I hate to admit this, but reading the book "The Game: Penetrating the Secret Society of Pickup Artists"[0][1] helped me. At one point, I too was an introvert (right around your age as well) and reading the book gave me some tips to help talk to women, and people in general.

Now, before others start piling on, this book is misogynistic and juvenile. Most of the pick-up examples the author uses probably have a better success rate with college co-eds than late 20 early 30's female working professionals. But there are some good lessons you can extrapolate out of the swill of a story:

1. Outward appearance matters. Nobody wants to engage a slob.

2. Self-Confidence matters. Eye contact, a smile, a positive outlook, etc. You don't have to be a douche, but most people tend to gravitate to those with self-confidence (even if the self-confidence is misplaced).

3. The only way to get better at talking to people is by talking to people. Networking and personal social interaction only gets easier with practice. So the moral of this story is you will look like a fool in the beginning. Don't take yourself too seriously, and keep in mind the failed social interactions you have today will help you tomorrow.

And also, get the notion of finding your "soul mate" out of your head. Chances are, the person you fall in love with won't check off the "soul mate" boxes you've concocted. Date freely, give everyone a shot and keep an open mind.

Good luck.

[0] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Game:_Penetrating_the_Secre...

[1] I haven't read the book in over a decade, so there is a good chance a lot of the material is dated. But I still stand by the lessons I learned from it.

Edit: General Clean Up