What’s harder: starting a conversation or keeping it going?

It may be hard to admit, but that's the first step. What's your social fear specifically?

For me, I almost fear the uncertainty of an interaction more than rejection. Try this super quick exercise for making uncertainty desirable instead. 1. Imagine that you’re watching a movie that you’re really into. Someone pauses it. You can’t find out the rest. 2. If someone did tell you the rest, it would kind of ruin it, wouldn’t it? 3. You have an anxiety or disappointment that you can’t continue it, right? 4. Transfer that anxiety or disappointment to an interaction opportunity that you’re visualizing right now. 5. Feel the anxiety and disappointment that you can’t find out what will happen in that interaction. This should assist in propelling you to take the chance.

When we remove the stakes and the importance from social interactions, we can free flow. It gets way easier. Think what it’s like to talk to friends or family members. Easy right? You can almost tell them anything right? That’s because the stakes are low and you’ve removed the importance of how well the interaction goes. Get your head around that.

That can go for the opposite sex and random people you run into. The ones that seem to reject you or are not into you simply don’t understand yet. Sure, some won’t have romantic interest in you, but that doesn’t mean they dislike you. Those girls or guys that have been eyeing you have at least some interest in you. What a great opportunity to engage - make a friend or meet a partner.