commentr/StutterSeptember 8, 2021

Content

Former call center manager here. I started on the front-lines answering calls, and worked my way up. I've been in the industry for roughly 15 years. No sugar coating it, it sucked. It sucked a LOT. However, you know how you don't stutter (or considerably less) when you're singing or otherwise performing? That helps a lot. I'm assuming you'll have to say something along the lines of "thanks for calling Business Name, this is OP, how can I help?" In the call center business I said something similar, that was my script. My performance. The people calling in, they don't know you or know that you stutter. They don't care who you are, they just want to get their stuff solved. That helped me. It was a rare occasion that a caller actually knew I stuttered and when they did, I had more than a few "by the way, do you stutter? Wow, my son stutters and would never work in a job like this! How did you overcome blah blah blah" and more want to talk to me about it. Aside from that truthfully, relying on internet to communicate with business only hurt me. For a good year or so I tried it the other way. I want a pizza, I call in vs ordering online. That too, is like a script. I wrote out what I wanted, I knew they would ask me for my name and address, so a script was easy. I would call a game store and ask them if a certain videogame was in stock. Things like that. Finally, I also absolutely encourage you to read Self-Therapy for the Stutterer by Malcolm Fraser, which is hosted for free on The Stuttering Foundation's website. I haven't been pulling "what's worked for me" out of my butt, it's all based on research that generally came from this book. It's what's helped me the most in my life.

Themes

Causes & VariabilityCoping & AdvocacyIdentity & Disability

Subthemes

Situational VariabilityFluency TechniquesAcceptance & Pride

Codes (2)

saying_name_introductiontelephone_video