The topic of introversion is enjoying some major buzz, and can I just say, it’s about time? One of the most interesting conversations is happening around The New York Times opinion piece penned by Susan Cain, titled “The Rise of the New Groupthink.” Here are my thoughts on that piece, as well as some tips for putting the “I” in “Team.”

It’s interesting that as I was editing this podcast interview about collaboration, a fabulous New York Times piece by Susan Cain ran about the Rise of the New Groupthink. In her NYT piece, Susan expresses concern about the push in corporate environments to have open work spaces and a team-centric approach to innovation. She makes the point that solitude often sparks creativity, and groupthink trends don’t provide much space for solitude.

Today’s conversation serves as another perspective, this time looking through the lens of entrepreneurship. Rather than being forced into groupthink situations, introvert entrepreneurs often experience the opposite challenge of isolation, or of too much time alone. The middle ground between working in solitude and working in “all teams, all the time,” is strategic collaboration. My podcast guests, Monique MacKinnon and Patricia Weber, are examples of successful and strategic collaboration in action.

In November 2010, I wrote a prescient blog post entitled, “The Dangers of Being Home Alone.” My main point was that while I was working from home and technically “alone,” I was rarely alone with my thoughts because I was almost never unplugged, never disconnected. Part of me also felt that working from home alone was not the most productive place to be. However, my introvert self LOVED it because, while I was alone, I wasn’t lonely. It was a year before I decided to stop being home alone, and here’s the surprise realization that my move inspired.

Recently I was reading about the origin of fairy tales and various children’s stories. I happened upon the story behind The Princess and the Pea, and it fit perfectly into today’s podcast. In this day and age, being sensitive is sometimes regarded as being weak, or emotional, or thin skinned. You hear some people say, “Stop being so sensitive!” as if it were a disgrace to not only have feelings, but to show them.

This was not the case with the Princess and the Pea. On the contrary, sensitivity was a signal that a person was of royal blood. Think about that! It was desirable, and a mark of nobility, to be sensitive.

There are those among us – especially among us introverts – for whom emotions, feelings, sensations and the environment play a profound role in how we relate to the world. We are the HSPs, or Highly Sensitive Persons.

This interview with Ane Axford, CEO and founder of sensitive + thriving, Inc., is not only interesting, but life changing … at least it was for me. Ane and I explore what it means to be an HSP, and specifically, an introverted HSP.

For some of us, putting ourselves in a situation where we have to reveal our dreams, fears and triumphs to our peers is taking a huge risk, even if we value the learning that might result. It’s incredibly important to feel safe if we’re going to share what we usually keep inside, especially regarding our entrepreneurial aspirations. In today’s podcast, Cheri Ruskus of Victory Circles introduces us to a tool – the mastermind process – that provides a powerful way to create that safety so that you can make meaningful connections with others while strengthening your business.