Practical strategies to help you settle in, connect with your team, and contribute your unique strengths
Joining a new team of strangers can be challenging for introverts. Whether you're starting your first dev role or joining an established team, these strategies and tips from our own team members will help you navigate the process with a bit more confidence. And if you're already part of a team welcoming someone new, use these ideas to make their landing more comfortable.
1 | You’re Probably Not the Only One
It's completely normal to feel anxious in a new social or work environment. It's likely there are other team members who share that feeling. Introverts are everywhere in tech, even if they don't always announce themselves. Don't put pressure on yourself to become known to everyone immediately or to match the energy of the most outgoing team members.
“A lot of folks see me as extroverted but it's all fakery,” admits Gertruida from Entelect. “Over time I’ve developed strategies that help me to forge genuine and lasting connections.”
Remember: engineering is a team sport, but that doesn't mean you need to be the loudest voice in the room to make an impact.
2 | Prepare in Advance
Before joining the team, research and familiarise yourself with the project, technologies, and processes involved. Review any documentation, architecture diagrams, or code repositories you can access. Understanding the tech stack, domain, and current sprint goals will boost your confidence and give you concrete topics to discuss.
Preparation also helps in meetings. Review design documents before tech reviews, think through sprint planning in advance, and jot down questions before one-on-ones. Walking into meetings with 2-3 prepared points makes participation far less daunting and shows your engagement from day one.
Similarly, if you know you’re likely going to be asked to share something about yourself, prepare something solid to say in advance so you’re not caught off guard and panic forget your passions and interests when asked.
3 | Start With One-on-One Interactions
Initiate one-on-one interactions with your new teammates rather than jumping into group settings. This allows you to build rapport more comfortably and gather information without the pressure of performing in front of the whole team.
Use your daily standup to request someone's time: "I'm working on the authentication module today. Could I grab 30 minutes with you later to go over the current implementation?" This is natural, work-focused, and gives you a legitimate reason to connect.
Coffee chats work too, but don't feel you need to master small talk immediately. Starting with technical discussions often feels easier and naturally leads to more personal conversations over time.
Chris's tip: “Try working in topic fishing when talking to new people with hopes of landing on common ground. And if the fishing fails... well... ‘I've got a meeting in five mins' is a valid exit strategy.”
Gertruida's tip: “Keep a people map. A notebook with folks' names and what you learn about them. Sometimes it's work-related like roles and how they relate to each other, but other times it's stuff like if they have a dog or play sports or support a particular sports team. I can interact with a bit more confidence when I know I'm not making things up about what someone told me.”
Stay Connected
Our monthly newsletter keeps tech professionals informed with insider tech insights, career opportunities, and Entelect updates.
Jobs | Tech News | Memes | Culture
4 | Embrace Your Strengths
Introverts bring valuable qualities to dev teams: deep focus, thoughtful problem-solving, careful listening, and the ability to detect patterns others might miss. Knowing and acknowledging what you're good at gives you confidence.
When the team discusses something you're knowledgeable about, whether it's a specific technology, a design pattern, or a domain concept, add to the conversation. You don't need to dominate the discussion. Even a single insightful observation contributes value.
Start with lower-stakes participation and build from there. In retrospectives, you might excel at connecting the dots between seemingly unrelated issues. In design reviews, your tendency to think deeply before speaking often results in spotting edge cases others missed. These are genuine strengths, not weaknesses to overcome.
5 | Ask Questions and Actively Listen
Ask open-ended questions about the project, tech stack, domain, processes, and the people themselves. People enjoy talking about their work, so let them. Questions like “How did the team decide on this architecture?” show genuine interest and help you learn faster.
“I make sure to ask at least one question in every meeting,” says Gertruida. “It's less daunting than sharing information or being assertive about what I might know in the beginning.”
Asking for help also builds connections. When someone offers assistance, accept it. When someone else asks for help in standup or on Slack, volunteer immediately. Don't let the extroverts get all the glory. Jumping in to help showcases your friendliness and builds relationships organically.
6 | Balance Online and Offline Interactions
Not every interaction needs to happen face-to-face. When you're not feeling up to in-person conversations, joining in on Slack channels, team chats, or online banter can be an excellent way to stay connected without the energy drain of physical socialising.
Responding to messages, sharing relevant articles, adding reactions to teammates' updates, or contributing to technical discussions online all help build relationships. These digital touchpoints count, and they're often easier to manage when your social battery is running low.
The key is finding the right balance for you. Some days you'll have the energy for lunch with the team. Other days, a quick Slack reply or emoji reaction is perfectly sufficient to maintain your presence and show you're engaged.
7 | Find Your Community
“Try to join and participate in social clubs, which Entelect has many of,” suggests Nishal. “This is such a great way to get to know people and teammates if you are introverted as there's less pressure to actually talk and engage all the time. It is also much easier to bond over a common interest like Padel or chess, or whichever activity you enjoy.”
Social clubs, gaming groups, book clubs, or running teams provide natural ways to connect without the pressure of forced conversation. Shared activities give you something to focus on together, which often leads to easier social bonding than coffee chats alone.
Dev-Specific Strategies
Beyond general settling-in advice, here are specific techniques for participating effectively in common dev team rituals:
Daily standups: Keep it brief but specific. Instead of "I'm working on the same stuff as yesterday," say "I'm finishing the API endpoint for user preferences, then starting on the frontend integration." This helps you internalise your plan and shows engagement.
Tech design meetings: Review designs beforehand and bring 2-3 pieces of feedback to the meeting. Speaking up early helps other introverts feel comfortable contributing. Even if you prefer giving feedback offline, participating in real-time discussions is worth practising.
Sprint planning: Don't just code on your laptop whilst others hash out the plan. Actively contribute to ensure the plan is realistic, both for yourself and for others. Having a hand in creating the plan makes it feel like yours rather than something imposed on you.
Pair programming: Your team probably isn't doing enough of it, and it might feel awkward at first. But pairing is incredibly valuable for cross-pollinating knowledge and coding styles. Ask someone to pair for a couple of hours, prepare a succinct overview to orient them, and let them drive whilst you "ride shotgun." This forces you to articulate your thinking, which improves your own understanding.
Being a sounding board: Offer to listen whilst a teammate works through a problem 2-3 times per week. You don't need to solve it for them. Just helping them think aloud is valuable. This also sets a good example that makes it easier for you to ask for the same help when you need it.
The Long Game
Forming new habits isn't easy. You'll feel like a fish out of water at first, but increasing your communication level grows easier over time. The benefits are immense: to your work, your team, and your career.
Your unique strengths and perspectives are valuable assets that can contribute to the team's success. Begin building these new habits today. Start with something easy and gradually increase the difficulty level. With a little effort, you'll be connecting and communicating with your team like a master in no time.
