Op, I heard my friend was going to the city pool to go tanning with her friend who was single and attractive. I went down to say hi to my friend and check out her single/hot friend and it worked out and now we are celebrating our 5th Anniversary this weekend.
Having my friend there as an excuse to talk to my future wife really helped. I've never found the dating scene to be easy. People are flaky and weird and awkward at times. You gotta go through a lot of matches that don't work out until you find some where you hit it off and know right away there's something there. Don't give up!
Fun fact: the first few times I hung out with my wife, I couldnt get our mutual friend to get lost so we could have a classic date, just the two of us. I thought maybe my wife wasn't interested the same way as me so I almost gave up and didn't call her again! Luckily I tried one last time and said "how about we leave Ashley out of this one" and our relationship was on its way.
Just stay cool, remember to smile and laugh, and remember that it's just a thing that everyone does and it's not life or death. Rejection isn't scorn and when it is, well who cares? There's other people out there and one of them is going to think you're awesome and wonder how they ever got so lucky. Just make sure you're not one of those guys who has no self-awareness. Shower every day, use deodorant, brush your teeth, dress your age, know your style, etc.