Shyness is something that can be crippling for a number of people and it can actually lead to them largely withdrawing from society or only keeping a small group of close friends that they feel comfortable with. The good thing is that there are a number of things that the sufferer can do in order to control the anxiety they feel and what follows are 10 ideas that any person can apply should they find that they have a relatively shy nature.
1. Look at why you feel shy to tackle it head on
By understanding why you are feeling shy it does then make it easier to start to realize that there is nothing to be shy about. Quite often feeling shy is due to a degree of uncertainty about something so by eliminating the uncertainty you can then start to tackle it head on.
2. Remind yourself that the world is not really interested in you
A big problem is that people who are shy often believe that the entire world is looking at them, but the truth of the matter is that most people are too self absorbed in themselves to worry about others. Change your mindset from being self conscious of how others view you to being more self aware about yourself.
3. Remind yourself of your strengths
We all have our own strengths and by remembering them you can overcome your shyness as it is often caused by a lack of self-esteem. Remind yourself that your strengths give you an advantage over others and you are not as weak as you feel and an initial positive thought can then grow into an overwhelming feeling that there is no need to be shy at all.
4. Remember to actually like yourself
Due to shyness being linked to anxiety it does help if you can do something every day whereby you remind yourself that you are great. This then breeds confidence and when faced with a situation where you may have initially been shy it will be a good idea to remind yourself of your love to then not feel as shy.
5. Focus on others and not yourself
The shy feeling will often come when you start paying attention to your own feelings too much and it, therefore, makes sense to actually focus more on other people and how they are reacting instead. Learn about them and allow them to basically take the lead and when they are doing that try to work out what exactly you like about them to see that they are not to be feared.
6. Spend time thinking about your breathing
One problem with anxiety is that it does alter your breathing and you then catch on to it being different and the shyness can start to really appear. By switching your mind more to your breathing when you feel that shyness creeping up you can help to nip it in the bud before it gets too bad.
7. Work on creating a positive mind
It is often the case that people feel shy because they believe themselves to be inadequate; however, this is often all in the mind and it can help if someone who is generally shy can work at only thinking positive thoughts. Positive visualization and affirmations on a daily basis are a fantastic tool at making your mind and body feel more positive overall.
8. When you are feeling uncomfortable always tough it out
One main thing you should never do is flee a situation that you find uncomfortable no matter how difficult it may seem. This will only serve to make it harder for you to overcome the shyness and instead when it is all over you should then look at why you felt the way you did. You will also then be able to get confidence in having stayed there and can see that you did actually come through unscathed.
9. Remember that rejection happens to all
Everyone is going to suffer some form of rejection in their life and by accepting this it can often reduce the anxiety that the person feels in a situation. Try to not linger on it and move on, but do try to learn about how you felt and coped with it for the future.
10. Practice makes perfect
Look at trying to practice putting yourself into uncomfortable and build yourself up gradually until you can deal with any kind of situation. Accept that most people tend to be shy at some point so stop looking for some kind of personal perfection as it is not going to happen and by accepting this, you can start to actually deal with your shyness.
So those are just ten things you may want to try if you are a shy person and would like to overcome the problem. Do just keep in mind that there is no guarantee that each one will work for you; however, it is merely a case of trial and error and you will eventually discover the way in which you can start to beat the shyness that may have plagued you for all of your life up until this point.
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