Confidence: Interview with Danette Fitzgerald
Some people ask: maybe I just need more confidence and then it'll improve my fluency. And I usually answer: yes, and then talk about stuttering techniques.
This interview has changed my perception. Stuttering techniques are great, but there's something more.
Our guest today is Danette Fitzgerald, New Haven NSA (National Stuttering Association) chapter co-leader, and we'll talk about confidence, and where it's coming from.
The VIDEO - Confidence: Interview with Danette Fitzgerald
Confidence: Interview with Danette Fitzgerald
Show Highlights
In this episode, Danette and I discuss:
- How we met with Danette Fitzgerald at the National Stuttering Association conference.
- Danette's stuttering journey.
- How Danette's attitude changed after she discovered National Stuttering Association and went through speech therapy.
- Easy onset and prolongation.
- Stuttering and career choice.
- How you can advertise your stutter.
- Where does the confidence come from? Some ideas from cognitive behavioral therapy approach.
- Psychological piece of stuttering, stuttering iceberg, covert stuttering.
- Stuttering anxiety.
- Stuttering and public speaking.
- What's the starting point with this confidence thing?
- Our goals with stuttering, and how they change.
- Speech therapy, and confidence and self-esteem.
Quotes and Takeaways
"I feel much differently now than I did before I ever discovered the NSA or went to speech therapy." - Danette Fitzgerald
"I thought it was something you had to hide and you couldn't let that out; you couldn't speak in that way." - Danette Fitzgerald
"It's just a difference like any other difference, like black hair or blonde hair, or height or any difference." - Danette Fitzgerald
"I've used techniques a lot through speech therapy so I can manage if I do have a block, I can manage to get the word out in some way without feeling embarrassed about it or something." - Danette Fitzgerald
"And if I do have an embarrassing stutter where I block and I feel like people are wondering what's going on or people are laughing or something or they are uncomfortable then I tell the person that I stutter." - Danette Fitzgerald
"There was no connection to how I chose my career path with stuttering. I didn't let it hold me back and choose a different career than I really wanted." - Danette Fitzgerald
"No matter what I was always pretty confident in myself even when I was growing up and stuff." - Danette Fitzgerald
"It's more about the anticipation of speaking and the nervousness before you speak and the nervousness while you're speaking than the fact that you're physically going duh, duh, duh or blocking." - Danette Fitzgerald
"Just know that you're a good person and you like yourself as a person." - Danette Fitzgerald
"Don't give too much credit to what other people think."
"I value the self-esteem and confidence a little more than the techniques and knowledge." - Danette Fitzgerald
Resources
National Stuttering Association
National Stuttering Association - Northeast
New Haven NSA chapter Facebook page
What have you learned from this interview? Share your thoughts in the comments.
If you are a person who stutters,
and you're not quite satisfied with how you feel at the moment of speaking interaction
I invite you to my free training where I share my view on getting free from stuttering.
And for more interaction,
join the Free From Stutter Facebook group.
Please, don't stay isolated! It's crucial to feel you’re part of the community!
Read and Watch Next:
Stuttering and Anxiety - 7 tips how to reduce stuttering anxiety