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Articulation vs. Fluency. We'll be taking articulation in this case as being the ability to get words out and taking fluency as the ability to speak without delay, or quickly per say. --- #Fluency as a person who stutters. Is impossible. Even people who don't stutter sometimes have some trouble. I have noticed many people here "aim for fluency", by that I mean they want to be fluent, when they have a speech disorder. I mean, it's understandable, but it's the equivalent of a def person wanting to hear. A person who is def, wont go through their whole life expecting they will be able to hear again. They adapt to their environment by insuring they use other senses to their advantage. I know, there's a different between the two, right? The difference is *we CAN speak*. It just comes down to it taking longer to come out. #How We Adapt. There's too many ways we try to adapt as people who stutter to mention. The main one is many people will choose to speak less, avoid words & situations, use filler words or just not speak at all. This adaptation leads to a person who stutters becoming, in some cases, not social, or in other ways effects their lives. We get into a comfort zone, we're safe here, we may not be happy, but we're safe. #Should we aim for Articulation? This is very very difficult for a person who stutters. Our adaptation leads us to not wanting to talk (I use us as a generalization). But we can. We only choose not to for a lot of reasons. Socially we can feel our stutter may slow down the conversation or maybe make other people feel awkward. The truth is though, the majority of people, don't actually mind. I know, I know, saying this always causes a lot of backlash to whether or not it's true. But from experience, it is true. I know there's a lot more to it, careers, job interviews and life in general. But something can be done about it. I understand, there is a big spectrum of severity. I wont deny that. I was on the rough side of the spectrum. #How should we aim for Articulation? To aim for articulation means we respect the fact that we have a stutter, and it will take a bit longer to say what we need to say. It means finding acceptance. Many people say they have accepted their stutter, but continue to avoid talking because of it. That is not acceptance. Acceptance in the large scheme is accepting that your stutter is part of you, not a force stronger than you, just a very small part of you that makes you who you are. Having this mindset will only improve your life. You begin to live your life regardless of your stutter. #Will Articulation Improve Anything? We go into a job interview now, worrying whether we'll stutter, worrying that we wont be fluent. Why? Because we feel some how *we should be fluent*. We should be like everyone else. Which is far from true. Changing your mindset going into a job interview, or into a coffee shop to order something will improve your life. It wont improve your fluency, because nothing will, there's no cure for your stutter. You are standing out side your office for your job interview, you think, I stutter, I'm going to tell them I do so, and I'll tell them that I will take longer than normal and you know what? I'll stutter in this interview, and I wont care. I'll get the words out, without substitution of words, or using filler words. Confident stuttering. I know right? WTF am I even saying. You will have your qualifications to get the job, regardless of that small part of you, your stutter. Once you *articulate* exactly what you would say, if you say everything you want to say, then you can no longer feel ashamed. So what if you took too long, or you stuttered on certain words. Forget those thoughts. It's not easy what so ever. It will take time if you choose Articulation over Fluency. Time to *adapt*. Because that's what we do. We adapt. Take it from a person who was in your position, and decided to choose articulation. It's all about finding the best way to adapt to your current situation. Finding the best way to adapt and live your life, regardless of your disabilities, is going to improve it.