The power of introverts | Susan Cain | TED

翻译人员: TIANHANG HU 校对人员: AiHack King

When I was nine years old,

当我九岁的时候,

I went off to summer camp for the first time.

我第一次去参加夏令营。

And my mother packed me a suitcase full of books,

我妈妈帮我整理好了行李箱， 里面塞满了书，

which to me seemed like a perfectly natural thing to do.

这对于我来说 是一件极为自然的事情。

Because in my family, reading was the primary group activity.

因为在我家， 阅读是首要的集体活动。

And this might sound antisocial to you,

听上去我这一家都不爱社交，

but for us it was really just a different way of being social.

但对我们来说 看书也社交的另一种途径。

You have the animal warmth of your family sitting right next to you,

你可以享受被自己家人围绕的温暖，

but you are also free to go roaming around the adventureland

但你也可以自由地漫游在 思维深处的冒险乐园。

inside your own mind.

And I had this idea

我当时以为

that camp was going to be just like this, but better.

夏令营就是这样，当然要更好些。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

I had a vision of 10 girls sitting in a cabin

我想象十个女孩坐在一个小屋里，

cozily reading books in their matching nightgowns.

穿着配套的睡裙 惬意地读书。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

Camp was more like a keg party without any alcohol.

事实上，夏令营更像是 没有酒精的派对聚会。

And on the very first day,

在第一天的时候，

our counselor gathered us all together

指导员把我们都集合在一起。

and she taught us a cheer that she said we would be doing

她教会了我们一种 在余下夏令营的每一天中

every day for the rest of the summer to instill camp spirit.

都会用到的加油口号，

来凝聚我们的“夏令营精神”。

And it went like this:

听上去是这样的：

"R-O-W-D-I-E,

“R-O-W-D-I-E，

that's the way we spell rowdie.

这是我们拼写“吵闹"的口号！

Rowdie, rowdie, let's get rowdie."

噪音，喧闹， 我们要变得吵一点！”

(Laughter)

（笑声）

Yeah.

对，就是这样。

So I couldn't figure out for the life of me

可我怎样也不明白

why we were supposed to be so rowdy,

为什么我们需要这么吵闹？

or why we had to spell this word incorrectly.

为什么我们非要错误地拼写 “Rowdy”?

(Laughter)

（笑声）

But I recited a cheer. I recited a cheer along with everybody else.

但我还是和其他伙伴一起 背熟了这个口号。

I did my best.

我尽了我最大的努力。

And I just waited for the time that I could go off and read my books.

我在等待可以捧起 我挚爱的书的那一刻。

But the first time that I took my book out of my suitcase,

但当我第一次把书从行李箱中拿出来时，

the coolest girl in the bunk came up to me

宿舍中最酷的那个女孩向我走了过来，

and she asked me, "Why are you being so mellow?" --

并且她问我：“为什么你要这么安静？”

安静，当然，是R-O-W-D-I-E

mellow, of course, being the exact opposite

of R-O-W-D-I-E.

“喧闹”的反义词。

And then the second time I tried it,

而当我第二次拿书的时候，

the counselor came up to me with a concerned expression on her face

指导员满脸忧虑的向我走来，

and she repeated the point about camp spirit

她重复了关于“夏令营精神”的要点，

and said we should all work very hard to be outgoing.

并且说我们都应当努力 去变得外向些。

And so I put my books away,

于是，我放好我的书，

back in their suitcase,

放回了行李箱中，

and I put them under my bed,

并把箱子塞回了床底，

and there they stayed for the rest of the summer.

在暑假余下的日子， 书再也没被拿出来过。

And I felt kind of guilty about this.

我对这样做感到挺愧疚的。

I felt as if the books needed me somehow,

我感觉这些书是需要我的，

and they were calling out to me and I was forsaking them.

它们在呼唤我， 但是我却放弃了它们。

But I did forsake them and I didn't open that suitcase again

我确实放下了它们， 并且我再也没有打开那个箱子

until I was back home with my family at the end of the summer.

