FLOYD COUNTY, Ind. — A Floyd County, Indiana, man is preparing to give a TEDx Talk in Tennessee — a huge feat for a former teen struggling with social anxiety.
Kyle Mitchell is now 28 years old and lives in Floyds Knobs. He's a public speaker, podcast host and social media influencer. But as a kid, his social anxiety was crippling. The most mundane tasks required courageous effort if others were around to watch.
"This impacted me in things most of us do daily, like blowing my nose in class, raising my hand, how I talked, what I wore to school, and even how I walked," Mitchell wrote on his website.
Mitchell has come a long way since then. He's overcome his own social anxiety and now has a goal to help 1 million teens go from socially anxious to socially confident.
"Ten years ago — never would have thought this would happen," Mitchell said. "But this is honestly something I've been working toward for about three years. I had it on my vision board right next to my computer."
Mitchell makes reels for his Instagram that offer tips on building confidence. Among his advice are three steps to reach social confidence:
- Shower yourself with self-love.
- Find an uncomfortable challenge as a baby step.
- Reward your efforts, not your results.
Mitchell said one of the main positives to come out of the coronavirus pandemic was the movement to bring mental health to the forefront.
"I've had students come up to me or send me DMs saying that I saved their life and they needed that message," Mitchell said. "It's like the ultimate motivation and drive for me."
Mitchell's TEDx Talk will be Saturday, March 12 in Tullahoma, Tennessee. To purchase tickets to attend, click here.