Realize many people in the room have the exact same social fears you do.
Somebody has to make the first move and reach out. The truth is every time you meet new people you face the possibility of rejection. However, if you never take a chance and meet new people, you will never find those people who find you interesting and fun to be with.
Opening a conversation takes some practice to get comfortable and you might need to force yourself to do it at first. Try these conversation starters:
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The more you know about what’s happening in the news, entertainment and pop culture, the better your chances are of finding something to talk about. Be prepared to talk about something you found interesting. “I saw the funniest thing yesterday, did you happen to see this?” Then explain what you saw or heard.
This may be the most important point for two reasons. First, you don’t want to come across as a person who can’t stop talking about them self. Second, people are flattered when someone takes a sincere interest in them. Keep the conversation about them by asking lots of questions. Key in on the things they bring up and ask follow-up questions to get more information.
It's not about you.
Know what’s going on in the world.
Start the conversation.