Social anxiety is a fearful disorder that affects millions of people around the world.
Now, anxiety in social situations is not an uncommon experience for most people.
But social anxiety disorder is a persistently chronic and recurring condition that never goes away.
If you suffer from this disorder, it is important that you overcome your anxiety in social situations because of a variety of reasons, not least of which other people can easily take advantage of you.
In order to overcome social anxiety, not only should you work on building up your basic social skills, you should work on modifying and uplifting your thought patterns as well.
One great tactic to use is to assume that people like you, right from the very beginning.
Now this does not mean assuming that you are likable, in other words that you have the potential to be liked by other people, but instead that you are actually liked--right this very moment--by other people as you interact with them.
If you assume that other people like you, they will definitely feel the positive vibe flowing from you as you interact with them.
Interestingly, they will actually like you more if you approach them this way.
If you assume they already like you, they actually will like you! This is a technique known as "assuming rapport.
" It means you assume that you already have a great relationship with the people around you, and consequently, you often will.
Contrast this to your usual way of approaching people with the mindset of "I wonder if they will like me," or worse, "I think they don't like me.
" In this case, you will interact with other people in a fearful, nervous manner, and consequently people will instantly like you less.
Yes, it's understood that it's difficult to change your mindset, especially if a negative mindset has been ingrained into your personality from your youth.
But you must absolutely make these changes in your thinking if you want to overcome your social anxiety.
The way you think, and the automatic thought process that instantly goes through your head upon entering a social setting, plays a huge role in overcoming social anxiety.
You must change this thought process for the better.
One reason why many social phobia sufferers never bother to try overcoming their social anxiety, is that the challenge seems insurmountable at times.
It is admittedly much easier to sit on your couch and watch TV, or even surf the Internet for tips on how to beat social anxiety without actually taking concrete action to address it.
Overcoming social anxiety is definitely not easy and will present a tough challenge.
However, the sooner you get started, the sooner you will get better.
Even making a small effort will pay off, and consistent effort over time will lead to significant results.
The only thing you should keep in mind though, is to have realistic expectations, and not try to run before you can walk.
Failure is okay, especially at the beginning, and everything can be taken as a learning experience.
Good luck as you undertake the journey of eliminating social anxiety from your life.
Many others have done it, and so can you!