Have you considered the possibility (part 2)

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(Continued from part 1.)

The inner-directed person

acts and does things for

himself.

His primary identification

is with himself as a person,

and his activities are an

expression of who he is.

He finds his fulfillment in

his response to the world

rather than in the world’s

response to him….

Another important difference

between these two personality

types lies in the way they

recognize their problems

and define their desires.

The inner-directed person

knows what he wants and

expresses it concretely.

He may say, for example,

“I feel I’m pushing myself

too hard and need to let

down,” or he may observe,

“My body is too tight and

my breathing too shallow.

I need to open up.”

He speaks personally

from a position of

self-awareness.

The outer-directed person

cannot do this; his demands

are general and couched in

broad terms like “I want love”

or “I want to be happy.”

This style of speaking denotes

a lack of self-awareness

and strong feeling….

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~ Alexander Lowen, Depression and the Body (1972)

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