I Needz Confidence!

[Skin-and-Bone]

I mean a lot of people say they dont care what people think of them, but in actuality, they do.

You're right. The majority of people that say "I don't care what people think of me" are usually desperate to have people think they don't care about what people think of them.

Public speaking was always a weird one for me. If I'm in a crowded place, and someone just asked me out of the blue to get up and speak, I would be fine. However, if I know far in advance that I have to speak, I'll be a bag of nerves when the time comes. It's the build-up that kills me.

[Skin-and-Bone]

Oh, and I'm much more confident than I used to be. I think people use different methods. I was in a pub on my own reading a book a couple of weeks ago. I couldn't help but notice that there was this real loud-mouth guy. You know, the type that attempts to overpower people in conversation, and gets really loud after he's a had a few drinks. This was his method of boosting his self confidence. Anyway, he comes over to me and asks what I'm reading. He's not hitting on me, he's not being friendly, and he's not generally interested in what I am reading. He's clearly trying to break my balls for an ego boost. At the age of 16, I would have held up the book cover and showed him. What I actually did was look him in straight in the eyes and say "The Bible in Modern English". He said "No need to be funny, mate". I shrugged, and waited for him to turn and walk away before getting back to my book.

I think a lot of people try to gain some kind of power over you in a social situation. Perhaps they are afraid that you might try to do it to them. Me, I just like to have a conversation.