Hi, my name is John C. Harrison and for many years I have successfully coached people who stutter. I not only stuttered myself, I was able to "disappear" my own stuttering. I am also the author of the well known book on stuttering called "REDEFINING STUTTERING - What the Struggle to Speak is All About." I do one-hour personal coaching sessions by phone or Skype. If you'd like to get to know and understand your stuttering system and develop strategies for defeating it, call me at 415-647-4700 for a free, half-hour introductory session. Or email me at [email protected].
Many in the stuttering community have been unsuccessful with speech therapy. While a speech therapist often works with the physical aspects of speech and the mechanical aspects of speaking, a coach is very often able to lead stutterers to their own discoveries of what is going on when they speak. Tony Robbins wrote, after his insight that coaching was to be his life's work: "What is a coach? To me, a coach is a person who is your friend, someone who really cares about you. A coach is committed to helping you be the best you can be. A coach will challenge you, not let you off the hook. Coaches have knowledge and experience because they've been there before. They aren't better than the people they are coaching. In fact, the people they coach may have natural abilities superior to their own. But because coaches have concentrated their power in a particular area for years, they can teach you one or two distinctions that can immediately transform your performance in a matter of moments."
FOR YOUR INFORMATION: "REDEFINING STUTTERING - What the Struggle to Speak is All About" can be purchased at Amazon.com, and is also a free download:
"John is a phenomenal coach to work with when trying to overcome the communication disorder we commonly call stuttering. During my initial session with John he challenged me to see my dilemma in an entirely new light. Since that session, I have continued to work with John and he has provided me with many resources and tools that I use daily. Thanks to John I am reminded that it is possible to overcome my stuttering behavior. I know that with time, patience, determination, risk, and much sweat I will be closer to being an effective communicator. Thanks to John, I believe in my speech goals and I have ventured into many opportunities that I would have otherwise avoided. I recommend working with John if you are trying to improve communication skills, whether you stutter or not!". KEN BEVERS
"John Harrison is an icon in the world of stuttering. All my life I had heard that no one could be cured of stuttering. This filled me with fear and dread. John Harrison not only stopped stuttering himself, he also knew how it happened. Now he is able to change the world for other stutterers. His work was not only transformative for me but is transforming the lives of many in the stuttering community." RUTH MEAD
"John Harrison (I refer to him as the Sage of San Francisco) is a Born Coach. Because he stuttered himself and overcame it, he knows what it takes to "disappear" stuttering like the back of his hand. Harrison knows more about helping other stutterers, I am convinced, than anyone in the world. He is the creator of the "Hexagon" (an ingenious way to explain the nature of stuttering and the way to overcome it.)" JAI DARSHANAND
"I WAS LUCKY when it came to a coach. I was assisted by John Harrison so it wasn't so painful. Whenever I fell on my face he would pick me up and give me some good tools to succeed next time." ANNA MARGOLINA
"John Harrison was the person who got me started on my road to recovery from stuttering. I always appreciate what John told me: "Allow your intentions to run you, not your expectations, because then you are not setting yourself up for disappointment; keep your goals clearly in front of you and your motivation alive." I am grateful for this inspiring and life-changing message." CHRISTINE DITS
I was taught by Harrison that stuttering may be a series of blocks but those blocks aren't 'out here'....they are created by me, the person who stutters: i.e., 'I am holding back. I am not being held back'. So then I looked at ways I was holding back. I began to take responsibility for holding back. I stopped saying things like 'stuttering is genetic and there is nothing I can do about it.' I no longer allowed myself to think or say 'I was traumatized when I was young and the trauma caused my stuttering and this can never be changed.' Mysteriously, the result of taking personal responsibility gave me new hope. In summary, Harrison helps people who stutter to know where to look for their hangups and this results in the feeling: 'there is hope. There is something I can do. Holding back creates blocks; and if I create something, I can also undo it.'
SUGGESTIONS FROM JOHN HARRISON:
I recommend that those I coach substitute the phrase "holding back" for "stuttering." I'm trying to get people to realize that they are holding themselves back whenever they get into a block. People often see a block as something outside themselves (e.g.: I hit a block. I was hit by a block, etc.) They lose sight of the fact that bottom line, they are holding back. It's not a genetic glitch. It's not something outside themselves. I think that this problem becomes more accessible to change when it is thought of differently and in more mundane terms, and a change in semantics can really help bring this about.
