Sorry to say it, but for the most part girls like self-confidence: the exact thing you’re not demonstrating.
All this bit about being scared and shy and… whatever… that’s your worst enemy.
However, you can’t just will it away. If you’re scared and shy, you’re scared and shy, yes? It is what it is.
The people on this thread who say “be yourself” are correct: but how do you do that? That’s what self-confidence is—it’s someone just being themselves. But that is a lot trickier than it sounds, especially when you’re an adolescent.
This is something that usually takes someone about 20 years to get worked out well, you’re not going to solve it this week. But some basic pointers might be helpful:
- Someone who is “being themselves” doesn’t have much attention on themselves. They are engaged with life directly. They’re not looking in the mirror all the time to see how they look, nor are they constantly self-correcting and second-guessing their actions.
- You don’t have to fix all those self-doubting thoughts and concerns about yourself. You can actually just walk around them and keep on going. They’re only a barrier if you take them seriously. It’s sort of like how the Boogeyman is only a problem if you believe in him.
- Regarding girls (or women) in general: it’s important to realize that each one is an individual. You have to pay attention to details: how is she wearing her hair? What exactly does she like or not like? What specifically do you appreciate about her? Women respond to appreciation, if it’s sincere and appropriate. The good news about this part is that it’s a skill you can practice on anybody: pay attention to people. The cashier in the store—what is their name? What’s distinctive or different about them? Connecting with others is about seeing their uniqueness, and that means you have to drop your preconceptions and judgments about them.
- Learn to just be. This is another thing you can practice: sit or stand perfectly still in a crowd, let the people walk around you and think whatever they’re going to think. Look at one spot on the floor ( a mall is a good place for this exercise), and just notice everything going on internally and externally. Observe details. Notice your breath going in and out. Notice the fact that your thoughts are screaming at you “move, dammit! They’re going to think you’re weird!”. Just let those thoughts come and go and stay put. You do not have to react to every thought and feeling you have: that’s what you can learn from this kind of practice.
Someone who can just stand there still and let it all swirl around, without being compelled to “fix” anything or react…. is demonstrating stability. It’s like you’re a huge empty container with all this stuff going on, but you don’t have to be jerked around by any of the stuff.
So when you can just be and start to relax, you’ll be able to do that around girls as well. Then instead of being a churning reactive puppet bouncing off of your doubts and fears, you’ll be present and available to interact and respond with her.