[mneil]

There is no such thing as a job that never involves other people. Self employment will solve, to an extent, the working "for other people" problem, but even then you would have to deal with whoever it is that is buying whatever you produce.

The problem isn't always other people. I'm an introvert, I shut down in groups, and I get anxiety in large gatherings.

I don't know what will help you. For me it was getting a degree in communications. I learned how to deal with other people, how to read their body language, how to give speeches and presentations, and how to communicate effectively through writing. It pulled me way out of my comfort zone.

Learn to communicate your issues more effectively and more people will listen (rather than argue). This makes your job easier. It helps motivate others around you. And it may even help you like other people a bit more.

[Dracophoenix]

>> I learned how to deal with other people, how to read their body language, how to give speeches and presentations, and how to communicate effectively through writing. It pulled me way out of my comfort zone.

Any academic texts in these domains that you would recommend?

[mneil]

Nothing that I can stand behind and say, "this is the one". But you can start with looking up communication theory and then drive into each of the theories that are out there.

This one looks like a good intro https://www.amazon.com/Understanding-Communication-Theory-Be...

And I read a much earlier edition of a book called "Gendered Lives" that had a big impact. Gender communication goes into how men and women communicate differently, why that might be, and it helped me understand other people a lot better. It made me feel less like a weirdo to know that everyone else is kinda the same :). Or, at least, that you're not alone in being the way that you are.