Shyness

So I’ve always been pretty shy. Actually when I was little I would make my younger sister go up to the cash register to pay for something so I wouldn’t have to talk to them. Oh yeah, and how about that one time in middle school when everyone got “character awards” (side note: not that special if everyone gets one) and I got the meekness award? Ok, sur,e meekness is totally awesome and good if you understand it biblically, but I seriously don’t think they were referring to my humility. And at church camp when I was in high school and I got the “never talks” superlative or something lame like that. 

Basically all that so say I’m a little insecure about my social ineptness. And I’d like to think I’m slightly more normal in social situations than I used to be. And I really don’t mind being quiet as long as I’m not painfully awkward. And sometimes I’m not really quiet or awkward at all. But others times, I just really can’t think of anything to contribute to a conversation. Or maybe I think people are judging me, even  though they actually aren’t, and they actually just don’t notice me, or they’re judging me because I’m quiet. 

Anyways, this is a subject that I over-think way too often. It's not really a huge deal. And I'm completely secure in being a little quieter than most people. I really enjoy listening to people and I often pick up on smaller comments that a majority of the group might not catch. Sometimes, I need to put myself out there a little more than I do, especially if it means making people feel more comfortable around me. So yeah, that's pretty much it. Just random thoughts on shyness.

Here’s some tips for the painfully shy out there: 

1.      1. Pretend you’re the person you want to be. Wow this sounds really bad. Just make sure that person is really you, just an outward expression. It’s like being an actor. 

2.       2. Get over yourself.  People don’t really care that much. It’s more annoying to be a dead weight on the conversation than to look stupid every once in a while. Also, if your thinking more about what other people think about you than about meeting people, you're being totally selfish!

3.       3. Have questions to ask people and stories to tell already in your mind that you can incorporate into your small talk. Tried and true is always good.