直到在暑期结束我回家。

Now, I tell you this story about summer camp.

我刚讲的是夏令营的故事，

I could have told you 50 others just like it --

我还可以告诉你们50个类似的经历，

all the times that I got the message

在这些经历中， 我都反复收到一个信号

that somehow my quiet and introverted style of being

我的文静和内向的性格 挺不对劲的，

was not necessarily the right way to go,

that I should be trying to pass as more of an extrovert.

我应该努力变成一个外向者的角色。

And I always sensed deep down that this was wrong

而在我内心深处一直觉得， 这种想法是错误的，

and that introverts were pretty excellent just as they were.

内向的人做自己也非常优秀。

But for years I denied this intuition,

但是多年来 我都否认了这种直觉。

and so I became a Wall Street lawyer, of all things,

我首先成为了华尔街的一名律师，

instead of the writer that I had always longed to be --

而不是我长久以来 想要成为的一名作家。

partly because I needed to prove to myself that I could be bold and assertive too.

一部分原因是我想向自己证明 我可以变得勇敢而坚定。

And I was always going off to crowded bars

并且我总是去那些热闹的酒吧，

when I really would have preferred to just have a nice dinner with friends.

虽然我只想和朋友们 吃一顿不错的晚餐。

And I made these self-negating choices so reflexively,

我做出了很多自我否认的抉择

如条件反射一般，

that I wasn't even aware that I was making them.

甚至我都没有意识到 我做出了这些决定。

Now this is what many introverts do,

这是很多内向的人正在做的事情，

and it's our loss for sure,

but it is also our colleagues' loss

这当然是我们的损失，

但这同样也是同事们的损失，

and our communities' loss.

And at the risk of sounding grandiose, it is the world's loss.

我们所在团队集体的损失。

也许听起来有些夸大其词， 这更是世界的损失。

Because when it comes to creativity and to leadership,

因为当涉及创造力和领导力的时候，

we need introverts doing what they do best.

我们需要内向的人发挥长处。

A third to a half of the population are introverts --

世上三分到二分之一的人口都是内向的，

a third to a half.

三分之一到二分之一。

So that's one out of every two or three people you know.

这意味着你认识的每两到三个人中 就有一个内向的。

So even if you're an extrovert yourself,

即使你自己是一个外向的人，

I'm talking about your coworkers

我正在说你的同事

and your spouses and your children

和你的配偶和你的孩子

and the person sitting next to you right now --

还有正坐在你旁边的那个家伙，

all of them subject to this bias

他们都要屈从于这样的偏见，

that is pretty deep and real in our society.

一种在社会中扎根的偏见。

We all internalize it from a very early age

我们从很小的时候就 内化了这种偏见

without even having a language for what we're doing.

甚至都不知道是怎么一回事。

Now, to see the bias clearly,

让我们来清楚地看待这种偏见，

you need to understand what introversion is.

我们需要真正了解“内向”到底指什么。

It's different from being shy.

它和害羞是不同的。

Shyness is about fear of social judgment.

害羞是对于社会眼光的恐惧，

Introversion is more about,

内向更多的是

how do you respond to stimulation,

你怎样对于刺激作出回应，

including social stimulation.

包括来自社会的刺激。

So extroverts really crave large amounts of stimulation,

外向的人是很渴求大量刺激，

whereas introverts feel at their most alive

反之内向者则是相反的，

and their most switched-on and their most capable

他们最敏锐、最充足、最具有能力

when they're in quieter, more low-key environments.

是当他们处于更安静的， 更低调的环境中。

Not all the time -- these things aren't absolute --

并不是所有时候， 这些事情不是绝对的，

but a lot of the time.

在大多数情况下就是这样。

So the key then to maximizing our talents

关键在于

若想将我们这些内向者的天赋最大化，

is for us all to put ourselves

我们需要将自己 置身于适合我们的激励区域中。

in the zone of stimulation that is right for us.

But now here's where the bias comes in.

