#269: The Introverted Leader: Building on Your Quiet Strength

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How to Lead with Quiet Confidence and Create Partnerships that Thrive

Does it sometimes feel as though the workplace, or business world, was designed for the loudest voices, not for you?

In this episode of The Brilliant Business Book Festival, I'm joined by Jennifer Kahnweiler, author of The Introverted Leader (3rd Edition): Building on Your Quiet Strength, and several other books that change the business game.

Her work shines a light on what so many of us have felt: introverts aren’t less capable, they simply lead differently. And when they’re allowed to do so, the results can be extraordinary.

What follows isn’t just a recap of our conversation. It’s a deeper dive into why introversion is a leadership advantage, how introverts and extroverts can form “genius opposites” partnerships, and how practical tools like delegation and preparation can transform how we show up at work.

You’ll learn how understanding your natural wiring can help you prepare, communicate, and collaborate more powerfully, without pretending to be someone you’re not.

If you’ve ever felt overlooked in meetings, frustrated by fast-paced demands, or unsure how to delegate without losing your standards, this conversation will give you tools, strategies, and confidence to lead on your own terms.

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“Quiet leaders aren’t less capable — they’re often more prepared, more observant and more trusted.” - Jennifer Kahnweiler

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Why Introversion is a Leadership Strength

For too long, introversion has been cast as something to overcome. “Speak up more.” “Be more confident.” “Network like extroverts.”
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But Jennifer reminds us: introversion isn’t a flaw. It’s a foundation. Introverted leaders thrive because they bring qualities that today’s organisations desperately need:
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• Preparation: the ability to walk into a room having thought through angles, questions, and next steps.
  
  
• Deep listening: a skill that makes colleagues and clients feel truly heard.
  
  
• Meaningful connection: not surface-level networking, but genuine one-to-one or small group relationships that last.
  
  

Think of it like gardening. Extroverts may scatter seeds widely, covering ground quickly. Introverts plant fewer seeds, but tend and water them with patience … leading to stronger, longer-lasting growth.
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When introverts stop trying to keep up with the loudest voices and instead honour their natural wiring, leadership begins to feel more natural, more energising, and more effective.

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Making the Most of “Genius Opposites”

One of Jennifer’s most fascinating frameworks is what she calls “genius opposites”: introverted–extrovert partnerships that, when nurtured properly, create exponential results.

Through her research, she developed the ABCDE model for making these partnerships thrive:

• A – Accept the Alien: stop trying to change your partner; embrace their difference.
  
  
• B – Bring on the Battles: don’t avoid conflict, air it out early before resentment builds.
  
  
• C – Cast the Character: put people in roles where their strengths shine (the extrovert waving people down at a trade show; the introvert taking them deeper once they’re at the booth).
  
  
• D – Destroy the Dislike: you don’t have to be best friends, but you do need mutual respect, and a little humour goes a long way.
  
  
• E – Each Can’t Offer Everything: clients and colleagues benefit when both voices are present; difference leads to richer solutions.
  
  

The metaphor here is a pair of rowers in a boat. If both row on the same side, you go in circles. But when you learn to pull in sync from opposite sides, you glide forward faster and straighter than you ever could alone.

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“The right introvert–extrovert partnership doesn’t add up, it multiplies.” - Jennifer Kahnweiler

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Speaking Up — Without Being Loud

One of the biggest frustrations introverts share is being overlooked in meetings. You pause to reflect before speaking, and suddenly someone else has jumped in. Silence gets misread as disinterest.

But Jennifer offers strategies that allow introverts to be heard without forcing themselves to “perform”:

• Prepare key points ahead of time so you can contribute with clarity.
  
  
• Ask for reflection time (“I’d like to think about this and come back with a response tomorrow”).
  
  
• Follow up in writing with a synthesis of ideas, often more valuable than what’s said in the room.
  
  

Brené Brown has even built reflection breaks into her team’s meetings, so introverts (including herself) have space to process ideas before decisions are made. A simple but profound reminder that influence doesn’t always happen in the room; it happens in the follow-up too.

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Delegation Without the Guilt

Many introverts struggle with delegation — worried that tasks won’t be done to their standard, or that they’ll burden others. But holding on to everything creates bottlenecks, exhaustion and stalled growth.

Jennifer reframes delegation as a gift, not a burden. By handing over tasks:

• You free space for your strategic thinking, the work only you can do.
  
  
• You give others the opportunity to learn and grow.
  
  
• You prevent burnout, ensuring you show up as your best self.
  
  

Think of delegation like passing a torch in a relay race. You’re not abandoning the run; you’re ensuring the team as a whole keeps moving forward faster.

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The Quiet Confidence Advantage

If you take only one thing from Jennifer’s research and our conversation, let it be this:

Introversion is not just “enough” — it’s an advantage.

By honouring your natural strengths, partnering wisely with complementary styles, and creating environments where quieter voices are respected, you don’t just survive in leadership — you thrive.

And perhaps the bigger invitation is this: what if we stopped assuming leadership must look a certain way, and instead embraced the full spectrum of how people naturally show up? The result wouldn’t just be fairer, it would be far more effective.

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Final Thought to Reflect On?

What could shift for you if you stopped trying to “keep up” with the loudest voices, and instead led in the way only you can?

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Want to explore what this could look like for you?

‍Learn more about the ways you can work with Melitta Campbell to uncover your Value Sweet Spot to market, sell and grow your business confidently, and always on your terms.

Working with Melitta > 

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About Jennifer

Jennifer B. Kahnweiler, PhD, is a bestselling author and one of the top global leadership speakers on introverts in the workplace. Her pioneering books, The Introverted Leader, Quiet Influence, The Genius of Opposites, and Creating Introvert-Friendly Workplaces have been translated into 18 languages. The Introverted Leader was named one of the top 5 business books by The Shanghai Daily.

Jennifer has partnered with leading organizations like Amazon, Merck, Kimberly Clark, NASA, Bosch, and the US Centers for Disease Control. She has over 12 years experience delivering online presentations and courses.

She has delivered keynotes from Singapore to Spain. Her engaging presentations to diverse audiences blend research with provocative examples and practical tools. Jennifer has been featured in The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, and The New York Times and has appeared as a guest on over 100 podcasts.

Jennifer holds the Certified Speaking Professional designation, awarded to a small percentage of speakers, and is proud to serve as a mentor to many professional women.

She received her PhD in counseling and organizational development from Florida State University and her degrees in sociology and counseling from Washington University, St. Louis. A native New Yorker, Jennifer calls Atlanta, GA home.

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Read Jennifer’s Book: The Introverted Leader (3rd Edition): Building on Your Quiet Strength

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Connect with Jennifer

Website    LinkedIn

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About Your Host, Melitta Campbell

Melitta Campbell is an award-winning business coach, TEDx speaker, author of A Shy Girl’s Guide to Networking and founder of the Dream Clients Club.

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Through her Value Whispering^TM Blueprint, she helps introverted female entrepreneurs build quietly impactful businesses that grow through clarity, trust, and alignment.

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Learn more about working with Melitta here

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