I'll agree the fear of rejection is bad, but if one focuses on not being shy, one will find out why one was shy in the first place. One needs to know protocol first.
Heh, I didn't think my comment was going to generate this much discussion. Anyways, my point was that shy people have this weird thing where they tend to only say really nice, sugary things. It comes off a little odd (or so I've heard). So a good place to start is by biting your tongue less. Or something like that.
(Ackward + shy) - shy = Dumbass.