但偏见会来捣乱，

Our most important institutions,

我们最重要的一些体系：

our schools and our workplaces,

学校和工作单位

they are designed mostly for extroverts

它们都是为性格外向者设计的，

and for extroverts' need for lots of stimulation.

并且有适合他们需要的刺激和鼓励。

And also we have this belief system right now

我们现在有一种思维惯例，

that I call the new groupthink,

我称它为新型的“团队思考”，

which holds that all creativity and all productivity

这种思维觉得创造力和生产力

comes from a very oddly gregarious place.

都来源于社交场合。

So if you picture the typical classroom nowadays:

想象一下如今典型教室情形。

When I was going to school, we sat in rows.

在我上学的时候， 学生一排排地坐着。

We sat in rows of desks like this,

坐在一排排的课桌后，

and we did most of our work pretty autonomously.

学生大多会独自完成自己的作业。

But nowadays, your typical classroom has pods of desks --

但如今，一个典型的教室中 有的是一组组课桌——

four or five or six or seven kids all facing each other.

四、五个，六、七个孩子 面对面坐在一起。

And kids are working in countless group assignments.

孩子们要完成无数个小组任务。

Even in subjects like math and creative writing,

甚至在数学和创意写作，

which you think would depend on solo flights of thought,

这些本可以独立完成的科目，

kids are now expected to act as committee members.

现在孩子们被当成小组会的成员。

And for the kids who prefer to go off by themselves or just to work alone,

对于那些喜欢独处， 或者独自学习的孩子来说

those kids are seen as outliers often

他们常常被视为局外人，

or, worse, as problem cases.

更糟的情况下， 他们会被视为问题孩子。

And the vast majority of teachers

很大一部分老师的报告中都相信

reports believing that the ideal student is an extrovert

最理想的学生应是外向的 而非内向的。

as opposed to an introvert,

even though introverts actually get better grades

事实上，内向的学生有着更好的成绩

and are more knowledgeable,

更加博学多识，

according to research.

有研究报告显示。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

Okay, same thing is true in our workplaces.

同样的事情也发生在工作场合。

Now, most of us work in open plan offices,

如今，大多数人都在 开敞式办公室里工作，

without walls,

没有隔墙，

where we are subject to the constant noise and gaze of our coworkers.

我们在不断的噪音中工作 也暴露于同事的目光下。

And when it comes to leadership,

而当谈及领袖气质的时候，

introverts are routinely passed over for leadership positions,

在选择领导时， 内向的人总会被忽视，

even though introverts tend to be very careful,

尽管内向的人通常小心仔细，

much less likely to take outsize risks --

很少去冒险 ——

which is something we might all favor nowadays.

这些都是我们所称赞的气质。

And interesting research by Adam Grant at the Wharton School

沃顿商学院的亚当·格兰特教授 做了一项很有意思的研究

has found that introverted leaders

表明内向的领导们

often deliver better outcomes than extroverts do,

相较外向领导，更能取得高业绩。

because when they are managing proactive employees,

因为当他们管理主动积极的雇员时

they're much more likely to let those employees run with their ideas,

他们更倾向于 让有主见的雇员自由发挥，

whereas an extrovert can, quite unwittingly,

反之，外向的领导就可能， 当然是不经意的，

get so excited about things

容易对事物反应过度，

that they're putting their own stamp on things,

容易以自己的想法独大

and other people's ideas might not as easily then bubble up to the surface.

导致他人的想法很难出头。

Now in fact, some of our transformative leaders in history have been introverts.

事实上，历史上一些变革型领袖 都是内向的人。

I'll give you some examples.

举一些例子。

Eleanor Roosevelt, Rosa Parks, Gandhi --

埃莉诺·罗斯福、罗沙·帕克斯、 甘地 ——

all these people described themselves as quiet and soft-spoken and even shy.

这些人都把自己描述成内向， 轻言细语甚至是害羞的人。

And they all took the spotlight,

他们仍然站在了聚光灯下

even though every bone in their bodies was telling them not to.

