We could rename this section, “Excuse Me, I’m Anonymous in This Berg So I Can Make an Absolute Donkey of Myself and Nobody Will Give a Darn.” But that’s a tad long for a title.
Look at situations from your jitters list (ShyBuster #16), which you have already categorized from the least intimidating to the most. Suppose that your inventory looks something like this:
• Asking strangers questions on the street
• Shopping and not buying something for fear I’ll disappoint the salesperson
• Making eye contact and smiling at people I don’t know
• Getting into extended small talk with a stranger
• Having an unpleasant or confrontational conversation
Tuck the list in your pocket or purse. Then hop in a car, bus, or train and travel to a nearby town where there’s zip, nada, zero chance anybody knows you. Now, like a grocery list of things to buy, flip out your list and start doing everything on the page.
If the jitters list above were yours, you would assign yourself to:
• Ask five people for directions. Approach five passersby on the street and ask them for directions. If it helps your acting, carry a map and wear a confused expression to make it more convincing. That’s good for an hour of communicating.
• Try something on. Try on three pairs of shoes at several shoe stores but don’t buy any of them. Let’s say that’s another hour.
• Smile at salespeople. Go to a department store. Make eye contact with and smile at every salesperson and even some customers as you pass. Pretend to be shopping and ask about lots of different items in the store. You could spend two hours doing that.
• Get product recommendations. Ask a pharmacist which is the best cream for poison ivy. Do it at every drugstore in town. Another hour.
• Ask about the lunch specials. When you’re having lunch, have the server describe the various dishes to you. That’s a good five minutes if you stretch it out.
• Talk to other passengers. Take a bus ride and talk to the person sitting next to you. That’s about ten minutes. Transfer to another bus and do the same. And another. And another.
Add another hour or two of scary stuff, and, if my math is right, you’ve had eight hours of constant communicating. After all of that interacting in another town, how much do you want to bet it’s going to be a lot easier to talk to people in your own town the next day?
You may be thinking, “But what if someone asks my name?” Look at it this way. It is socially acceptable for a woman not to tell her age. It is generally expected that a fisherman will add an inch or two to the “big one” he caught. So you have dispensation to give a fake name if asked. It’s therapeutic!