We often cover questions such as what are the emotions coming up that you are compelled to hold back? -- What thoughts come up that contribute to this? -- What purpose(s) do the blocks serve? -- Suppose you didn't hold back in this situation. What might happen? What might you experience? -- What components in the scene, if you could change them, might lead to a different experience? -- Are you a different person when you block/hold back? If so, in what ways are you different?
Many in the stuttering community have been unsuccessful with speech therapy. While a speech therapist often works with the physical aspects of speech and the mechanical aspects of speaking, a coach is very often able to lead stutterers to their own discoveries of what is going on when they speak. Tony Robbins wrote, after his insight that coaching was to be his life's work: "What is a coach? To me, a coach is a person who is your friend, someone who really cares about you. A coach is committed to helping you be the best you can be. A coach will challenge you, not let you off the hook. Coaches have knowledge and experience because they've been there before. They aren't better than the people they are coaching. In fact, the people they coach may have natural abilities superior to their own. But because coaches have concentrated their power in a particular area for years, they can teach you one or two distinctions that can immediately transform your performance in a matter of moments."
FOR YOUR INFORMATION: "REDEFINING STUTTERING - What the Struggle to Speak is All About" can be purchased at Amazon.com, and is also a free download:
- REDEFINING STUTTERING: What the struggle to speak is really all about – by John C. Harrison.
"John is a phenomenal coach to work with when trying to overcome the communication disorder we commonly call stuttering. During my initial session with John he challenged me to see my dilemma in an entirely new light. Since that session, I have continued to work with John and he has provided me with many resources and tools that I use daily. Thanks to John I am reminded that it is possible to overcome my stuttering behavior. I know that with time, patience, determination, risk, and much sweat I will be closer to being an effective communicator. Thanks to John, I believe in my speech goals and I have ventured into many opportunities that I would have otherwise avoided. I recommend working with John if you are trying to improve communication skills, whether you stutter or not!". KEN BEVERS
"John Harrison is an icon in the world of stuttering. All my life I had heard that no one could be cured of stuttering. This filled me with fear and dread. John Harrison not only stopped stuttering himself, he also knew how it happened. Now he is able to change the world for other stutterers. His work was not only transformative for me but is transforming the lives of many in the stuttering community." RUTH MEAD
"John Harrison (I refer to him as the Sage of San Francisco) is a Born Coach. Because he stuttered himself and overcame it, he knows what it takes to "disappear" stuttering like the back of his hand. Harrison knows more about helping other stutterers, I am convinced, than anyone in the world. He is the creator of the "Hexagon" (an ingenious way to explain the nature of stuttering and the way to overcome it.)" JAI DARSHANAND
"I WAS LUCKY when it came to a coach. I was assisted by John Harrison so it wasn't so painful. Whenever I fell on my face he would pick me up and give me some good tools to succeed next time." ANNA MARGOLINA
"John Harrison was the person who got me started on my road to recovery from stuttering. I always appreciate what John told me: "Allow your intentions to run you, not your expectations, because then you are not setting yourself up for disappointment; keep your goals clearly in front of you and your motivation alive." I am grateful for this inspiring and life-changing message." CHRISTINE DITS
I was taught by Harrison that stuttering may be a series of blocks but those blocks aren't 'out here'....they are created by me, the person who stutters: i.e., 'I am holding back. I am not being held back'. So then I looked at ways I was holding back. I began to take responsibility for holding back. I stopped saying things like 'stuttering is genetic and there is nothing I can do about it.' I no longer allowed myself to think or say 'I was traumatized when I was young and the trauma caused my stuttering and this can never be changed.' Mysteriously, the result of taking personal responsibility gave me new hope. In summary, Harrison helps people who stutter to know where to look for their hangups and this results in the feeling: 'there is hope. There is something I can do. Holding back creates blocks; and if I create something, I can also undo it.'
SUGGESTIONS FROM JOHN HARRISON:
I recommend that those I coach substitute the phrase "holding back" for "stuttering." I'm trying to get people to realize that they are holding themselves back whenever they get into a block. People often see a block as something outside themselves (e.g.: I hit a block. I was hit by a block, etc.) They lose sight of the fact that bottom line, they are holding back. It's not a genetic glitch. It's not something outside themselves. I think that this problem becomes more accessible to change when it is thought of differently and in more mundane terms, and a change in semantics can really help bring this about.
We often cover questions such as what are the emotions coming up that you are compelled to hold back? -- What thoughts come up that contribute to this? -- What purpose(s) do the blocks serve? -- Suppose you didn't hold back in this situation. What might happen? What might you experience? -- What components in the scene, if you could change them, might lead to a different experience? -- Are you a different person when you block/hold back? If so, in what ways are you different?