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between Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak. It was the tech genius Steve Wozniak who invented the Apple I all alone and wanted to give it away for free. Steve Jobs persuaded him to found a company. Wozniak, as a real introvert, left this growing company early and though he is admired by many, it is Steve Jobs who became a world famous figure. This example leads to the question of whether or not introversion is a handicap in the tech professions. Of course, there are professions like politics and marketing in which introversion is a major handicap, if not an unsurpassable barrier. Nowadays tech companies look for team players ready to work in the open plan offices. This perspective and workplace design may however block productivity and creativity. Susan Cain cites a recent survey on the productivity of more than 600 programmers from 90 companies. Performance differences between companies were significant. Productivity was best predicted by privacy and being able to work without interruptions. 62% of the best vs. 19% of the worst performers said their workspace provided sufficient privacy and 76% of the worst vs. 38% of the best performers complained about frequent interruptions. Of course, there will probably be a lot of extroverts in this sample. The reclusive introvert is just a bit more radical in creating something which in the end everybody needs; a workplace that helps to focus attention. Also the notion that great products are primarily the result of collaborative efforts is not generally true for this area in which teamwork is lauded so often, Google, Facebook and Twitter now have thousands of developers, but the original idea and the basic code was supplied by a very small group, or just one person. Web 2.0 visionaries often say that people not joining the movement run the risk of becoming invisible to the world in the near future. Most likely being extroverts themselves they overlook that some introverts will not really mind as long as they have real friends and family. But for many people there is something even more important than being socially embedded in an often superficial manner, namely their work. The individuals creating great ideas and technologies to enrich our lives will always need only a modest outpost on the net.
The Rise of the New Groupthink (Susan Cain) www.managing-essentials.com/2bt