Shyness is yet another personality trait that’s often considered a weakness in our extroverted culture. It’s not a weakness and shouldn’t be treated as such. Instead, lean into the strengths that come with shyness and convert this personality trait into a strength.
(Note: Shyness and introversion aren’t the same thing. Some shy people are quite extroverted in situations where they feel comfortable. These techniques can be used for both traits, however.)
Don’t Fight Your Nature
You don’t have to change who you are! The first step to converting your shyness into a strength is to stop fighting against it. You are who you are, and there’s nothing wrong with that. It would be best to accept yourself and everything that comes with it instead of trying to change your personality.
Pick The Right Career
Being shy might not be a weakness, but it means some careers aren’t going to be right for you. Don’t pick a career that requires an outgoing personality, such as sales, when you are shy. Pick something in which your shyness will be an asset rather than a liability, such as a back-office computing job.
Don’t think this makes it a weakness -an outgoing person who would make a great salesperson would flounder in the type of job that suits you. Different things are good for different people.
Choose Your Best Communication Method
How are you shy? In-person? On the phone? By email? By text? Chances are, you aren’t equally shy at every communication method. If you hate talking on the phone but like email, use email most of the time. Pick the one that’s best for you whenever you have the chance.
Use Structure to Your Advantage
As a shy person, ambiguity is not your friend. Spontaneous social events can be a nightmare. Structure your life and your work to prevent this. Use calendars, appointment books, and any protocol at work or in your life to help you control your socialization.
Learn Social Cues
Social cues are the spoken and unspoken methods of communication that people use in social situations. They are often hard for shy people to understand. Study these and learn them so that you will be able to interact with less awkwardness.
Seek Out Other Shy People
There’s strength in numbers, after all. Find other shy people to be around at events and you will immediately become more comfortable. This technique works equally well for personal events as work events.