What does it take to bring a change?

They say it takes one decision, one moment, one person to bring a change. So true!

I am a person who picked up a wrong habit of speaking, what medical science calls as stammering or stuttering. All my life, I have had difficulty in doing the basic daily chores what other people just do so smooth and subconsciously. I have difficulty in introducing myself since I can't pronounce my own name many times, in explaining an address, talking over phone, speaking to the customer service agents, in pronouncing a PNR number that includes numbers and alphabets both, in talking to anyone for the first time, in participating in a group discussion and what not.

In a meeting when people go round table introducing themselves, my heart starts pounding at double the normal rate as my turn comes nearer, to an extent that I can hear my own heart beat very clearly. Once I was at a railway counter to ask for a ticket, unable to pronounce the name of the station I wish to go to, and a big queue of people waiting after me annoyed the official to pass a piece of paper to me to write down the name of the destination I wish to go to. A con-call with SAP Support team to discuss an issue went so horrible that the person said "please type your issue and send, as I can't understand what you say". People obviously consider it as lack of confidence when you stutter in an interview, cos they don't know what I suffer from. In the event of an argument, one can easily win over me. And this list can go on and on to say I have died many deaths many times. As I write all this, I have tears rolling down from my eyes. Scores and scores of people have made fun of me all through my childhood - friends, colleagues and relatives alike, whenever I would have a dispute with them. I was always good at studies, to the extent that I stood at 3rd place all over India in CMA (ICWA) examination; but nothing helps much unless you express yourself adequately

Then came a day when I joined Itelligence. I was put on a project where I had to speak to the customer in US everyday over phone, explaining them the entire design and answering all their Qs. Then I was put into Pre-Sales where I met several customers, speaking to a new customer every week, giving several presentations, answering several unexpected Qs. I was given people management responsibility and every such work that would challenge me every day. And today, after 2 years of going through all this, I find that new confidence within me to face people, something I have been missing all my life

It took several years and several people to shatter my confidence, and it took one decision, one organisation, two yrs and two people to build that again - @Mayur_chhabra and @sanjeev_deshpande. Despite knowing my speech capability, I was offered opportunities that the company could have lost. I am not sure why- whether they had full faith in me or they had no choice - I really don't know. But all I can say is these two gentleman have given me something, the value of which only a stutterer like me would know.

A big thanks to you both!! THANKS is too small a word for what you have given to me.