Myke Macapinlac - Improve Your Social Confidence How to Eliminate Your Insecurities, Social Anxiety and Shyness

I used to be terrified of talking tostrangers.

A lot of people might find that hard tobelieve just because theyve seen me on television, heard me on a podcast, orwatched me speak on stage.

They often assume Ive always been sociallyconfident.

They think I always knew how to charmpeople and engage them in meaningful conversations. Or they think Ive alwaysbeen able to make friends on the spot and become the life of the party.

Wrong!

This couldnt be further from the truth.

My journey had very humble beginnings.

As an immigrant, I found it reallychallenging to fit in when my family moved to Canada from the Philippines whenI was 17 years old.

My social anxiety back then was so bad thatI can still remember eating my lunch in a bathroom stall back in high school. Iwas too terrified to mingle with the other kids, so I did everything I could toisolate myself.

In fact, I was so shy that I could barelyhold eye contact with a girl that I was attracted to, or Id stumble with mywords whenever I would talk to someone who I thought was cooler than me.

I was paralyzed by fear, so in any socialgathering, I would often be caught up in my own head while I watched everybodyelse have fun. I always ran out of things to say because I didnt feelcomfortable in my own skin and I didnt believe that what I had to say wasimportant.

My career choice also didnt help mysituation.

After I graduated from school, I got a jobas a structural designer working for an engineering company. Even though itpaid well, my work environment didnt promote a lot of social interactions.

I spent the majority of my day looking atgraphs, blueprints, and spreadsheetsnot to mention the fact that I was usuallysurrounded by other socially awkward people.

The only time wed talk was when we had toask each other something work-related.

Because I lacked the experience and skillsto communicate my ideas effectively, I found it difficult to make friends, andI couldnt get a date to save my life.

This went on for years until I said enoughwas enough. I knew things had to change. I was tired of feeling left behind andnot living up to my potential.

The only problem was that I had no ideawhere to start. Its not like I learned how to be socially confident at schoolor at home.

But I was persistent.

I knew that I had to find a way to improvethis part of my life or else I would end up sad, lonely, and desperate. Iwanted to feel in control of my ability to connect with people, and I waswilling to do anything to make that happen.

After reading almost every book aboutsocial dynamics, studying under some of the best coaches in this industry, andexperimenting on my own for many years, things finally started to make sense.

Contrary to what most people believe,having great social skills isnt just something youre born with; itssomething you can develop. Its no different than learning how to play a newinstrument or a new sport.

Knowing this gave me a lot of hope, and itmade me persevere when things got tough in my journey. I knew that if I learnedthe right skills and kept practicing it over and over again, I could alsobecome confident, charismatic, and likable.

Looking back now, I wish I paid moreattention to this part of my life rather than just getting good grades inschool.

Nowadays, I realize that theres a directcorrelation between your ability to create new relationships and your successin life. Learning how to get along with people will do more for you than anyfancy degree.

Nobody cares about your GPA or how muchmoney you make. But you need to have good social skills in order to makefriends, get dates, and advance professionally.

If youre someone whos been strugglingsocially your entire life, its not your fault, but it is your responsibilityto do something about your situation.

Trust me when I say that if I was able toovercome my social awkwardness, you can, too. With enough time, effort, andrepetition, you can improve the way you communicate yourself.

The thing is, who you know mattersmore than what you know. If you lack social confidence, youre severelyhandicapping yourself in almost all aspects of your life.

Think about it.

You talk to people every single day.

You can probably recall a guy in youroffice who, despite his lack of technical knowledge, is well-liked and gotpromoted frequently.