# Workplaces that accept and accommodate quiet introverts



## Sainnot (Feb 6, 2021)

Anyone know of companies, jobs, or industries that fit that category? In my current job I am surrounded by people with little tolerance nor respect for introverts. Constantly being talked over or being shamed for not speaking up, and being ignored all the time.

it just sucks over time to have to deal with this every day for 8 hours or so


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## firelight (Jan 31, 2019)

Was going to say librarian but I bet you have to do a fair bit of talking and answering questions. Maybe something in computer science or engineering. Seems like any quiet and solitary job I can think of requires a lot of education. If you can save enough money I guess subsistence farming somewhere where land is cheap.


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## Sainnot (Feb 6, 2021)

firelight said:


> Was going to say librarian but I bet you have to do a fair bit of talking and answering questions. Maybe something in computer science or engineering. Seems like any quiet and solitary job I can think of requires a lot of education. If you can save enough money I guess subsistence farming somewhere where land is cheap.


Every software developer that I know has to attend stand up meetings, business meetings, project checkin meetings etc. Those are actually rather social jobs from what I understand because you have to work with lots of other jerks who are on the same project as you.


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## Socialmisfits (May 14, 2021)

I don’t think such jobs exist. I always thought of becoming a librarian myself but I don’t have the necessary qualifications? Same for working at the zoo. Sounds lovely to me but you’re not getting in unless you had university studie. I personally think its a bit much for someone like me who would be happy cleaning cages and feeding the animals


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## Greenmacaron (Jul 20, 2019)

Perhaps freelance work like writing or other creative stuff like graphic design or website creation... I think there would be less face to face communication and most of the time you would be working on the project.

Since the pandemic, apparently a lot of office workers have decided to remain doing their jobs from home, so perhaps an admin job with a work from home option would be possible.


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## WillYouStopDave (Jul 14, 2013)

I'd guess every job is way more stressful for someone with SA. Even if you're self-employed you're still going to be doing things that require awkward interactions with (probably) random people who you likely would not ever actually choose to speak to otherwise.

You could maybe try mentioning it in your interview that you are an introvert but I could see that being highly awkward and not ending well. Either that or they'd give a token nod and an "I see." and then completely disregard it, hire you and then treat you like they'd treat anyone else.

I find most of the time, even speaking up and going out of my way to try and help people understand why I am the way I am makes no difference whatsoever and just causes more friction when they fail to understand or fail to care (or both). Even my own family just doesn't get it. I think if the people who know me best don't understand even when I have tried countless times to explain it to them and spell it out, probably nobody ever will.

I think people either see us as an asset or an obstacle. If people see you as an obstacle, they will just try to get rid of you or circumvent you. The last thing anyone wants to do is accommodate someone who makes things harder for them due to the extra effort that is generated by the need to accommodate.


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## JH1983 (Nov 14, 2013)

Commercial driving, especially night shift stuff if you never want to see or talk to other humans at all. I would imagine coding and transcription work you do from home would require minimal interaction too.


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## Han-solo98 (Aug 6, 2021)

I work early morning shift at a bakery. Usually only me and 1 other girl. Thankfully she doesn’t have much to say.  Sometimes I have to help in the front and that gets my anxiety to skyrocket but it’s supreme rare that I’m up in the front with customers.


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## Blue Dino (Aug 17, 2013)

All jobs require some form of socializing one way or another. But ones I can think off top of my head where it has a large part of solitude.. Lab researcher? Accountant? Computer Programmer? Animator? Or lower end jobs, Custodian? Dishwasher? Grocery or Retail Midnight Stocker? Midnight Security Guard?

Royal Palace Gate Guard? Would definitely be a dream job for an introvert. Since you job description is to not talk and be antisocial. Meanwhile you will be surrounded constantly by waves and waves of people taking pictures of you and in your personal bubble, although you don't have to and cannot talk to them. So it will give great exposure therapy. And if you're angry and annoyed, you just show a grumpy, angry and pissed off intimidating expression with a stinkeye. Because it is in your job description to. While having a big firearm, it also gives you a sense of empowerment. If you have to pee but cannot yet, you can make an even angrier expression to wince and hold it all in.


