This time I want to talk with you guys about a common personality trait that many of us may have. Do you experience your emotions and those of others more sensitive than other people around you? Do you easily feel overwhelmed in a surrounding with many impressions and other environmental cues? Do you reflect on almost everything and spend a lot of time thinking over issues very deeply? If your answer to all these questions is yes, then you may be a highly sensitive person.

Although being sensitive is often seen as an undesirable personality trait, it carries a multitude of significant benefits. Actually it is just like any other personality trait, meaning that it comes with challenges as well as advantages. Since I belong to the 15% of people who are highly sensitive, I can speak from my own experience.

What does high sensitivity bring to ME as a person?
I feel my emotions and those of other people more intensively
I often go deeper than the visible emotional expressions to figure out what underlie them. For this I have the tendency to largely use my creativity and imagination, which is another characteristic that highly sensitive people have. Since it comes all natural, I sometimes need to consciously remind myself not to dig deeper into people’s emotions.

Strong sense of empathy towards others
Drawn to other people’s feelings means that I can really have empathy with the person concerned. Offering a listening ear is frankly what comes natural to me. Sometimes I can be so drawn away by the whole situation that I begin to imagine what it feels like if I was in the same situation and I can even think about it for days.

Attention to details
I noticed that I am really attentive to small details. For example, when I walk into a room I catch every cue and impression. I probably will be the first one who notices the new pair of shoes you are wearing. The different enviromental cues can sometimes be so overwhelming that I need to take some time for myself to recover from the emotional experiences. On another note, if things do not reach the stage of overwhelmingness, I can really find joy and beauty in the little things.

Admirer of nature, music and art
The high attention to details explains why I can really enjoy being outside in the nature, listening to music and admiring art pieces. I can easily spend hours in a museum and being far from bored.

It takes longer to make decisions
Since I am sensitive to subtleties and small things, I have the tendency to take all of them into consideration during the decision-making process. This makes me taking relatively more time than other people to come with a final well-considerate decision. I will completely use the given time to weigh every possible outcome and make the “optimal” decision. The best thing is that when I come to know what the right and wrong decision for a specific situation is, I am able to quickly make that “right” decision in a similar event in the future.

How do I deal with high sensitivity myself?
I believe that the core lies in knowing yourself and being aware of how high sensitivity influences your reactions. Then it is about how to use it as your strength. For example, in time that when I got overwhelmed or when things become too much, I just find a quiet and calm place for myself in which I can come back to myself. Also, when I feel that I absorb the emotions of other people, I imagine there is a mirror around me which reflects to the outside. So all the emotions that people send my way will imaginarily reflect back to them. That way I create some space for me and let myself distance from those emotional issues which I am not able to solve, even if I wish I could. Moreover, I came to know how to use my detailed mindedness and imagination in the right situations, whether that is in in personal or private life. Also, when working together in a team, I will try to greatly make use of previous experiences and best practices to smooth current projects. These concrete examples all show you how to find power in being highly sensitive.

Do you recognise yourself as being a highly sensitive person? Have you find a beautiful way to embrace this personality trait and make the best out of it? I’d love to hear from you!

Until next time!

Love always,

Mee-Ling