Don’t you wish you could be a social butterfly?
Or at least, be someone who doesn’t stumble with words and panic whenever someone strikes up a conversation with you.
You wouldn’t be reading this article if you didn’t.
You feel uncomfortable and nervous in social situations because you tend to, absentmindedly, do or say something inappropriate that makes you look like someone who missed Social Skills 101.
Admit it. There have been more than a few times when people didn’t get your joke or brushed off what you said because it was out of context or uncalled for.
It made you feel stupid. And it sucked.
But you don’t need to worry that this thing will haunt you forever. You CAN get over your social awkwardness.
Talk to more people and often
Practice makes perfect and this applies to social skills as well. Effective communication also takes some practice.
You need to hone your social skills by putting yourself out there and interacting with more people.
Get out of your comfort zone and mingle with different people. You might still be awkward. You will have slip-ups occasionally, sure, but you will not dwell on it because you will become more confident despite your awkwardness.
It is the most obvious solution, but we tend to dread it the most.
For introverts, it takes extra effort to communicate with several people and spend time with them because they are conditioned to enjoy solitude.
Build your confidence
Feelings of social awkwardness stem from fear of rejection and ridicule from people. You want everyone to like you and this makes you nervous and lose confidence.
When your confidence level is low, you fall prey to self-doubt.
Approach every social interaction with confidence. You will feel much more confident if you are dressed well and comfortably. Also, mind your body language because it affects how other people view you.
Stop reliving your screw-ups
It is no good thinking about how badly you embarrassed yourself in the past. Reliving those awkward moments will only make you cringe and leaves a bad taste in your mouth.
Forgive your socially awkward past self and start focusing on how you can improve yourself now.
Accept your imperfections
Everyone is troubled by social awkwardness once in a while; some people more than others.
And it can be a bummer because it makes you feel anxious about everything you say or do when you are among people. Because you’re overthinking every move you make, you will likely end up making more social faux pas.
Don’t be disheartened.
Confident people are not the ones who do not make errors; they admit it and learn from it.