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## EmotionlessThug (Oct 4, 2011)

I volunteered as a security guard at the Jewish Center in NYC, and all the volunteers kept calling me quiet and telling me why I don't eat downstairs with them. When I volunteered as a kitchen aid for the Senior Center the Hispanic people didn't respect me at all because I'm a quiet African-American. The manager of the kitchen never showed me how to work the kitchen tools or explain the procedures to me. I had another volunteer telling me that I always need to wear an apron and gloves. The workers and the volunteer criticized me right in front of my face while eating lunch, and I'm standing out place not knowing what to do. The kitchen manager said to me "if I ever worked with people before." When she was supposed to teach me how to be a kitchen aid. This means the supervisor failed to inform the kitchen manager that I was a volunteer. The public assistance program sent me to the Senior Center to get job experience because no one will hire me.


I'm now pursuing a degree in psychology. I don't know if I get a career. If I do get a career, I can see myself being criticized by my clients/patients in front of my face. I don't know if a person like myself can handle being a psychologist or psychiatrist because of my social anxiety. I was suppose to do Computer Science, but my environment and my situation will derail me from concentrating on programming. I already have trouble with English Courses and Math Courses. The English professors told me that my writing is unclear and my argument is weak. While my math professor said that I have to practice my multiplication table.


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## extremly (Oct 25, 2012)

Be careful not to conflate Introversion (a character trait) with social anxiety (a mental illness). I doubt there exists a job in this world were someone afflicted by a mental illness such as S.A is going to feel comfortable in, since it is an illness.

For introverts though, I have heard that a lot of creative and technical fields go well for the introvert mind.

My dream job (if I could only stomach blood) would be to be a forensic doctor. Just you, the morgue examination table, and dead people.... that must be super comfy.

Edit: I think you should challenge yourself as you are doing @EmotionlessThug. Psychology sounds like a very interesting field. They are in a way the "healers" of people like us who have S.A, so you might be able to "cure" yourself by studying Psychology. I have no clue how the field of Psychology works, if there is money to be made or what not. But assuming you make it all the way to be a legally accredited "Psychologist" you are going to be in an air conditioned office and help them heal psychological issues for a living. That sounds pretty awesome.


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## Dan the man (Jul 4, 2013)

My first job I had was actually very introvert friendly as an office manager for a small business. There was phone interaction with customers and vendors but 80% of the time I was alone in the office managing it. The other men were out in the field working. Customer billing, managing the books, filing service tickets, doing deposits, etc... were the main responsibilities. Sadly though nothing lasts forever. 

Yeah jobs require socialization but maybe something where you're not dealing with the general public would be a good start? Although it sounds like the OP's co-workers are causing stress


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## strange_world (Jul 13, 2021)

I think certain cleaning jobs, certain security jobs, driving & delivery, some basic admin jobs, car park attendant, certain night shift care work, leafleting, etc. In fact leafleting is one I'd love to do but sadly I can't drive.

Oh and the Mailroom in a big office building. That was the best job I ever had. It's a day job and you just sit around on your own waiting for the mail to turn up. I barely spoke to a soul except for 'hi' 'thanks mate' 'bye' when the mail van turned up. 

Second best job was working as a cleaner on the rail network. Night shift, hardly anything to clean usually so you just sit around watching TV all night in silence and get paid to do it!


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## WillYouStopDave (Jul 14, 2013)

Shortly after I completed a course in computer repair in the early 90s I took a job as a security guard thinking that it would be great for me because I already knew I didn't want a normal job with too much social interaction. I wasn't told I would be working as a security officer in a hospital emergency lot, where there was a ton of social interaction expected (Things are hardly ever all that quiet in an ER lot). This eventually fizzled out when they moved me from there to the hospital parking garage where I had to drive a security vehicle all around the garage, fill out paperwork and also patrol all of the surrounding streets in said vehicle while making calls in to the office to document the fact that I was doing it. 

The ER lot wasn't terrible despite the fact that it wasn't as solitary as I had been expecting. The parking garage thing was a lot more tedious and high pressure and I wasn't a fan. They eventually moved me from that to the nurse's parking lot where my job was to simply sit there in the hot sun all day. Which was plenty solitary but also hot, sweaty boring work in 1991. Which I think I would have probably been OK with if I'd been making better money for it. I was in the midst of my first attempt at leaving home at the time and that was minimum wage work.


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## Cool Ice Dude55 (Jan 7, 2014)

data entry clerk jobs were great for social anxiety. too bad they pay so little! Some office admin jobs are good for SA too, but it depends on the office however, and it's not something you can ascertain too well on a job advert.


