Steven Claes - The A+ Introvert

Which moment today will you actually be in?

♻️ Share if you've felt that "everywhere except here" feeling

Work matters again.

The childhood magic wasn't about having no responsibilities.
It was about being fully in each moment.

You still have that.

You've just buried it under mental time travel.

Your deep thinking is a strength.
Your presence is the magic.

5. Visualise tomorrow for 2 minutes
See it clearly.
Then let it go completely.

I shared these with another introvert leader last month.

Her message three weeks later: "I'm listening instead of planning my answer."

Ideas flow naturally now.
Decisions feel clearer.

2. Pick 3 meetings to be fully in
Quality beats showing up everywhere.

3. Solo walks in nature.
No podcasts. No calls. No agenda.
You and the present moment.

4. Box breathing between tasks
4 counts in, hold 4, out 4, pause 4.
Resets your nervous system.

→ Wins feel empty because you missed them happening
→ Energy drains faster than it refills

The magic didn't disappear.
It's buried under tomorrow's worries.

C/ 5 Ways to Come Back

1. Morning mindful journaling
Write for 5 minutes about now.
Not yesterday. Not tomorrow. Now.

Overthinking isn't the same as thinking deeply. Mental rehearsals aren't real preparation. And living in your head isn't self-awareness, it's just absence.

B/ Why Work Feels Flat

When you're never here:

→ Work becomes boxes to tick, not work you care about
→ Meetings blur together

Research backs what I've seen for 20 years. Mindful employees report significantly less stress, better focus, and more creative ideas.

But here's what nobody tells you:

You catch:

• Every face in that meeting
• What wasn't said in the email
• How that comment might land wrong
• Why that strategy won't work

Life's happening right now. But, you're somewhere else.

That's the introvert trap.

We live in our heads. We replay yesterday's conversations. Rehearse tomorrow's meetings. Run through every possible outcome.

Our strength becomes our prison.

A/ The Present-Moment Problem

Introverts notice everything. But noticing isn't the same as being there.

I'm everywhere except here.

A director sent me a WhatsApp yesterday that broke something open.

She's senior. Talented. Accomplished. But completely disconnected from her work.

"I'm watching my career from the outside." Going through the motions. Present in body, gone in mind.

How have you handled micromanagers without burning bridges?

♻️ Share if you care

Turnover among introverted leaders dropped 60%.
Same deadlines, better quality, and zero hand-holding required.

Because when you trust people to do the work their way, they deliver.

Great leaders trust, then step back.
Micromanaging says everything about the manager and nothing about you.

In 20 years as a CHRO, I've watched this pattern play out dozens of times.

One company I worked with broke the cycle with a simple shift.
Outcome accountability instead of process control.

Leaders set the goal, and teams chose how to get there.

The impact was immediate.

We need deep work.

Focus without constant interruption and mental space to think through complex problems.

Micromanaging destroys all three, and it's why your quiet top performers leave first.

No drama, no warnings.
They're just gone.

Your best introvert is planning their exit.
They just haven't told you yet.

Micromanaging says three things:

"I don't trust you."
"I need control more than results."
"Your process scares me because it's not mine."

For introverts, this kills retention faster than anything else.

♻ Repost to help introverts: visibility isn't everything. Intention is.

→ Real leadership models rest, not just productivity.

You can build a career through constant performance.
Or sustainable success through intentional leadership.

One burns you out by Wednesday.
The other grows even when you step back.

→ I went from performing to leading authentically and my impact multiplied.
→ The shift? Self-management became non-negotiable.

7. Ignoring rest kills performance
Protecting solitude fuels it.
→ Introverts need quiet to recharge. Ignoring that is running on empty.

5. Networking everywhere scatters influence
Showing up intentionally builds it.
→ Career advancement for introverts: be present where it matters, invisible where it doesn't.

6. Chasing visibility creates exhaustion
Managing energy creates resilience.

→ Empowering others to lead is 5x more effective at avoiding burnout.

4. Loud leadership demands attention
Quiet leadership earns respect.
→ Empathetic leadership isn't about volume. It's about making space.
→ Inclusive leadership recognizes people recharge differently.

→ Nearly half of introverts in extroverted roles report burnout compared to a quarter of extroverts.
→ Protecting your energy isn't selfish. It's strategic.

3. Constant meetings drain focus
Delegation multiplies impact.
→ Being in every conversation limits your team.

and what drives career growth instead 👇

1. Performing extroversion kills energy
Self-management creates sustainability.
→ Forcing constant visibility? You burn out.
→ Strategic presence? You grow faster.

2. Saying yes to everything stalls growth
Saying no with boundaries accelerates it.

I stopped pretending to be an extrovert.
My career exploded.

Because showing up everywhere wasn't commitment.
It was fear wearing a name tag.

The truth?
You don't advance by being everywhere.
You advance by managing yourself.

What drains introverts in leadership

What boundary have you set recently that protected your energy?

♻️ Share if you're proudly wired differently
📩 Follow Steven Claes for more introvert truth

➡️ We're not antisocial, we're selectively social.
➡️ We're not slow, we're thorough.
➡️ We're not cold, we're careful.

In a world drowning in noise, that's not a limitation.

That's an advantage.

Stop trying to fix us. We were never broken.

➡️ And your definition of success isn't our blueprint.

If we let you in, you've earned it.

Not through persistence or pressure,
but through respect.
Through substance.
Through understanding that our boundaries aren't barriers, they're filters.

• Our deep work drives 3x more innovation because we focus on substance over speed

Depth beats width. Every time.

What I need you to understand:

➡️ Your need for constant stimulation isn't our problem.
➡️ Your discomfort with silence isn't our emergency.

We're protecting our energy for what actually matters.

The research backs what we've always known:

• Introverted leaders see 40% higher team retention because we listen more than we talk
• We outperform in complex problem-solving by 74% because we think before we act

Not because we can't connect widely, but because we choose connection wisely.

While others drain themselves chasing validation, we recharge in stillness.
While they mistake noise for progress, we find power in pause.

This isn't weakness. It's strategy.

We're not hiding or afraid.

Quick reactions got rewarded, and thoughtful strategies got buried under the noise.

That's when I realized something.

We don't need to compete on volume. No, we compete on depth.

We build fewer bonds but stronger connections.