I’ve made just about every mistake you can make in stuttering, including developing a mess of fluency tricks. They seemed to help for a short time, but ultimately, they became another noose around my neck. Another bad habit I would need to break. Ultimately, every fluency trick failed me. Let’s take a look at fluency tricks and why they are among the worst things you can do to your speech.
What's in Your Bag of Fluency Tricks?
My bag of fluency tricks was pretty full. Actually, pretty full of _____!. I shook my head, scratched my head, clenched my teeth, closed my eyes, slapped my thigh, pinched my thigh, substituted words, added umms, added uhhs, and so many more I can’t remember. I wish I kept a running list, I can’t imagine how long it would be or how many body parts it would involve.
Every one of those worked at least one or two times, some even worked for a day or a week. But ultimately, they all failed. And what was I left with? A bad habit that was really hard to break. When I began to work through my speech, these were some of the most difficult things to eradicate from my fifty years of stuttering.
The Internet is filled with fluency tricks. Maybe some will work for you, but all I can say is buyer beware. Once you add a fluency trick to your speech, it maybe very difficult to undo. Short-term fixes are dangerous, because eventually they will fail and then all you’ve done is add another bad habit to your speech. Stick with what can work for the long term.
Isn't BEP a Fluency Trick?
You’ve probably heard me talk a lot about BEP, so you might say, “Isn’t BEP a fluency trick?” Well, let’s go through it, piece by piece.
As you probably know, BEP stands for Breathe, Emphasize, Phrase. I didn’t invent BEP, I just mimicked professional broadcasters and public speakers and simplified what they do into three parts: Breathe, Emphasize, Phrase.
But isn’t it just another fluency trick? To speak, you need to Breathe, so that’s not a trick. And at some point you need to end a Phrase because you’re going to run out of breath, so that’s not a trick. That’s two out of three parts.
What about Emphasize? I suppose you could call it a trick, since you could certainly talk without any intonation or emphasis. But here’s the reality: It would be difficult to find a top broadcaster or public speaker who doesn’t speak with intonation or emphasis. It’s how professionals make their speech compelling and focus your attention on what’s important.
For people who stutter, Emphasize (some would call it intonation) has another critical purpose: It forces you to take a breath and end the phrase rather than ramble on until you’re gasping for air. Emphasizing may be the most important part of BEP in that it sets up your breathing, both the timing and the pace.
Again, Breathe, Emphasize, Phrase is simply effective speaking. It’s how good speakers speak.
Why Tricks Ultimately Fail
Why do fluency tricks ultimately fail? One main reason: They aren’t a natural part of quality speaking. As a result, you don’t use them all the time. Because of that, you have to think about how and when to use them.
And when are you going to use a fluency trick? When you think you’re going to have trouble speaking, right? Can anyone under the extreme duress of stuttering pull out a trick and be successful? I never could.
I remember when I stuttered heavily, my mind was always racing trying to figure out how I would get through this word, that sound or the next sentence. The racing was compounded by my efforts to decide which trick to pull out of my bag. How could I possibly speak effectively with my mind working in overdrive anticipating what would trip me up and how I would counter it? Insanity!
Here’s another reason: Once you start thinking about when to use the trick, it’s bound to fail. Why? Because you’re adding unnatural stress to the speaking process. You’ve already decided that you’re going to stutter; is a fluency trick going to change that? Maybe once or twice, but not consistently. It’s like walking down a steep staircase and deciding which step you’re going to trip on. Won’t that intense focus make you more likely to trip on a step than simply walking down the stairs?
Make Speaking Easier for Yourself
When non-stutterers speak, they don’t think about which trick they’re going to deploy at which time. Not at all. Speaking is no big deal. It comes naturally. They have a thought and it flows out of their mouth. Just that easy. Nothing gets in the way.
But people who stutter jam up the works with all kinds of tricks, causing their minds to work in overdrive. It’s too much. How can you not stutter?
Make speaking easier for yourself. Ditch the tricks. Make good speaking automatic so you don’t have to think.
For me, that was mimicking great speakers and simplifying how they speak into three parts: Breathe, Emphasize, Phrase. When you’re able to speak without thinking about anything other than enjoying the moment, that’s when talking becomes a lot easier and a lot more fun.
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