Overcoming shyness is a problem thousands of people are confronted with. It can ruin social lives and create loneliness. If not dealt with, it will not improve but only get worse.

At one time or another all of us feel shy or anxious. It can appear as butterflies in your stomach when you walk into a room full of strangers or breaking into a sweat when you have to give a speech. More than half of all people have a fear of public speaking. Social anxiety can be an occasional case of jitters all the way up to a disabling disorder that can wreck havoc on your entire life.

Your quality of your life will be improved by learning how to calm these fears. In order to overcome shyness, we must first realize what it is. Shyness and anxiety are your automatic response to a perceived danger. Your body then releases stress hormones which can cause your heart to race, your face to flush, your palms to sweat, your muscles to contract and create a queasy feeling in your stomach.

Shy people try to escape these social anxieties by avoiding social situations all together. Many times people don't realize that they are shy. They may say that they don't like parties or don't like making presentations, when in truth, they are really suffering from shyness.

The more often that you avoid social situations which cause you anxiety, the more ingrained the fears become. Avoiding these situations is the exact opposite of what you should be doing. To overcome shyness you must confront them head on.  Overcoming shyness takes practice. You have to expose yourself to social situations in order to become more comfortable in them. 

There are two main reasons why people are shy and filled with anxiety. These are the fear of embarrassment and the fear of being judged which are sometimes caused by low self esteem. People are afraid they will say something that is embarrassing or that people will consider their statements foolish or stupid. So, what is the best way for overcoming shyness?

Start by taking small steps to do the things that make you shy and frighten you. You don't have to try to be the life of the party, just make it a goal to talk to one or two people. Reward yourself when you accomplish this goal. The more of these little steps you take, the more you will succeed in overcoming your shyness.

By exposing yourself to more and more social situations, the more relaxed you will feel when you realize that there is really nothing to be afraid of.

It is also important to replace your negative thoughts with positive ones. Don't think that the worst will happen in a social situation. Rehearse and visualize the situations that make you nervous. Playing it out in your mind ahead of time, and seeing positive results, makes it much easier once you are actually in the situation.

Another method for overcoming shyness which has become very popular and it works miracles is Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP). NLP works by changing your thoughts and altering how you think about things. You simply listen to an audio and it will help you overcome negative behaviors. Visit NLP Secrets to read more about it. It will boost your self confidence and help you in overcoming your shyness.