The First Thing’s First Method
I started telling people the minute I introduced myself once I got into the habit of disclosing.
The Pop up Method
I found this method worked for me more effectively than the First Thing’s First Method since my stuttering has become moderate in recent years. “I didn’t even noticed you stuttered!” was the response I’d get. So I decided to wait until a stutter popped up (which didn’t take very long!).
The Casual Mention Method
Getting involved in the stuttering community can help bring up the topic of stuttering.
The Educate Method
Sometimes the people we are talking to just don’t know what stuttering is. Or, in the case of this comic strip, if there is something wrong with the phone call. Another benefit for spreading awareness.
The Enlighten Method
Similar to the Educate Method but more fun.
The Genetics Method
I used to be terrified of stuttering in front of little kids. Until I learned this trick about using hair colour as a way to explain stuttering.
The Comedy Method
Humour is a great way to connect with people. It puts both you and the people you are speaking with at ease.
The Timer Method
A true story! My friend, Gareth Walkom, was pitching his start up to an accelerator and started his business pitch with “They say it takes about 7 seconds to make a first impression… And I just stuttered for all of them”. What a great way to break the ice, mention your stuttering, and use a little humour in what can be quite a stressful situation regardless of your speech. And Gareth’s pitch ended up being among the 65 to 70 winners out of over 300 applicants! Read Gareth’s story of that fateful day.
The Keep Calm and Carry On Method
Another true story! My friend, Grant Meredith, is a lectuerer at Federation University in Australia and came up with this fun way to mention his stuttering on the first day of classes. Grant was also voted Lecturer of the Year by the students multiple times!
Author’s commentary
Telling people that you stutter can seem to be a scary concept. That was the same for me. However, once I started telling people, I realized that most people I talked to were ok with my stuttering.
And once I knew that they knew that I stuttered, we were both at ease. And when they know that we are ok with our stuttering, they knew they could be ok with it as well. Many people don’t know what stuttering is so they learn from us how to react to it.
Telling people that we stutter usually also sparks a conversation about someone they know who stutters and stuttering in general. It’s a great way to spread awareness!
I always wanted to create more how-to lists since publishing my book, Stuttering is Cool: A Guide to Stuttering in a Fast-Talking World. So this was a fun series to share various techniques which worked for me. I also added a few from others.
More comics to come!
In the meantime, what worked for you? Let me know and it may become a Franky Banky comic on this page!
March 7, 2021