即使这样做会让他们浑身感到不适。

And this turns out to have a special power all its own,

这成为了一种独特的力量，

because people could feel that these leaders were at the helm

因为人们都会感觉到 这些领袖成为掌舵者

并不是因为他们喜欢指挥别人，

not because they enjoyed directing others

抑或是享受众人目光的聚焦，

and not out of the pleasure of being looked at;

而是因为他们没有选择

they were there because they had no choice,

因为他们坚信的正义 驱使着他们。

because they were driven to do what they thought was right.

Now I think at this point it's important for me to say

我在这里必须提一下，

that I actually love extroverts.

我非常喜爱外向的人。

I always like to say some of my best friends are extroverts,

我总是喜欢说我最好的朋友 都是外向的人，

including my beloved husband.

包括我亲爱的丈夫。

And we all fall at different points, of course,

当然，在内向者到外向者 这一范围中，

along the introvert/extrovert spectrum.

人们都有各自的不同。

Even Carl Jung, the psychologist who first popularized these terms,

卡尔·荣格， 这个推广这些术语的心理学家，

said that there's no such thing as a pure introvert

说过世上绝没有一个纯粹的

or a pure extrovert.

内向或外向的人。

He said that such a man would be in a lunatic asylum,

他说那人若真存在 一定会在精神病院里。

if he existed at all.

And some people fall smack in the middle of the introvert/extrovert spectrum,

还有一些人处在 在内向与外向中间。

and we call these people ambiverts.

我们称这些人为“中向性格者”。

And I often think that they have the best of all worlds.

我觉得他们幸运地取得了完美的平衡。

But many of us do recognize ourselves as one type or the other.

但是我们中的大多数会认为 自己属于内向或外向的其中一类。

And what I'm saying is that culturally, we need a much better balance.

从文化上讲， 我们需要一种更好的平衡。

We need more of a yin and yang between these two types.

我们需要更多的阴阳平衡

在这两种类型的人之间。

This is especially important

这点是极为重要的，

when it comes to creativity and to productivity,

特别是涉及创造力和生产力，

because when psychologists look at the lives of the most creative people,

因为当心理学家们研究 那些最有创造力的人时

what they find

他们寻找到的

are people who are very good at exchanging ideas

是擅长交流想法、提出想法的人，

and advancing ideas,

but who also have a serious streak of introversion in them.

但同时也有着显著的内向倾向。

And this is because solitude

这是因为独处

is a crucial ingredient often to creativity.

是激发创造力的重要因素。

So Darwin,

比如说，达尔文会

he took long walks alone in the woods

一个人漫步在小树林里，

and emphatically turned down dinner-party invitations.

并且断然拒绝晚餐派对的邀约。

Theodor Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss,

西奥多·盖索， 就是大家所熟知的苏斯博士，

he dreamed up many of his amazing creations

他的许多梦幻作品

in a lonely bell tower office that he had

都创作于他在加州拉霍亚市房子后的

in the back of his house in La Jolla, California.

一座孤独的塔形办公室中。

And he was actually afraid to meet the young children who read his books

而且，他还不太敢去与

他的小书迷们见面，

for fear that they were expecting him this kind of jolly Santa Claus-like figure

害怕孩子们会期待 他是像圣诞老人一般的可爱形象，

and would be disappointed with his more reserved persona.

而会对他实际含蓄的性格感到失望。

Steve Wozniak invented the first Apple computer

史蒂夫·沃兹尼亚克 发明第一台苹果电脑时

sitting alone in his cubicle in Hewlett-Packard

也是一个人独自坐在

where he was working at the time.

惠普公司的一个小方间中。

And he says that he never would have become such an expert in the first place

他说他成为电脑方面专家

had he not been too introverted to leave the house

也是因为成长过程中过于内向 不敢出门。

when he was growing up.

