Hey Reader,
When I began facilitating training, for the whole of the first year I wouldn't sleep at ALL the night before each workshop.
And every single morning, I was physically sick before I walked in to the room.
I have an anxiety disorder, so I put it down to that.
But no matter how little sleep I got, or how little I believed in myself, every time the feedback was collected, it was always the same:
100% outstanding.
Every. Single. Time.
Delegates from all over the country, who didn't know me and had no reason to lie, always gave me full marks AND sang my praises in the comments. My scores were so high one agency invited me to their fancy Christmas celebration as a thank you.
My brain always dismissed this feedback, and whilst as I got more familiar with working a room I was able to get a little more sleep, and I stopped being sick, it took almost a decades' worth of a consistently flawless feedback record (and the addition of NPS +100 scores) for me to realise that I'm actually REALLY good at working a room.
I know now I can walk into any room, anywhere, and command it without pretending to be someone else.
What I didn't understand for the first decade of my career was why.
It was only when I was working with Google on their #IAmRemarkable programme - training over 5,000 facilitators across 800 organisations in 169 countries - that I started to understand introversion properly.
The extrovert bias. The neuroscience.
The way environments are built to reward a particular kind of presence while systematically undervaluing a different one.
And, suddenly, everything clicked.
The Science
Introvert brains run on acetylcholine rather than dopamine as their primary reward pathway.
Where extrovert brains are energised by external stimulation - the crowd, the applause, the room's energy directed back at them - introvert brains are wired toward depth, meaning, and connection.
In front of an audience, that wiring produces something specific.
The secret sauce is preparing a presentation around what your audiences needs, not what you want to say.
You read the room rather than perform at it. You notice the person in the third row who has gone quiet, the energy shift after a difficult question, the moment the room needs something different - and you adapt.
The result is that the audience feels seen. And feeling seen is what makes training or a keynote stay with someone long after they've left the room.
Extroverted facilitators can get excellent feedback too - charisma is real and energy is contagious. But in my experience, across hundreds of sessions and thousands of delegates, what the room takes away is different. Charisma entertains. Attentiveness transforms people.
When it comes to working room, introverts actually have a natural advantage.
Here's what some of my delegates have said:
"Sometimes a talk hits you in the sweet spot. It articulates something you've been quietly struggling with. That was Sam's keynote for me. It's influenced the way I've been thinking since."
- Simon Andrew, EVP & Engagement Consultant
"I came out of that talk genuinely a changed woman."
- Marlene Lowe, Founder, The Emerald Agency
"Her keynote totally stuck with me and was a highlight of an all-round inspiring day. Her presentation felt so incredibly genuine and human."
- Nicola Kenny, Freelance Strategist
"Sam was absolutely fantastic. She held the session really well and created a community that spanned across the world within minutes. I was really impressed."
- Susannah Taylor, Online Training participant
Genuine. Human. Changed.
Nobody says that about a performance.
If you'd like more on how to work a room as an introvert - the preparation, the reading, the adapting, what to do with your nerves - hit reply and let me know.
In your corner always,
Sam 💛
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Sam Sheppard
Introvert Strategist
Neuroscience-backed insights for introverts who are tired of adapting to a world that wasn't built for them.
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