INTROVERT TESTIMONY

The richest people with ideas and mental productivity are the introverts. When i talk about introvert, i predominantly speak about those who are melancholic and phlegmatic. Melancholic are analytical, wise and quiet. They love  their families and friends, and as such doesn't look for novelty and adventure. They try all means to avoid public functions, always unwilling to be known. They love to work underground. They are unlikely to marry foreigner or leave their homeland for another country. They are socially oriented always seeking to contribute to the community.


They are extremely orderly and accurate and are best in managing people. They are likely to be seen in careers like management, accounting, social work or administration. They are very obedient to laws and regulations and they the best lovers in a relationship.

Phlegmatic are the most introverted individuals. They seek interpersonal harmony and close relationships. They are likely not going to gist with anyone except their very own close friends. Even within their family, you are likely to find them uninteresting because they are secretive and never share experience with anyone. The only way you could make them your gist partner is to become their best friend. They are loyal spouses and loving parents. They tend to avoid conflicts and always try to mediate between others to restore peace and harmony. They are usually into charity and helping others. They are likely to be seen in careers like nursing, teaching, psychology or counseling, child development or social services. They tend to preserve their relationships with old friends, distant family members, and neighbors.

I'm a melancholic and i struggle with public functions because of my personality. As a kid, the only people that knows I'm a talkative is my parent and siblings. I could jokes with them and say anything else with them but once I'm out of the house, i resolve to sign language. Many are likely to say probably may be i was dumb but i wasn't. In fact, it took me time to learn how to speak because i was always afraid of making mistake in public. What i detest most as an introvert is public mockery which kept me in my shell, never to try anything. I could remember traveling with my mum to Oro, Kwara State as a kid from Lokoja in Kogi state, and at every point in time i'm hungry or thirsty, i had to touch my mum and make sign languages. The others passengers are likely to say that i'm a dumb. I could recall my slag as a kid if i want to visit the toilet, i will take a shoe, a leg of a pair, raise it and show it to my mum saying "Mama, bata poo poo poo". It is only my immediate family that understood my sayings.

Handing over 2015, FCS ABU

At that infant stage, the words from my mouth are like the saying of elders. There was no one i can't insult or give a challenge in as much as we are close. I was full of ideas, and thoughts of all kinds runs through my heads. At that stage, i asked intelligent questions within myself that only God could answer. Some of the questions running within me then includes "If God created all things, who created God?", "What is the raw material of creating the earth", "Who gave birth to Satan?", "Why do people die?" etc. Some of these questions i was able to get answer to them but some, i really have to let go.

As i grew up, i was never seen making friends besides those we live together. My only friend in Primary school was John Aiyemiro whose Dad happen to be the one that usually drop us with his car after school. There was nothing i couldn't tell John those days but others in the class are all far from me. Until i got to Primary Five and i took third position, i didn't change my friend. It was the position i took that makes Attah Ajodoh became my friend because he was the one that took second position. Those days, it happens that the ladies usually leads the class, it was Attah and her that broke the chain. In Primary Six, i was to be made assistant Head boy but the teachers said i will be too quiet to handle the Pupils. Therefore, i was made Health Prefect while Someone else was given the post. Because of my prowess in Mathematics, i got some friends in the class who always want to learn math with me and get challenge. These guys soon became my group of friends.

I was deprived of being assistant head boy because of my being introvert but when the person given the responsibility was unable to meet up with the responsibility, i was asked to take the job. One good thing about introvert is that they are not usually willing to take a job but once given, their results is usually spectacular. My first function was to help the school to win "Best Solution Competition" which Rosemary Anikoh and Fujirat Gimba represented the school. We had about 10 other students who went to cheer the participant of which i was part. Most of the questions threw to the public was answered by me and as such everyone celebrated me for my little contribution to the victory. Every introvert breaks out of their shell once they see encouragement and appreciations for each success they achieved. I started getting confident to contribute also in class. I was later asked to join the participants in preparation for the final stage of the competition. Rosemary was specialize in maths, Fujirat for English while i handle the General Knowledge (Most specifically Current affairs).

Because of my academic performance, i was doubling up as Assistant Head boy and Class Captain. This was a point i was elected into unopposed because people believed i can easily be undercut because i was quiet. Little did they know i have a way to handle their kind and as such few of my friends called me "Slow Poison". Being the best in mathematics, i soon became my teacher favorite and as such if he tried to explain to us then and almost all the pupils couldn't understand, Mr. Gbenga John will ask me to come forward to explain to the class. With shaking and shivering, i usually don't know what i do say that makes others to understand; all i knew is that they always understand. This was how i started teaching from Primary six.

The more an introvert is expose to public speaking and functions, they tend to overcome their weaknesses. One of the teacher and the Headmistress then will usually ask the social Prefect, Elizabeth Motunrayo Anshewo and myself to lead the assembly. I had to stand before over 500 pupils to talk, it was like the ground should open and i been swallow up by it. But as time goes on, i started getting use to the stage. Someone who doesn't want to be noticed soon became almost the popular guy in school. At some points, some people including parents hardly knew i wasn't the head boy. In fact, till date many still call me head boy. That was how i was brought out of my shell.