Now, of course,

当然了

this does not mean that we should all stop collaborating --

这并不意味着我们都应该停止团队合作。

and case in point, is Steve Wozniak famously coming together with Steve Jobs

你看，史蒂夫·沃兹尼亚克和 史蒂夫·乔布斯的强强联手

to start Apple Computer --

创建了苹果公司。

but it does mean that solitude matters

但这证明了独处的重要性，

and that for some people it is the air that they breathe.

并且对于一些人来说 独处就像赖以呼吸生存的空气。

And in fact, we have known for centuries about the transcendent power of solitude.

我们已经明了独处的卓越力量很久了。

It's only recently that we've strangely begun to forget it.

只是到了最近，非常奇怪， 我们开始遗忘它了。

If you look at most of the world's major religions,

如果你看看世界上主要的宗教

you will find seekers --

你会发现探寻者：

Moses, Jesus, Buddha, Muhammad --

摩西，耶稣，佛祖，穆罕默德

seekers who are going off by themselves alone to the wilderness,

他们在旷野中独处并思索，

where they then have profound epiphanies and revelations

在那儿，他们得到了深刻的顿悟，

that they then bring back to the rest of the community.

并将这些思想带回并贡献给社会。

So, no wilderness, no revelations.

没有旷原，没有启示

This is no surprise, though,

尽管这并不令人惊讶

if you look at the insights of contemporary psychology.

如果你注意到现代心理学的思想理论

It turns out that we can't even be in a group of people

它反映出来我们甚至不能和一组人待在一起

without instinctively mirroring, mimicking their opinions.

而不去本能地模仿他们的意见与想法

Even about seemingly personal and visceral things

甚至是看上去私人的，发自内心的事情

like who you're attracted to,

像是你被谁所吸引

you will start aping the beliefs of the people around you

你会开始模仿你周围的人的信仰

without even realizing that that's what you're doing.

甚至都觉察不到你自己在做什么

And groups famously follow the opinions

还曾跟随群体的意见

of the most dominant or charismatic person in the room,

跟随着房间里最具有统治力的，最有领袖气质的人的思路

even though there's zero correlation

虽然这真的没什么关系

between being the best talker and having the best ideas --

在成为一个卓越的演讲家还是拥有最好的主意之间--

I mean zero.

我的意思是“零相关”

So --

那么...

(Laughter)

（笑声）

You might be following the person with the best ideas,

你们或许会跟随有最好头脑的人

but you might not.

但是你们也许不会

And do you really want to leave it up to chance?

可你们真的想把这机会扔掉吗？

Much better for everybody to go off by themselves,

如果每个人都自己行动或许好得多

generate their own ideas

发掘他们自己的想法

freed from the distortions of group dynamics,

没有群体动力学的曲解

and then come together as a team

接着来到一起组成一个团队

to talk them through in a well-managed environment

在一个良好管理的环境中互相交流

and take it from there.

并且在那里学习别的思想

Now if all this is true,

如果说现在这一切都是真的

then why are we getting it so wrong?

那么为什么我们还得到这样错误的结论？

Why are we setting up our schools this way, and our workplaces?

为什么我们要这样创立我们的学校，还有我们的工作单位？

And why are we making these introverts feel so guilty

为什么我们要让这些内向的人觉得那么愧疚

about wanting to just go off by themselves some of the time?

对于他们只是想要离开，一个人独处一段时间的事实？

One answer lies deep in our cultural history.

有一个答案在我们的文化史中埋藏已久

Western societies,

西方社会

and in particular the U.S.,

特别是在美国

have always favored the man of action over the "man" of contemplation.

总是偏爱有行动的人

而不是有深刻思考的人

有深刻思考的“人”

But in America's early days,

但是在美国早期的时候

we lived in what historians call a culture of character,

我们生活在一个被历史学家称作“性格特征”的文化

where we still, at that point, valued people

那时我们仍然，在这点上，判断人们的价值

for their inner selves and their moral rectitude.

从人们的内涵和道义正直

And if you look at the self-help books from this era,

而且如果你看一看这个时代关于自立的书籍的话

they all had titles with things like

它们都有这样一种标题：

"Character, the Grandest Thing in the World."

