Hey @The Sum of Awe
I haven't posted in here that I remember before, but I was a weird mix of maturity and immaturity, confidence and extreme shyness when I was young. Not really the case at all now, for both better and worse...lol
So I'm casting back to see if there is anything I can think of that hasn't already been mentioned, and which might be helpful.
One thing that made it easier over time was that I didn't see each individual interaction as super important and meaningful in the way I did when younger. Talking to a shop assistant...particularly a pretty one...was tough! And then, because of the stress, it would go less well. Which made the next one tough. Etc, etc.
I started to look at it as one of a set of interactions. Like...hey, I'm going to talk to 20 shop assistants this month, some will go better than others, but none of them are really life changing. That type of thing.
Trying to force some perspective on yourself about the importance of any one conversation can over time help you put less pressure on yourself. And ultimately that's what is undermining you. Just need a way to hit the release valve.
And stop comparing yourself to others. Your strength is your weakness, and vice versa. Now that I can be casual and confident with everyday conversational transactions, I miss things that old me would have noticed.
Different is ok.
I haven't posted in here that I remember before, but I was a weird mix of maturity and immaturity, confidence and extreme shyness when I was young. Not really the case at all now, for both better and worse...lol
So I'm casting back to see if there is anything I can think of that hasn't already been mentioned, and which might be helpful.
One thing that made it easier over time was that I didn't see each individual interaction as super important and meaningful in the way I did when younger. Talking to a shop assistant...particularly a pretty one...was tough! And then, because of the stress, it would go less well. Which made the next one tough. Etc, etc.
I started to look at it as one of a set of interactions. Like...hey, I'm going to talk to 20 shop assistants this month, some will go better than others, but none of them are really life changing. That type of thing.
Trying to force some perspective on yourself about the importance of any one conversation can over time help you put less pressure on yourself. And ultimately that's what is undermining you. Just need a way to hit the release valve.
And stop comparing yourself to others. Your strength is your weakness, and vice versa. Now that I can be casual and confident with everyday conversational transactions, I miss things that old me would have noticed.
Different is ok.