The few times I do manage to muster up the courage to talk to girls, I always end up making up some kind of lie to keep the conversation going. It's usually small stuff, like "Oh yeah, I had a cat growing up too" when I've never even had a pet. It feels like I'm not really being myself and I'm trying to just force connections. I tend to do it almost without thinking though.

How can I break this habit and just you know, actually be myself?