“性格”，世界上最伟大的事物

And they featured role models like Abraham Lincoln,

并且它们以亚伯拉罕·林肯这样的为标榜

who was praised for being modest and unassuming.

一个被形容为谦虚低调的男人

Ralph Waldo Emerson called him

拉尔夫·瓦尔多·爱默生称他是

"A man who does not offend by superiority."

“一个以‘优越’二字形容都不为过的人”

But then we hit the 20th century,

但是接着我们来到了二十世纪

and we entered a new culture

并且我们融入了一种新的文化

that historians call the culture of personality.

一种被历史学家称作“个性”的文化

What happened is we had evolved an agricultural economy

所发生的改变就是我们从农业经济发展为

to a world of big business.

一个大商业经济的世界

And so suddenly people are moving from small towns to the cities.

而且人们突然开始搬迁

从小的城镇搬向城市

And instead of working alongside people they've known all their lives,

并且一改他们之前的在生活中和所熟识的人们一起工作的方式

now they are having to prove themselves in a crowd of strangers.

现在他们

在一群陌生人中间有必要去证明自己

So, quite understandably,

这样做是非常可以理解的

qualities like magnetism and charisma suddenly come to seem really important.

像领袖气质和个人魅力这样的品质

突然间似乎变得极为重要

And sure enough, the self-help books change to meet these new needs

那么可以肯定的是，自助自立的书的内容变更了以适应这些新的需求

and they start to have names

并且它们开始拥有名称

like "How to Win Friends and Influence People."

像是《如何赢得朋友和影响他人》（戴尔・卡耐基所著《人性的弱点》）

And they feature as their role models really great salesmen.

他们的特点是做自己的榜样

不得不说确实是好的推销员

So that's the world we're living in today.

所以这就是我们今天生活的世界

That's our cultural inheritance.

这是我们的文化遗产

Now none of this is to say that social skills are unimportant,

现在没有谁能够说

社交技能是不重要的

and I'm also not calling for the abolishing of teamwork at all.

并且我也不是想呼吁

大家废除团队合作模式

The same religions who send their sages off to lonely mountain tops

但仍是相同的宗教，却把他们的圣人送到了孤独的山顶上

also teach us love and trust.

仍然教导我们爱与信任

And the problems that we are facing today

还有我们今天所要面对的问题

in fields like science and in economics

像是在科学和经济领域

are so vast and so complex

是如此的巨大和复杂

that we are going to need armies of people coming together

以至于我们需要人们强有力地团结起来

to solve them working together.

共同解决这些问题

But I am saying that the more freedom that we give introverts to be themselves,

但是我想说，越给内向者自由让他们做自己

the more likely that they are

他们就做得越好

to come up with their own unique solutions to these problems.

去想出他们独特的关于问题的解决办法

So now I'd like to share with you what's in my suitcase today.

所以现在我很高兴同你们分享

我手提箱中的东西

Guess what?

猜猜是什么？

Books.

书

I have a suitcase full of books.

我有一个手提箱里面装满了书

Here's Margaret Atwood, "Cat's Eye."

这是玛格丽特·阿特伍德的《猫的眼睛》

Here's a novel by Milan Kundera.

这是一本米兰·昆德拉的书

And here's "The Guide for the Perplexed" by Maimonides.

这是一本《迷途指津》

是迈蒙尼德写的

But these are not exactly my books.

但这些实际上都不是我的书

I brought these books with me

我还是带着它们，陪伴着我

because they were written by my grandfather's favorite authors.

因为它们都是我祖父最喜爱的作家所写

My grandfather was a rabbi

我的祖父是一名犹太教祭司

and he was a widower

他独身一人

who lived alone in a small apartment in Brooklyn

在布鲁克林的一间小公寓中居住

that was my favorite place in the world when I was growing up,

那里是我从小到大在这个世界上最喜爱的地方

partly because it was filled with his very gentle, very courtly presence

部分原因是他有着非常温和亲切的，温文尔雅的举止

and partly because it was filled with books.

