Extroverted at Home

“Chloe, do you want to go for a walk?”

Chloe looks at me with big eyes and follows me to the front door. Her tail is wagging with excitement.

Chloe, my toy poodle, is the only one home with me during the day. She isn’t much of a conversationalist but always good company.

As an extrovert living at and working from home, I try to get out daily to be people. But on some days when I want to stay indoors, I talk to Chloe about work and books and so forth. After all, she is people to us.

But it’s not the same. And yes, I know the difference. 🙂

Yesterday, I went to a local networking event called Coffee and Conversation. Two things I love the most!

On the enthusiasm meter between feeling meh and being super-excited, my scale read SIGN ME UP!

I didn’t know who would attend, but I didn’t care. I’ve always been good at networking events. I would make new friends; I mean business contacts. When I got there, I was happy to see people I knew. It’s nice to chat with friends first. Friends who don’t care if you had your first cup of coffee yet or not. (I hadn’t).

One friend hugged me, and we chatted about many things, especially jigsaw puzzles (another favorite pastime of mine that we share). I huddled beside my other friend who showed me photos from her son’s wedding. Everything looked beautiful, and I told her so.

And then, the networking officially began. The formal part of the event gives everyone the opportunity to give a 30-second elevator speech. After my spiel, one attendee made a beeline to me, and we talked for a while about her nonprofit. We had a lot in common, and my heart did an internal happy dance.

And then she gave me a hug. She had no idea how much I needed another hug. We are having breakfast next week.

I didn’t really want to leave because there was more people to talk to. However, the weather was getting nasty outside, and I had a few calls to make at home. And Chloe missed me. Plus, everyone else needed to get back to work.

Do I sound needy? I hope not. I do enjoy working from home. When I’m busy, the hours fly by, and I don’t feel the need to go anywhere. But on quiet days, it’s a different story. I think about those water cooler moments where I used to socialize with colleagues while we made our breakfast or grab a doughnut from the break room. While Zoom boxes get the job done, it’s not like sitting in cubicles overhearing the latest gossip and interrupting each other’s conversations.

Weird. I used to hate the interruptions, and sometimes, I actually look forward to them. Because above all, it’s the connections I miss the most. And because, you know…people.

And people who need people are the luckiest people in the world.

Author’s Note: I had no idea how to end this, so I chose Barbra Streisand. 

Are you an extrovert working from home? Or are you an introvert that is thankful COVID changed the way we all work now? Tell me in the comments.

XO,

Elisa