If you hate to go out, start off small. Ask a friend or two to meet you for a movie or drinks. When you spend time in the presence of

people you trust, it can make you feel less anxious. Before you know it, hanging out won’t be as big of a deal as you thought. It’s all about doing

what you love around people you really like.

Another thing you can do is use social media to connect with other people. Communicating online is sometimes easier for introverts (or shy or anti-social people) because they feel a

lot more in control. They can respond to things in their own time without feeling like they have to provide an immediate response. And, if they start to feel too overwhelmed,

all they have to do is log off. Simple as that. (Something that’s much harder to do when you’re dealing with people face-to-face.)

What kind of music do you like to listen to? Before heading out the door, tune into something happy and upbeat. Studies reveal that it will make you feel a

lot more confident and secure. It will also help you to look at people and situations in a positive light. That's always a plus when you’re interacting with folks.

Introverts may be super smart, but a lot of them also have a tendency to self-torture. How? By being up in their heads way too much. A downside to spending

a ton of time alone is you’re always in your thoughts with no one to really bounce them off of. That can cause you to “create movies” in your mind

that don’t really exist. Overthinking has been known to make problems where there weren’t any. When you’re tempted to do overthink, call someone or watch a movie. Distract yourself from your

own thoughts.

Whether you’re an introvert or extrovert, embrace it! There’s no right or wrong way to be. All of your traits are simply a part of what makes you “you”.

At the end of the day, anyone who is comfortable in their own skin and makes absolutely no apologies for it? Yeah, they are the truly smart ones!