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## Socialmisfits (May 14, 2021)

@WillYouStopDave didn't they ask for some experience for a job as security guard? I came across a couple of those back when I was still job hunting and I figured with no experience or background in it it was hopeless.


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## Socialmisfits (May 14, 2021)

@strange_world how do you even find these awesome jobs lol? What do you do for a living these days?


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## WillYouStopDave (Jul 14, 2013)

Socialmisfits said:


> @WillYouStopDave didn't they ask for some experience for a job as security guard? I came across a couple of those back when I was still job hunting and I figured with no experience or background in it it was hopeless.


 I don't remember. The job was basically given to me by the job placement people at the community college I went to for computer repair. They were unable to get me a job in the program I got the certificate for but they had guaranteed job placement (it just didn't have to be in what I trained for) so they got me what they could. I think they gave me a list of possible employers and asked me to check the boxes of the ones I might be interested in and security officer was one of them. 

Most likely some strings were pulled somewhere but the company I was hired by was not the official hospital security. It was a small independent. Which is why I didn't know where I would be working until they hired me. 

Anyway, when you're young, you might have more options. I think probably a lot of young people go into the military and that opens a lot of doors for many. That could be problematic for people with SA though. Obviously, the military is probably not the best place for someone who has SA.


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## Socialmisfits (May 14, 2021)

Thanks @WillYouStopDave 
I also was part of a job placement program but apart from a few day jobs ( I call them slave jobs as nobody else would do the hard physical labour) they never really found anything for me.
You mention the military. I would definitely go into the military if I was 18, back when I was 18 I just never thought about working so it never crossed my mind. But with what I know now I think I could have managed it. I think it could be a great way to bond with people and be part of something and be accepted. Not only that but you also physically get better.
I agree though it won’t be a good solution for everybody but it would have helped le a lot I reckon.


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## WillYouStopDave (Jul 14, 2013)

@Socialmisfits

It's kind of funny though because I was building computers in 1991 and most people didn't even know you could build your own computer back then. It took the rest of the world probably ten years to catch up to what I knew back then and I didn't even really appreciate the fact that that could have been an asset.

When I finished the computer repair certificate program, I was told it would be kind of hard to get a job in that because networking had just become one of the things everyone who was hiring computer people wanted. I didn't know the first thing about networking and was intimidated by the idea of it. If I had pushed myself to take another year or so of classes, I might have had a very different life. I also considered an associate degree in electronics but I knew some of the guys who were taking that program and tried to have them teach me the basics and it just wasn't working for me.


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## Socialmisfits (May 14, 2021)

@WillYouStopDave yes sounds unfortunate you didn’t realize that earlier. You can still be proud you know all those things though. What happened happened, I hope you don’t think about missed opportunities too much, not healthy!


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## strange_world (Jul 13, 2021)

Socialmisfits said:


> @strange_world how do you even find these awesome jobs lol? What do you do for a living these days?


Thanks, just lucky I guess! I stick to low paid, low effort work due to my SA and other problems. Often this type of work (the trains being an example) is so low down the list of priorities a company has that people just don't care or notice your performance much, and management are undermotivated and let you slack off a bit because they don't want to upset anybody.

I'm a cleaner in a courtroom at the moment. A lot of pretty bad cases get heard there. This isn't as SA-friendly as the jobs I mentioned, I have to spend most of my time teamed up with other members of staff. The lady I usually work with is very chatty though and that helps me out so I'm okay. Also I have to occasionally work around police, barristers, judges - scarily important people. I don't enjoy that aspect of it at all. I want to find something else asap.


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## JH1983 (Nov 14, 2013)

My current job is the absolute least socializing and interaction I've ever done at a job. I deliver automotive products in a box truck at night. Pick up the loaded truck every evening Monday through Friday, deliver to the same stores (all closed and unoccupied) every night, pick up any return pallets, then drop the truck back off when finished. Pay for fuel at the pump with a fuel card.

Unless something goes wrong I won't really hear much from anyone. If I break down I have to call an 800 number and they'll send help. If that takes so long the stores end up being open when I arrive that's the only time I'll run into anyone. That's fairly rare though. Most communications with management and dispatch are through text as well.

If you don't mind the heavy lifting and being out in the weather year round it's really not a bad job at all. 85% is driving listening to music or audiobooks. Comes with its own kinds of stress obviously though like bad weather, traffic, poorly loaded freight, etc.


