Imagine someone walking towards you suddenly cross the road. Would you feel safer and thank them for their kindness?

I was very shy and fearful growing up and latter in life was shocked to learn that many in the community I grew up in felt that shyness as conceit. The story they told themselves about me was that I must think I was to good for them. I thought I was being kind and considerate they thought I was stuck up. (Maybe I was, as shyness can be a judgment that we don’t trust others)

You are making the mistake of thinking you can know what others are thinking and that others can know what you are thinking. (heck we barley know and understand our own thoughts and motivations)

The anxiety we feel is of our own making and all of it based on illusion. If you want to reduce your anxiety let go of the excessive concern you have of what you imagine others think of you – which is really the excessive concern you have about your self.  This concern isn’t about being nice and considerate of others its about you creating the illusion of safety for yourself. Which, based on the anxiety you feel you’re not experiencing anyway, its not working, let it go.