and also just remember to smile, be kind, and don't try too hard to fit in. i overcame my social phobia by realizing that when i talk to someone, i am one of the hundreds of people they talk to every day. one single botched conversation won't have much consequence from their point of view; instead of thinking "what a social retard" they will probably just shrug their shoulders and move on. making a fool of yourself a few times isn't the end of the world. it's long-term trends over many conversations that a person is judged by, so all i had to do was just consistently be kind for the most part, and bam - i had lots of acquaintances. once i was comfortable talking to these people, i became closer to the ones i was interested in, and the ones who were interested in me. i got to know them better, and voila, i had friends
. i ****ed up many a potential friendship and humiliated myself horribly in front of people i respect, but without the failed attempts there wouldn't be any successful ones. i just moved on from the bad parts, because they're only temporary, while the friends i made in the process are permanent. just remember to be kind, and most importantly show interest in the people you want to know
and don't forget to just be yourself.