100% in favour of throwing yourself into the fire. It is how I overcame my fear of stuttering. All through high school and university I manufactured my environment to limit the need to speak, even pursuing classes and career paths that didn't have anything to do with my strengths, just were more quiet. At 19 I got offered a summer job at a small town newspaper in a place about 20 hours driving away from home. I took it and have been in journalism since. I'm 28 now and just got my first editor job (instead of just reporter) and have been all over the country, worked for several papers in several places. It was hard as hell at first. I still remember my first interview when I had no idea what I was doing. I remember taking an hour trying to record my voicemail greeting without stuttering and breaking down. I drove to that first job with my mom and cried intensely, even asking her to run me over with the car before I had to go to my first day of work. But now I'm happier and more confident than I've ever been. Throwing myself into the fire was how I found freedom. Doesn't mean it's ever easy of course, especially at first. But you've got one life to live. Do you want to spend it hiding or take a chance doing what you actually want to do?