“Let Me Clear My Throat, While You Attempt to Free Your Mind.”

Unapologetically, I attempt to communicate with you; you don’t listen to me, you hear me. You use the simple act of perceiving sound by the ear rather than listening. Listening requires concentration so that your brain processes meaning from words and sentences.

Your Gaze… Your Reaction… Your Pose…Your Dismissal…Your Hardy-har-har… and Your Ich… I stutter…wait, I’ve stuttered for approximately 23 years. You have listened to me for less than 5 minutes and you have heard nothing. You casually dismiss my attempt to eloquently break silence.

Vocalizing a sentence is a privilege for you, the ability to say a word at the right moment is humiliating for me. The ability to say “I love you.” takes more than a thought or an emotional response. The average fluent speaker takes approximately 2.5 seconds to articulate a three syllable phrase e.g. I love you, I miss you; who knows how long it takes me, and who knows how the context or candid value is diminished by the anticipation.

Back to Earth… Back to Reality…

You the interviewer, I apologize for the latent retort and the inability to converse in a customary fashion. You dismiss my efforts.

Currently, I rank high amongst my fellow business partners. I have over 10 years invested in my particular profession along with two Bachelor Degrees and a Master degree.

On paper i.e. resume, cover letter and in person, I am a 523-hp, 6.0-liter twin-turbo V-12 coupe; if you look closely at the details as you take in all 6 feet and 2 inches you will see a beautiful dark twisted masterpiece. Looks can only get you so far, as the interviewer attempts to pick my brain i.e. pop the hood and take me for a test drive — they subsequently classify me as a lemon.

According to the Stuttering Foundation, If You Stutter At Your Interview, You’re More Likely To Be Rejected: Why We Shouldn’t Discriminate Against Stutterers. People who have stutters are actually the opposite of what many might initially believe: they can be hard workers who compensate for their lack of speaking skills through dedication and perfectionism. “People who stutter often have a temperament that’s perfectionist because many have to work tirelessly to gain fluency.“ -Barry Guitar University of Vermont

On a corporate visit, a senior executive at my organization spoke of a potential advancement. He then undressed his previous remarks and played on words stating, “you would be good in a supporting role.”

When do you let victim thinking into your life and what are the consequences?

I have billions of eyes [Media Outlets e.g. News, TV, Google], yet I live in darkness. I have millions of ears [Social Networks e.g. Facebook, LinkedIn], yet only four lobes. I have no muscle [Knowledge], yet I rule two hemispheres. What am I? A misinformed interviewer with an array of resources at my disposal but I choose to judge a book by its cover. To be continued….