Lighthearted rant: How the hell do you talk to people?

So I (21m) have this coworker (33m). I’m a public worker of sorts so we end up in public places quite often, and this guy can just talk to ANYONE. Weather it’s just out on the road or hitting up the bar after work he will talk to literally everyone, and everyone loves him. When I first met him I thought he knew the people he was talking to, nope, just likes to talk.

He talks with 0 intention, not trying to get anyone’s number or anything like that, just upbeat conversations for the love of the game, he’s a human golden retriever. It’s been the most eye opening thing in the world to me because I see how positively people respond to him when there’s truly no deeper meaning behind it.

I am just not him. I wish I could strike up a conversation with anyone and see where it takes me, my personality is just more reserved, I enjoy silence, I don’t speak up, I’m very monotone, and when I do talk to someone I can only hold up the conversation so long before I run out of things to say and go back to enjoying the silence.

I don’t want to sound too serious because it’s really not, I’m very content with my life, but I feel like there’s a gap between the person I am and the person I want to be that I just don’t know how to cross.