Meeting people for the first time can be scary as hell when you're a huge ass introvert like me. Meeting new people makes me really stressed out. What do you talk about? Will they like me? And all of a sudden I forget how to communicate with humans to the point where all I want to do is hide in a cupboard and not come out till they've gone.

But there is a science on how to make meeting new people fun, it's a crazy idea I know but stick with me. See I've had to meet a lot of new people this year, some of which have been awkward meetings but most of which have been very fun and breezy. My biggest piece of advice is to find common ground very early on and then the conversation should flow from there. If they're from your area, maybe talk about school or music or mutual friends as this provides gateways into other conversations. Also try and talk to people with a friend if you can because this diffuses the awkwardness for you and means that you're not the only one who has to make the conversation.

Ask lots of questions, but not too many that you freak the other person out. Ask them about what music they like, if they've seen a recent film, what kind of stuff they do outside of school and let them talk. This helps you establish common ground but people usually find themselves more comfortable when talking about themselves and things they know so this should ease any tension in the air.

Finally, try to relax. The first few minutes will always be quite awkward, but if you push past that point then things usually end up being fine. It takes a lot of confidence to do it the first time, but after that it becomes a lot easier. Just give yourself that push and incentive to speak to them, and see where things go.

So rule sixty two of surviving Teenagehood: it's time to come out from our shells fellow introverts, and see the world.