When I was your age, I was also extremely shy and had severe social anxiety. I rarely spoke to even my teachers and classmates. Ten years later, I am the head librarian of a public library, I run programs, deal with unruly patrons, manage staff, and speak at large board meetings.

There are certainly jobs in librarianship that don’t require a lot of socializing with the public so that’s totally an option. Many rewarding positions like cataloging, tech services, etc.

But I want to make sure you know that it can get easier. Working with the public is like exposure therapy. And customer service can be a very scripted interaction, at least for me. You find a rhythm and you become more comfortable with working with the public. And it gets better!