I used to be quite awkward and reserved. Then I realized that I spend most of my life solving problems. This is just another problem. I can solve this. The big

I used to be quite awkward and reserved. Then I realized that I spend most of my life solving problems. This is just another problem. I can solve this. The biggest thing - confidence. Just like your 80-year-old grandparent that's scared to touch a computer because they might break it, I was scared in social interactions because people might not like me. There's a lot of people out there and most are a lot more awkward and tolerant of awkwardness than you think. Just don't spill water on the keyboard or download a virus and you probably won't break it. Once you internalize that, you'll get the confidence to fiddle and experiment. The other biggest thing - discomfort. Focus on avoiding the other person's fears/discomfort and work hard to squash your own. Also, Dale Carnegie's How to Win Friends and Influence People.