One rule is "never be embarrassed". Embarrassment shows weakness. It's okay to show emotions , but not weakness. Let those awkward moments pass you by like they're nothing but another era of your life. Some of the coolest people are cool because they laugh off embarrasments and act like nothing happened. Chill out, because people do take cues from what you show. If you are laughing at yourself, people will laugh with you. If you are embarrassed, people will laugh at you. (Extra Comment: It's not necessarily bad to be embarrassed - it may happen at some point whether you like it or not. But the way you handle it can be even more important than what happens. Accept whatever happened, focus on how to avoid it, and forgive and forget. It will happen to everyone in time. Either way, you learned something for yourself.)