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## EmotionlessThug (Oct 4, 2011)

extremly said:


> Be careful not to conflate Introversion (a character trait) with social anxiety (a mental illness). I doubt there exists a job in this world were someone afflicted by a mental illness such as S.A is going to feel comfortable in, since it is an illness.
> 
> For introverts though, I have heard that a lot of creative and technical fields go well for the introvert mind.
> 
> ...



I'm good at computers and programming. The reason why I majored in psychology because I was living in a family shelter without any cable internet to complete my college assignements. If I majored in Computer Science, I would of failed all my courses. I couldn't keep up with my math or essays for psychology in the shelter because I didn't really have any access to the internet. Psychology requires working with people and I have a really bad experience being around people because of their attitude towards me. 28 years of my life, I haven't worked with people. I got tired of being rejected from jobs since I graduated Highschool in 2012 at age 19, so I decided to go to community college in 2019 after getting denied from a 4 year college.

My grades in Highschool are very poor. I got 65/D on some of my classes and regents. My teachers encouraged me to stay in Special Ed Program/Resource Room. I always skipped Resource room because the teachers didn't interact with me to teach me the material.


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## Dan the man (Jul 4, 2013)

JH1983 said:


> My current job is the absolute least socializing and interaction I've ever done at a job. I deliver automotive products in a box truck at night. Pick up the loaded truck every evening Monday through Friday, deliver to the same stores (all closed and unoccupied) every night, pick up any return pallets, then drop the truck back off when finished. Pay for fuel at the pump with a fuel card.
> 
> Unless something goes wrong I won't really hear much from anyone. If I break down I have to call an 800 number and they'll send help. If that takes so long the stores end up being open when I arrive that's the only time I'll run into anyone. That's fairly rare though. Most communications with management and dispatch are through text as well.
> 
> If you don't mind the heavy lifting and being out in the weather year round it's really not a bad job at all. 85% is driving listening to music or audiobooks. Comes with its own kinds of stress obviously though like bad weather, traffic, poorly loaded freight, etc.


That could be tricky from my experiences if you aren't familiar with an area and wind up on a street with a bridge the truck is too big for. Then that person has to get out and direct traffic.

But what you're describing sounds awesome. At least if I did it a little while. idk if I'd get tired of it though


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## JH1983 (Nov 14, 2013)

Dan the man said:


> That could be tricky from my experiences if you aren't familiar with an area and wind up on a street with a bridge the truck is too big for. Then that person has to get out and direct traffic.
> 
> But what you're describing sounds awesome. At least if I did it a little while. idk if I'd get tired of it though



There is actually GPS specifically for trucks that would keep you out of those situations. We also have an app on our handheld devices that warns you of upcoming height restrictions. It's less of an issue for what I do because we're running the same roads and delivering to the same stores every night. 

As far as getting tired of it depends what you like. It is like Groundhog Day doing the same thing every day. You get comfortable with everything at least because you end up knowing the roads and stores really well. I've been here about a year and a half. Two years is my record for staying at a job and I'm pretty confident in getting past that with this one.


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## SwtSurrender (Nov 24, 2014)

Amazon warehouse. You don't even have to talk but you will get so isolated that you will want to.


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## VirtousD (Apr 2, 2017)

Post/mail man, Liberian, taxi driver, cleaner/garbage man, data entry are probably the best bets. You'll obviously still need to speak to your boss and colleagues but that's a far cry from jobs where you need to deliver presentations, train staff etc.


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## harrison (Apr 14, 2012)

VirtousD said:


> Post/mail man, *Liberian*, taxi driver, cleaner/garbage man, data entry are probably the best bets. You'll obviously still need to speak to your boss and colleagues but that's a far cry from jobs where you need to deliver presentations, train staff etc.


Don't go into libraries if you want a quiet job. I worked in them for years and often had to give talks, take classes and do tours.


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## WillYouStopDave (Jul 14, 2013)

SwtSurrender said:


> Amazon warehouse. You don't even have to talk but you will get so isolated that you will want to.


(I know this is old but I'm responding anyway because it's relevant) 

I would totally probably go for this if I was younger and in better health. I think I probably wouldn't be able to give it the energy they want now. My metabolism is so screwed up I can't even imagine having a job where I have to be going full blast all the time.


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