Finding out that people dont care that you stutter

Published: Nov. 19, 2016, 5:02 p.m.

b'Episode #203: 1) Get yourself a community. 2) Realize that people don’t care that you stutter. They like the real you! This is a tribute episode for one of my very good friends, Bob Goyetche, who suddenly passed away last week. Bob was a pioneer in podcasting and always helped others get up and running with their own podcasting. Back in 2006, Bob co-founded an awesome, close-knit community of really cool, friendly people from across Canada and the United States (including Argentina!) who shared my interest in podcasting and digital media. I am so grateful to have been and still be a part of it.
\\nI started going to PAB, the podcasting conference that Bob had co-founded, during a particularly lonely, very shy, and very cover stuttering time in my life. Everyone was so friendly and welcoming that soon I had made many new friends. And most importantly, it was in this community where I learned the life-changing fact that people truly don’t care that I stuttered. Mind bend, I know!\\xa0So in this episode, I talk about how Bob was the one who introduced me to this awesome community, his hilarious character, the community itself, and what all this has to do with getting out of your stuttering comfort zone.
\\n…And also realizing that even people who don’t stutter can fear social and speaking situations. In fact, that’s how I learned to take further steps out of my comfort zones \\u2013 seeing my new friends get up and give presentations year after year at PAB. Of course I had to give it a try, too!
\\nAlso, being a community of digital creatives, musicians, and designers, many collaborations were made over the years and a lot of it rubbed off on me. Many more steps out of my comfort zone with a little help from my friends, as the song goes. I see many parallels of this in the stuttering community, meet ups, and such so get out there and find your community!
\\nJoin me as I pay tribute to Bob and my fellow PABsters.
\\nLinks mentioned:
\\n
\\n* One Night In Kingston by VisionFire
\\n* Tribute to podcasting pioneer Bob Goyetche by CBC Spark
\\n
\\nEpisode cover art credit goes to Shane Potvin, PABster and super awesome designer.
'