How to Handle Being the Center of Attention
For many socially anxious people, a particular kind of dread attaches to being the center of attention: the birthday toast, the round-the-table introductio...
The blog
Articles
Practical, honest guides to quieting the fear of being judged and building real connection.
Why Connection Is About Being Interested, Not Interesting
Here is an idea that overturns the way most anxious people approach social situations: connection is not about being interesting; it is about being interes...
How to Build Self-Worth That Does Not Depend on Approval
At the center of the fear of rejection lies a single vulnerability: your sense of worth rests on other people's acceptance. When your worth depends on bein...
Small Talk Is Not Small: Why the Weather Matters
There is a widespread disdain for small talk, a sense that it is shallow and beneath meaningful people. Anxious people often share this disdain and use it...
How to Ask for What You Want Despite the Fear of No
Nearly everything good on the other side of connection requires reaching out and risking a no: friendships require someone to make the first invitation, cl...
Is Social Anxiety Common? You Are Far From Alone
One of the cruelest tricks social anxiety plays is convincing you that you are uniquely broken, that everyone else finds this easy and you alone are failin...
Building a Life of Belonging, One Small Step at a Time
Underneath every specific goal, quieting the fear, making a friend, surviving a rejection, lies the real aim: to build a life of belonging, in which you ar...
Dating and Romance When You Have Social Anxiety
Dating asks for exactly what social anxiety fears most: putting yourself forward, being evaluated, risking rejection, and being seen up close. It is no won...
How to Find a Therapist for Social Anxiety
For social anxiety that is intense, persistent, or shrinking your world, working with a therapist can speed your progress enormously and is one of the wise...
How to Be a Better Listener
We all believe we listen, but there are levels of listening, and most conversation happens at the shallowest one. Learning to listen deeply, in a way the o...