Are you comfortable in front of people, or does the idea of public speaking make you want to hide in the bathroom? Why?

http://dailypost.wordpress.com/2013/09/18/daily-prompt-public/

Although I’m an introvert and prefer to be alone or in small groups, I am still comfortable in front of people, and like public speaking.

When most people think of introverts, they think of shy people who run away from big crowds and hide in the back corner until they can leave. Although some introverts are like this, this is a better description of someone who is socially shy, rather than someone who is introverted. An easier way to describe the difference between introverts and extroverts is how they like to spend their relaxation time – alone, or with others. This shows how they recover their energy; introverts recharge alone, while extraverts recharge with others.

Thus, especially in my situation, introversion or extraversion can have very little to do with someone’s desire to speak in front of crowds. In my case, I enjoy speaking and performing in front of large audiences. Often times, I seek out opportunities to do so, and even speak online in the form of shout­casting during live stream broadcasts, if no person-to-person chances are available.

I think the easiest way to describe why I enjoy public performance is because the presence of others places pressure on me to push myself to the limit to make my performance as entertaining as possible. Trying my best in something and reaching new levels of achievement gives me a thrill that may generally not be possible if others weren’t there to push me forward. My introversion comes into play here at the end of the performance; when everything is done and over, I like to go home and rest by myself.

Note: After finishing writing this post, I looked back at the prompt and realized that it mentioned nothing about introversion or extraversion. Thus, I have no idea why I spent so much time talking about it and clearing up the nuances. So, in case you were wondering why I keep mentioning introverts and extra­verts, it’s because I apparently don’t know how to read and understand prompts on the first try.