Girls, how do you get your confidence? Any tips on how to speak up and start more conversations with people? I WFH but my coworkers always joke “next time you come in, be a bit quieter, chatting away constantly!”

Always get told a joke when leaving my office as I don’t go in a lot, and when I do, other people are always louder and more talkative than me, so I am known as the quiet one.

I don’t want to be known as this because I do talk, I just have to know I can talk as my myself around them, because a lot of the time, I get worried people are going to take stuff I say and twist it against me or take it the wrong way.

I’ve got a coworker who I talk to the most. I’m so chatty to him, but it’s because he is literally the guy version of me, but with a bit more confidence. We think the same things, even to the point where I’ll say “oh I should clear this out-“ and he’ll say at the exact same time “[my name], can you clear this out”

Or like, we’ll hear someone say something across the office and look up at each other as if to say “you heard that too, right?”

But with all of my other coworkers, they’re not as friendly as him. I’ll try to speak but it feels as if they’re judging me. So I try to keep it short.

I need to stop doing this and stop caring if they’re judging me or if they dislike me. I need to talk as myself. I just don’t know how to get the confidence to do it.

We’ve got a work do coming up and the entire office is invited. I want to be able to be social without needing alcohol to get rid of that initial anxiety. There’s some coworkers who I think are quite fun and nice to be around, but I just can’t get myself to start conversations with them.

So I need to practice but I don’t know where to start. Probably therapy but that isn’t an option rn lmao.