部分原因是那里充满了书

I mean literally every table, every chair in this apartment

我的意思是，毫不夸张地说，公寓中的每张桌子，每张椅子

had yielded its original function

都充分应用着它原有的功能

to now serve as a surface for swaying stacks of books.

就是现在作为承载一大堆都在摇曳的书的表面

Just like the rest of my family,

就像我其他的家庭成员一样

my grandfather's favorite thing to do in the whole world was to read.

我祖父在这个世界上最喜欢做的事情就是阅读

But he also loved his congregation,

但是他同样也热爱他的宗教

and you could feel this love in the sermons that he gave

并且你们可以从他的讲述中感觉到他这种爱

every week for the 62 years that he was a rabbi.

这62年来每周他都作为一名犹太教的祭司

He would takes the fruits of each week's reading

他会从每周的阅读中汲取养分

and he would weave

these intricate tapestries of ancient and humanist thought.

并且他会编织这些错综复杂的古代和人文主义的思想的挂毯

And people would come from all over to hear him speak.

并且人们会从各个地方前来

听他的讲话

But here's the thing about my grandfather.

但是有这么一件关于我祖父的事情

Underneath this ceremonial role,

在这个正式的角色下隐藏着

he was really modest and really introverted --

他是一个非常谦虚的非常内向的人

so much so that when he delivered these sermons,

是那么的谦虚内向以至于当他在向人们讲述的时候

he had trouble making eye contact

他都不敢有视线上的接触

with the very same congregation that he had been speaking to for 62 years.

和同样的教堂会众

他已经发言有62年了

And even away from the podium,

甚至都还远离领奖台

when you called him to say hello,

当你们让他说“你好”的时候

he would often end the conversation prematurely

他总会提早结束这对话

for fear that he was taking up too much of your time.

担心他会占用你太多的时间

But when he died at the age of 94,

但是当他94岁去世的时候

the police had to close down the streets of his neighborhood

警察们需要封锁他所居住的街道邻里

to accommodate the crowd of people who came out to mourn him.

来容纳拥挤的人们

前来哀悼他的人们

And so these days I try to learn from my grandfather's example

这些天来我都试着从我祖父的事例中学习

in my own way.

以我自己的方式

So I just published a book about introversion,

所以我就出版了一本关于内向性格的书

and it took me about seven years to write.

它花了我7年的时间完成它

And for me, that seven years was like total bliss,

而对我来说，这七年像是一种极大的喜悦

because I was reading, I was writing,

因为我在阅读，我在写作

I was thinking, I was researching.

我在思考，我在探寻

It was my version

这是我的版本

of my grandfather's hours of the day alone in his library.

对于爷爷一天中几个小时都要独自待在图书馆这件事

But now all of a sudden my job is very different,

但是现在突然间我的工作变得很不同了

and my job is to be out here talking about it,

我的工作变成了站在这里讲述它

talking about introversion.

讲述内向的性格

(Laughter)

（笑声）

And that's a lot harder for me,

而且这对于我来说是有一点困难的

because as honored as I am to be here with all of you right now,

因为我很荣幸

在现在被你们所有人所倾听

this is not my natural milieu.

这可不是我自然的文化背景

So I prepared for moments like these as best I could.

所以我准备了一会就像这样

以我所能做到的最好的方式

I spent the last year practicing public speaking

我花了最近一年的时间练习在公共场合发言

every chance I could get.

在我能得到的每一个机会中

And I call this my "year of speaking dangerously."

我把这一年称作我的“危险地发言的一年”

(Laughter)

（笑声）

And that actually helped a lot.

而且它的确帮了我很大的忙

But I'll tell you, what helps even more

但是我要告诉你们一个帮我更大的忙的事情

is my sense, my belief, my hope that when it comes to our attitudes

那就是我的感觉，我的信仰，我的希望

当谈及我们态度的时候

to introversion and to quiet and to solitude,

对于内向性格的，对于安静，对于独处的态度时

we truly are poised on the brink on dramatic change.

