The power of a simple compliment

“I didn’t even realise you had a stutter”

My friend Francesca said this to me while we were co-working last Friday, and honestly, things like this make more of a difference than we even realise at first. We’re going to be taking a closer look at this today 🤝

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Growing up, I never dreamed my speech would reach the fluency it’s reached over the last couple of years. I won’t lie, it’s taken a lot of work, trial and error, and patience to reach this level, but boy, has it all been worth it.

One of the things I’ve come to realise along the way is, as well as working on building your speech fluency up, you’ve also got to take a look at your self-image. The two work typically hand-in-hand – when you’ve got a positive view of yourself, your speech, the progress you’ve made along the way, you’ll usually be naturally more confident.

Now, while these aren’t mutually exclusive, it’s cool to explore the impact that improving one, the other, or both can have on your life.

You are allowed to feel proud of yourself for the progress you’ve made. Let me repeat that again, you are completely allowed to feel proud of yourself – you’ve worked hard, and you’ve earned reaching where you are. When you get to experience people sharing lovely things about your journey or where you are now, too, that’s not something to shy away from. It’s something to own, to embrace, and be grateful for.

I’ve had quite a few people say similar things to Francesca lately, and it’s a lovely reminder of how far I’ve come with everything. I know that I’ve still got a long way to go in fully understanding my stutter, but it’s something that’s going to evolve and make more sense as I continue to grow as a person.

Stories like this are also a fantastic reminder that the words you say matter. You never know the difference they can make to somebody’s day, week and life. We never know what someone may be going through; a little acknowledgement and reassurance can make such a big impact.