Taking Action!: How To Take Action As An Introvert

“Taking Action! : How to take action as an introvert.” Blue background with a drawing a hand holding a megaphone. The megaphone is while with a navy blue outline and a purple detail near handle. Purple lines near the right side of the megaphone to signal sound.

When you think of an activist, what do you envision?

A person who is vocal, probably with a megaphone, mobilizing people on why the issue is important to them in a massive event? Having the courage to disrupt systems in a massive way?

Yeah, same. Or I used to. 

I am going to be honest, I do not see myself in these situations. I need all the limited energy I have to do my day-to-day work so as an introvert, this vision of an activist is intimidating. But, it is not the only view of activism and advocacy, it is just the one that the media utilize the most.

Blue background with a drawing a hand holding a megaphone. Behind the megaphone is a tie-dye blob shape. The megaphone is while with a navy blue outline and a purple detail near handle. Purple lines near the right side of the megaphone to signal sound.

Through my education and work, I have learned that there are different ways of enacting social change. And we need them all to have an effective social movement. The Common Social Change Library has an excellent resource about “The Four Roles of Social Activism by Bill Moyer” which can give an overview of what I learned in my political studies seminar on activism. This is what shifted my mindset to understand that advocating can be for everyone, the methods are  just different.

So, what can you do?

Here are important things to consider that I learned along the way.

• Small changes can be quite impactful, you never know what you advocate for and share can shift a person’s perspective and potentially inspire an idea and/or change.

• Many actions are not necessarily recorded, especially for made-marginalized individuals, it is not any less important than the one that made the news, there are many systems that affect the media to showcase a specific point of view.

• There may be priorities, but different perspectives are still crucial and it can be missed. You can still talk about them even if it does not seem to be high on everyone’s list, YOUR perspective is important.

So, what are some ways you can take action?

• You can start locally in your communities. A good starting point is going to a place that is familiar that can provide a space for conversations.

• You can focus digitally, with the numerous options of social media platforms and websites, there are many opportunities to use your voice (kind of like how I am doing it on Amanda Listens).

• You can find like-minded people to do initiatives together and utilize each other's skills and interests.

• You can find programs that can teach you how to do activism/advocacy and provide tools and the space to start your own initiatives. 

• You can use different mediums that can provoke thinking and engagement (artivism is something that people do).

There are many different approaches and I am not the only person who provides their learnings to help people get started. Feel free to find people within your interests and passions for change to get inspired by their work.

Amanda