introvert. In school, I was quiet, nerdy, and much more invisible than popular. I’m a writer and researcher, and mostly work on individual projects. I’d rather read a book than go to a party and being in a crowd for too long makes me uncomfortable.”

I’m not really sure what I enjoyed more: Watching the look of cocky triumph fade from her face or busting her belief that introverts can’t be outgoing, witty, and fun.

Here are a few other misconceptions I’d like to share, thanks to data collected from 9,455 extroverts and introverts (take THAT professor!). By misconceptions, I mean stereotypes that don’t accurately represent all extroverts or introverts.

Misconceptions about introverts:

• They’re not good at expressing themselves.

• They’re indecisive.

• They’re unapproachable.

• They refuse to talk about themselves.

• They’re prone to moodiness, depression or melancholy.

• They have difficulty adjusting to change.

• They’re pessimistic, cynical, and have trust issues.

• They’re not good conversationalists.

• They lack confidence.

• They’re not as ambitious or driven as extroverts.

Misconceptions about extroverts:

• They hate working on solo projects.

• They hate spending time alone.

• They’ll reveal personal details about themselves to anyone who is willing to listen.

• They hate downtime.

• They’re completely open about their feelings.

• They thrive under stress. That’s not to say extroverts aren’t resilient, but even they feel the pressure at times—they just tend to mask it more effectively.

• They always assert themselves and feel comfortable doing so.

• They act first, think later—or not at all. Actually, many extroverts I assessed admitted that they have tendency to over-analyze their decisions or to second-guess themselves.

• Criticism doesn’t bother them.

• They hate routine and tend to be impulsive.

Introvertedly yours,

Queen D