我们确实是在急剧变化的边缘上保持微妙的平衡

I mean, we are.

我的意思是，我们在保持平衡

And so I am going to leave you now

现在我将要给你们留下一些东西

with three calls for action for those who share this vision.

三件对于你们的行动有帮助的事情

献给那些观看我的演讲的人

Number one:

第一：

Stop the madness for constant group work.

停止对于经常要团队协作的执迷与疯狂

Just stop it.

停止它就好了

(Laughter)

（笑声）

Thank you.

谢谢你们

(Applause)

（掌声）

And I want to be clear about what I'm saying,

我想让我所说的事情变得清晰一些

because I deeply believe our offices

因为我对于我们的办公深信不疑

should be encouraging casual, chatty cafe-style types of interactions --

应该鼓励它们

那种休闲随意的，聊天似的咖啡厅式的相互作用--

you know, the kind where people come together

你们知道的，道不同不相为谋，人们聚到一起

and serendipitously have an exchange of ideas.

并且互相交换着宝贵的意见

That is great.

这是很棒的

It's great for introverts and it's great for extroverts.

这对于内向者很好，同样对于外向者也好

But we need much more privacy and much more freedom

但是我们需要更多的隐私和更多的自由

and much more autonomy at work.

还有更多对于我们本身工作的自主权

School, same thing.

对于学校，也是同样的。

We need to be teaching kids to work together, for sure,

我们当然需要教会孩子们要一起学习工作

but we also need to be teaching them how to work on their own.

但是我们同样需要教会孩子们怎么样独立完成任务

This is especially important for extroverted children too.

这对于外向的孩子们来说同样是极为重要的

They need to work on their own

他们需要独立完成工作

because that is where deep thought comes from in part.

因为从某种程度上，这是他们深刻思考的来源

Okay, number two: Go to the wilderness.

好了，第二个：去到野外（打开思维）

Be like Buddha, have your own revelations.

就像佛祖一样，拥有你们自己对于事物的揭示启迪

I'm not saying

我并不是说

that we all have to now go off and build our own cabins in the woods

我们都要跑去小树林里建造我们自己的小屋

and never talk to each other again,

并且之后就永远不和别人说话了

but I am saying that we could all stand to unplug

但是我要说我们都可以坚持去去除一些障碍物

and get inside our own heads a little more often.

然后深入我们自己的大脑思想

时不时得再深入一点

Number three:

第三点：

Take a good look at what's inside your own suitcase

好好看一眼你的旅行箱内有什么东西

and why you put it there.

还有你为什么把它放进去

So extroverts,

所以外向者们

maybe your suitcases are also full of books.

也许你们的箱子内同样堆满了书

Or maybe they're full of champagne glasses or skydiving equipment.

或者它们装满了香槟的玻璃酒杯

或者是跳伞运动的设备

Whatever it is, I hope you take these things out every chance you get

不管它是什么，我希望每当你们有机会你们就把它拿出来

and grace us with your energy and your joy.

用你的能量和你的快乐让我们感受到美和享受

But introverts, you being you,

但是内向者们，你们作为内向者

you probably have the impulse to guard very carefully

你们很可能有仔细保护一切的冲动

what's inside your own suitcase.

在你箱子里的东西

And that's okay.

这没有问题

But occasionally, just occasionally,

但是偶尔地，只是说偶尔地

I hope you will open up your suitcases for other people to see,

我希望你们可以打开你们的手提箱，让别人看一看

because the world needs you and it needs the things you carry.

因为这个世界需要你们，同样需要你们身上所携带的你们特有的事物

So I wish you the best of all possible journeys

所以对于你们即将走上的所有旅程，我都给予你们我最美好的祝愿

and the courage to speak softly.

还有温柔地说话的勇气

Thank you very much.

非常感谢你们

(Applause)

（掌声）

Thank you. Thank you.

谢谢。谢谢

(Applause)

（掌声）