In school, you have a lot of peer pressure and it makes a person shy to speak to a girl or a guy. You are afraid of being laughed at or even rejected. This is all part of growing up. Now that you are no longer in school you still have the same fears as before. In order to overcome these fears, it will take time. To gain confidence in speaking with a woman you should start off slowly. If you two have the same interest and like the same things this should make it a bit easier to talk with her. You can start off by introducing your self or do like some guys do. You see her sitting there studying, reading, or just watching the sunset, take a seat next to her. Start off by asking her what she is reading. You can say something about that sounds interesting or what is it about. Just make small talk at first. The rest will come as you sit there and chat. The hardest part will be to start the conversation. Even if you really like her and you feel you are in love with her, don't tell her this right away. Go slowly and build up a friendship. You might want to ask her if she'd be interested in having a cup of coffee with you now or another day. Get to know her slowly and build up a friendship. The rest will come naturally as the time passes.