But my transformation was for a while because i was to change school in a short while. Being a students of St. Thomas Aquinas Secondary School, i got to meet students from other schools that are more advance than mine. As introvert often feel, i was eaten up with inferiority complex. I had to pick friends from the schools that are of same level with mine. I struggled with it and it drastically affected my performance in class. My friendship with Dapo brought me out of my shell. I could remember acting drama with him, i was a drunkard and he was the pastor preaching to me. My teachers believed i was quiet but my friends knew i wasn't. I was almost living a double life, a notorious talkative in a place and an absolute dove-like quietness in another. I could remember my Dad trying to report my nonchalant attitudes at home to my school principal but before he started talking, the principal and other teachers are already talking good of me. That was how my Dad was short of speech and he returned home. An introvert is likely to be seen living a double life, the fact remains that they response to what the society or environments bring to them.

My deliverance was a principal the entire school hated, myself inclusive. Reverend Sister, Anthonia Uche HHCJ, started her transformation agenda by making me Time Keeper of the school. This usually makes me attend the assembly. The day of my breaking came when she decided to asked me to lead the assembly. I was like, "Time keepers don't lead assembly", but she insisted. I was praying for a miracle that will just help me not to end up at the front of the students but God choose to answer it the other way round. I could remember i was shaking, shivering, quaking and suddenly became a stammerer. I led the prayers and the national anthem that day with series of mistakes, with Moses kind of stammering. I was like this wicked woman find me out today. But she was planning to develop me. After the assembly that day, i was thinking that was the end until she said i will continue that on daily basis for two weeks until i'm able to face the crowd. This is how i conquered my fears and became one that face crowd on daily basis. This makes me to be used with the school stages and soon i became the most social students with my involvement in many school activities. So funny, how an introvert suddenly became the favorite senior of most junior students, became their situational mathematics teacher, and play with them as though we are all mates.

After secondary school, i thought my introvert syndrome was over until i found myself in University. I wasn't understanding anything in the class and i knew several others are not. It came to me that no one is fighting for first position, all we are all striving for is first class. Then i decided to call my classmates, the christian students after FCS meeting to plan how we can start tutorial to help each other. I was thinking i can quietly do that and escape leadership position; little did i know God was putting me in roles to get me out of my syndrome. I was in the room that afternoon and i heard "You are the class coordinator". As at then, i really do not know what it meant to be a coordinator. Then Bro Josiah walked to me after one fellowship day and introduced the President, Bro Gospel Mike to me and they both told me that i will be coordinating my class. I was told my female partner will be Lovita. Even though as at then i don't know who she is, i believed she will handle everything only to find out we are both introverts. I almost asked the ground to open and swallowed me up, may be the cup will pass me by. I remembered crying in my room saying "Lord, not my will but let your will be done".



Gbenle Joshua Oladimeji (Josh)
CEO Flamecouture

I was a Coordinator behind the scene. When we come for class prayers, i usually lost idea of what i will say irrespective of the series of rehearsals i would have done in the class. Most of the time, i asked my classmates to lead prayers. Thank God for my rescue team then, Bro Isaac Jimba and Bro Gbenle Joshua are my help when we lost balance while leading prayers. A call at any of them will cause a fire branding prayers. Then i notice Bro Isaac story helps people to pray well and Josh (Gbenle) will always tell us the visions of rapture he saw to stirs us to pray. When i notice that, i started praying and looking for story to always say too. Don't blame me o, i'm learning from the available tutors. Not to offend God, i will say something spoke to me instead of the Holy Spirit. Until the day i was speaking with Nancy Usman and she said the voice is the Holy Spirit and she taught me how to identify the voice of the Holy Spirit. That was how i leverage of the voice i heard to face the crowd and speak.


Nancy Usman and Myself 2014

Not long i started leading class prayers myself, my course mates started complaining that my voice is not loud. I recalled Wesley telling me after one of such class prayers that "Papa, Bebishara, your voice is loud in the hostel when talking to people and silent in the class, always speak out". They were thinking it was intentional but it wasn't, i was using it to try kill the shyness in me. Not long, i got used to the class and i totally conquered it. Remember, the more an introvert is exposed to a crowd, the more he gains confidence to face it. 

As times goes on, i started learning other things to help controls my emotional instability on stage. So, besides story tell and visions declarations, i went into singing, telling jokes and other scheming. When i realized my jokes call a lot of attentions, i decided to launch into it. Today, a lot of people find me joking and playing and concludes that i'm extrovert. It sounds so funny how someone presumed to be dump as a kid because of introvert, is now known as an extrovert. I've forcefully and officially find myself addressing several individuals at different places and as such gain the emotional balance to face any crowd and give a speech.

If you have an introvert around you, help such to get out of her shell, ensure you expose them to the public functions. They can't help themselves get out of the shell, you need to help them get out. But trust me, as soon as an introvert get use to a particular audience; he automatically build a stability against shyness. However, an introvert can not be 100% cure of the intovertism, there will surely still be particles of it. On my part, i'm still shy to sing in public, still shy to ask a lady out, still shy to eat in crowds, still shy of visiting a female colleagues. No Matter how well an introvert have successfully worked on himself, the introvert in him will sometimes unveil itself. Finally, i could face massive crowd to speak, my relationships with greats minds pay off.