Have you heard yourself or a loved one repeatedly saying, “I’m shy”?  If the answer is yes, read on.  I am guessing that well over 50% of readers will be reading on….

If you are a parent and you heard your child say  “I can’t do that” or “I’m hopeless at that” you would most likely respond straight away with, “Yes you can” or “You are not hopeless at that at all”, and “With a bit of practice you can get really good at that.”   Your child will often respond with curiosity and you would also see their facial expressions change as they start to think that they actually might be better at it (whatever ‘it’ may be) than they first thought. Then they often start to get excited and so they run off and play.   Well done…You’ve planted the positive seed and then you let them sow that seed that leads to greater self-belief each time they try ‘it’ again.

To overcome your self-imposed label (yes, that is really what it is) of  “shyness” you can do this:

• Start to question yourself by saying, “Maybe I am not so shy”.  This is the bridging step.  Keep saying this over and over to yourself and you will find you are like the child who is open to being better at ‘it’.
• Build curiosity within yourself.  Whenever you go anywhere you can make it a conscious choice to simply be more curious about other people.  Curiosity is wonderful state to be in.  Without it how would we find out what interests us or learn about what other people are interested in?  Having a keen interest in others is a good thing to do, as well.
• You can then create a new label that might be something very believable like, “I’m a quiet achiever enjoying the company of others”, or “I am proud of my own uniqueness and I am opening my eyes and ears for people to connect with me”.
• Notice subtle differences when you are socialising or out and about.  Do you seem to find that other people are being more pen, friendly and curious with you too?   This is no coincidence or just about them. It is about YOU making positive changes to your own opinion or label of yourself.
• Enjoy the freedom that comes with losing the limiting label of “I’m shy”.   Why not choose to enjoy the process of letting go of your old label and become even more aware of the reward that social connection will certainly bring you.

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This blog is a collective effort from the LCM Team.

Have a great day!