What Is Your Social Capacity?

“Care’ is also a social capacity and activity involving the nurturing of all that is necessary for the welfare and flourishing of life. Above all, to put care center stage means recognizing and embracing our interdependencies.” – The Care Collective

There is the age-old question of are you an introvert or an extrovert, but did you know that there are actually four different answers you could have to this question instead of two.

You can be an:

• Introvert
• Ambivert
• Omnivert
• Extrovert

Of course, the one simple personality quiz is actually more complicated than we think it is. I am going to cover some of the key characteristics of each type. I find these quizzes and itemized things to be extremely helpful in getting to know myself better but also explaining myself to others and I hope it does the same for you.

Introvert

Ah, the lovely introvert. Known for being introspective and self-aware, which can often lead to overthinking. They are easily drained by time spent socializing or time out of their comfort zone. Content in solitude and need a significant amount of time to recharge and feel ready to face the world again. Those that are introverts are drawn to hobbies that can be done by themselves and keep to their routines. It does not take much to feel overstimulated which causes energy to deplete faster.

Ambivert

This is one of the four that are in the in-between phase. They often go with the flow due to now liking to make decisions. An ambivert is motivated by external stimuli. They know where their place is and they are confident in it. Similar to an introvert they can get overstimulated but it does not occur as easily or as often. They can switch from being an introvert to an extrovert without warning when they do reach the state of overstimulation.

Omnivert

Once again this is a lesser-known in-between phase on the introvert to extrovert scale. An omnivert can be introvert or extrovert, and the deciding factor is who they are around. An omnivert has a internal desire to spend time with others, but not just anyone. They want to spend time with those they care about, this is when the extroverted side can be most present. Those that are an omivert usually claim to be an introvert because they are prone to disappear after prolonged social interaction which is a classic introvert move.

Extrovert

Those that are an extrovert and drawn to people and conversations. They love to share and process verbally which means that they often overshare and do not know how to keep a secret. They feel isolated and can get depressed if they spend too much time alone. They definitely did not thrive during quarantine. They actively seek additional social stimuli and this extra stimulation gives them energy instead of depleting it. They typically have a big group of friends because they are friendly and open with everyone which means it is easy for them to recreate bonds with others and makes others comfortable enough to be open and share as well.

Conclusion

So now that you are well versed on the different areas and levels of social capacity. What is your social capacity? Where do you land on the scale? Nothing is black and white, humans are constantly evolving so you might be one thing today and something different a year from now. It is necessary to give yourself that space and time to grow and change. But also knowing where you are right now can help you more than you know. No matter where you fall or where you wish you were you’re doing your best. If you made it through 2020 then you can make it through anything.