The affable professor is a generously large man. Over his tall-and-big-store tummy this day stretch a bright yellow shirt and a red, yellow, blue, purple, white, and green tie, all bustling stripes and darts. Flashy rings sparkle on his fingers, and his Mercedes-Benz carries a vanity plate: "Wiseguy."
---Peter Monaghan on Bernardo Carducci of the Shyness Research Institute

Doesn't Mr. Carducci sound like the very sort to school us all on shyness? In fact, he wrote the book! Several of them, including Shyness: A Bold New Approach and The Pocket Guide to Small Talk which is truly pocket-sized so you can consult it on the sly the next time that you attend a party at which you know no one but the host.

A couple of days ago I mentioned a web-site faceblind where you could see if you suffered from an inability to distinguish your partner from the milkman (unless of course your partner is the milkman!). If you check out shyness, you can find out both your ShyQ and how your uneasiness in social situations compares to the world at large. Check out Dr. Carducci's web-site at The Shyness Research Institute to read his sensible five step approach to small talk.