Shoo that shyness away

Do you feel shy when you meet strangers, go on a date, or an interview? Well, you’re not alone. You can now join the league of celebrities like Shah Rukh Khan, The Weeknd, Robbie Williams, Peter Andre and author Varun Agarwal — who suffer from the same problem.

These celebs are now opening up about their battle with shyness and social anxiety. Recently, SRK said, “Though I am known as the ‘Romance ka badshah’, in reality, I am quite shy.” Hit musician The Weeknd, who has won two Grammy Awards, spoke about how he had to go drunk on stage to cope up with his shyness and anxiety. The singer eventually had to overcome this. Earlier this Monday, singer Robbie Williams’ wife Ayda Field spoke about her husband’s struggle with social anxiety on a TV show. After this revelation, singer Peter Andre tweeted, “Watching LW and the topic is ‘is social anxiety making you dread party season’? I never thought I would admit it but like @robbiewilliams, I too suffer the same thing. I guess I tend to hide away sometimes and cancel social things. I don’t mean to.”

Entrepreneur, filmmaker and author Varun Agarwal, shared a video on social media, where he talks about shyness. The video went viral with 3,62,569 views and thousands of comments from people with social anxiety.

Says Varun, “I was very shy in school. I had difficulty in talking to strangers and making eye contact. Being shy can lead to loneliness and depression. I’ve also got drunk to socialise. But it’s not the right way. A lot of people go through this and that’s why I shot this video. If you want to progress in your career, you simply can’t be shy!”

Talking about how he overcame his fear, he says, “I started public speaking and took risks. One must go out, do crazy things and come out of their shell. Try speaking to common friends first. Make sure you talk to at least one stranger a day. Then start attending conferences. Twenty seconds of courage is all you need.”

Psychologist Dr Srikanth Acharya sheds further light on the issue. “When people are not exposed to social situations during their adolescence, they develop shyness and inferiority complex. They can be talented but they can’t progress in their career. They get submissive.  There are simple tips to cope with shyness — you can stand in front of the mirror and speak to yourself. Talk about what you would say during an interview, meeting or a date. You can also go window shopping. Randomly ask the shopkeeper about the price and strike a conversation. Start with a minute, and  extend it,” he says.