How to be normal when people are scary

What if I told you that the "confident" people you're afraid of are probably just as anxious as you are?
This is for people who practice conversations in their head for hours, and who genuinely believe everyone else got some secret handbook to being human that somehow missed them.
I spent years studying people from the safety of my bedroom (peak introvert behavior, I know) only to realize something that completely changed how I see social interaction: we're all just making it up as we go along.
In this video essay, we dive deep into:

Why your brain tricks you into thinking everyone else is more confident than they actually are
How two years of pandemic isolation revealed that social skills are just skills (and everyone got rusty)
The hidden superpowers that come with being the "quiet observer" in the room
Why social media both feeds your anxiety AND proves everyone is human
The gentle path forward that doesn't require you to become an extrovert

This might be relatable if:

You've ever rehearsed ordering food in your head
You write and rewrite texts 47 times before sending them
You're convinced everyone at parties is having more fun than you
You prefer deep conversations to small talk but think that makes you "weird"
You've ever felt like you're watching life through a window instead of living it

An honest look at why human connection feels so scary and how understanding our shared weirdness might be the key to feeling less alone.

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#SocialAnxiety #introvert #MentalHealth #HumanConnection #SocialCommentary #Authenticity #PersonalGrowth