Local Teen Is Fighting Social Isolation One Conversation At a Time

Local teen Addison Vogt launched a new company, The Conversation Game, to help her peers connect when making conversations. The company's first product consists of three decks of cards that help teens connect, start talking, and have fun.

The three decks each have their purpose. The first one provides ideas to kick off conversations. In the next deck, Addison Vogt deals with texting anxiety, something not uncommon among teens. Finally, a third deck helps deepen conversations, encouraging discussions and debates.

Addison Vogt’s experience with isolation during the pandemic got her wondering if its effects, especially in the long term, had the same impact on others in her age group. This question lead her on a two-year researching journey. It entailed approaching guidance counselors, teen psychology experts, and peers, including friends that had moved to other countries and had experienced challenges with friendships, partly because of language barriers.

Vogt holds the prototype deck in her hands as she explains, “One out of three teens are affected by social anxiety, and most find it extremely difficult to reach out.” Then, showing the cards, she explains, “These decks offer solutions to empower them to start a conversation and, more importantly, continue that conversation, making a connection.”

“Parents often feel scared and confused when faced with a teenager suffering from social anxiety,” Addison says, “and they often look for solutions. The game provides the tools parents need to help their kids find their voice through a question-and-answer game.”

During her research, Addison learned about the importance of socialization for maintaining adolescents’ health and normal development. Whether a young person is socially anxious or doesn’t have a solid and supporting group of friends, isolation can affect their sleep and cause depression and anxiety. The worrying results are the creation of a negative outlook and a weakened immune system.

Addison speaks about the hours of fun and laughter she had creating the cards with friends. She remains grateful to everyone who contributed to their development, including teachers at The Mount Vernon School and professionals who listened and guided her progress. During the process, Addison Vogt relied on other teens for feedback, creating even more friendships.

The three decks of the Conversation Game designed for teens by teens are about to launch:

• The Converse Deck provides the perfect openers for general conversations, small talk with people you don’t know, or conversations with best friends. The design of this deck is to help you get to know the other person.
• The next deck is called the TTYL (Talk to You Later), designed to help teens start a text or digital conversation. Texting and digital messaging are popular among teens, helping them stay in touch conveniently and casually. However, some need help when it comes to starting communicating from afar. Therefore, the deck is also loaded with conversation starters, helping teens stay connected.
• Finally, the Would You/What’s Your deck helps teens to make more meaningful and in-depth conversations with their friends. Each conversation starter poses questions like “Would You…” or “What’s Your…”, creating many topics for chatting opportunities among teens. The questions focus on “rather,” their favorite things, and other teen go-to’s that can keep conversations flowing.

For her first product, Addison is using the crowdsourcing company Kickstarter, Inc. to raise the funds necessary to print the first three decks. The Kickstarter campaign is live now through Feruary 15, 2023. you can see it here:

The Conversation Game Kickstarter Campaign

About The Conversation Game

Based in Atlanta, Georgia, the teen startup The Conversation Game was founded by Addison Vogt, a high schooler passionate about helping teens connect. Addison began researching the problem of social isolation and social anxiety for a class assignment. Despite considering herself an introvert and loner, Addison had realized the importance of social contact and seeing friends. Therefore, when the teacher asked the students to investigate a social issue that was important to them, Addison decided to look deeper into the importance of reaching out in conversations and how to find ways to help.

Two years later, her research, interviews with people suffering from social anxiety and psychologists, repeating her designs, and holding focus groups, finally culminated in Addison preparing to launch her packs. Each pack’s specific purpose will help teens connect conversationally online, with texts and in-person, but always in their voice.