Really these things take time. As with @Nella68 & Midge, it is an ongoing process for us.
I've only just got Brie to the point where she will calmly walk past small children without pulling. Because of her size I generally give her the instruction "wait" when we are pavement walking; she stands nicely for parents with prams, little kids on bikes etc to go past and she doesn't lunge. But it took a long time and a lot of frustration when she was approaching 40kg and still pulling me off my feet.
With dogs it's still ongoing; some she will completely ignore but with others she gets excited. She has a friend on our street - a Beagle cross, so dogs of similar size to that seem to always interest her - they're the ones she wants to greet. Cockers, smaller labs etc she likes but she isn't interested in tiny toy breed dogs or bigger ones like GSD, Dobes etc.
In regard to people, she is becoming more aloof around strangers now, but unfortunately she still jumps up at people she knows. No matter how much we try to discourage it, she just loves familiar people, like certain neighbours who we speak to and who know her by name. I don't allow the giving of treats by anybody. That is one of my rules. She also still mouths at hands, which I know is really, really bad but we haven't found the solution. She is very tactile.
It's still an ongoing process. She's 15 months old now and it is getting easier to handle her. When they're small and they keep tripping you up as @VanGoSunflowers mentions, I find that so hard. But the most difficult phase for me was probably when she was 5 or 6 months old, with the size of a fully grown Goldie but still the brain of a young pup. That was scary at times. I was constantly apologising to people and having to explain that she was just a baby. Now she's big I find it easier because there's more to grab hold of.
I still work on being prepared for certain situations, with a giant dog you have to be respectful of the fact that they can be overwhelming, particularly when pavement walking. I always try to have her on the side away from young kids just to allow them more space. So I walk her ambidextrously as it were. I can confidently handle her on either side of me now. After 3 years with no dog I was really out of practice, and physically weaker, but my muscle memory is finally kicking in now she's full size. It's still a battle sometimes, I admit.
It's exactly what @brushingboots said the other day. Knowing your own dog, your own breed, and learning how they will react to certain situations is something that comes with time. Don't put too much pressure on yourself while your pup is tiny; it takes time. Don't try to run before you can walk, you'll only line yourself up for setbacks. The bigger breeds (Labs, Goldies, the larger doodles like Midge and upwards to my PMD) are babies for a long time and you do need patience.