Things will work out

13th January 2022

Isack Kibet writes from Kenya about his journey with stammering, from schooldays to finding employment. Having faced occasional prejudice, it's a tale of perseverance and determination to succeed.

I'm Isack, I'm 26 years old and I'm from Kenya. I have a stammer and my journey from childhood to adulthood has not been easy.

During my early education I would sleep in class and cover myself with a jacket because I couldn't speak. Every time I tried to, other pupils would laugh and imitate me. When the teacher was going through the register, we would answer "Present, Sir/Madam", but in my case I would say, "Pre…pre…pre…se…nt, S…ir".

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When I was at lower primary, I met at teacher who changed my life. He took me to the staffroom and told me to speak in front of the teachers. I stammered through it but none of the teachers laughed. From that day on I accepted my stammer and learned to live with it.

English and Swahili lessons were a nightmare because they involved reading aloud. But since I had accepted my condition I would stammer whilst reading, even though it took more time. The teacher was patient with me. I still stammered throughout my four years at secondary level studies and qualified to go to university.

University

I enjoyed university life because the students there were accommodating. No one laughed at me and I was voted class rep in my economics class; this meant being a bridge between the students and the lecturers. Even though I would stammer, everyone gave me time to explain myself. 

This proved that leadership is not all about eloquence, but actions.

In my third year as a student I felt that I should nominate myself for an elective position at the campus. I was competing for the role of finance director and there were six other competitors. The campaign was very competitive and some tried to boo me during the campaign because I stammered. But I kept speeches short and brief, and at the end I was voted the finance director at my university. This proved that leadership is not all about eloquence, but actions.

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Job hunting

I completed my studies in 2019 and returned home, where I tried to look for jobs without success at first. Eventually I went to a local tea factory to look for casual work and I got a job. During my first week there I had bruises all over my hand and couldn't cook or wash my clothes, since the work was manual. It involved loading and unloading tea sacks from lorries; I had never done such work before.

I continued there for a few months until I said to myself enough is enough, so I resigned. My dad didn't like the idea, but I told him I had to look for better paying jobs, and in the meantime he gave me space on his land to grow and sell vegetables. I used the funds I received from that to go to Nairobi to look for work.

I would like to encourage others in a similar situation to try and accept your stammer. Do your best to live with it; with time, things will work out.

When I landed in Nairobi I had little money, and not  enough to travel back home. I called one of my friends, who recommended me to a private security training academy. I enrolled there and later worked as a night security guard for three months. 

Later that year I went back to Karatina University for my graduation, where I got a bachelors degree in economics and the next month I went for an interview at a debt collection company. I had prepared well for it but when I entered the interview room, everything evaporated and I stammered all through the process. However, later I received a phone call telling me that I had passed my interview. I was super excited because I would be working in an office, not as a security guard anymore.

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What to do next?

I worked there for six months until I moved on to another job as a credit controller at a consulting company. The experience was good at first but in the second month I had to present a report to the board of directors. I stammered throughout the presentation and they were not impressed and laid me off. That was the worst day of my life; I felt I was just worthless. I went back to the house and thought about what I should do next. I decided I should try speech therapy classes. I found some but they were too expensive and I couldn't afford it. After sharing this with my dad, he told me not to give up.

The next month I received a phone call from a company I had applied to earlier for the job of debt collector. I went for the interview and was successful, and I worked there for four months, but moved from that to my current job as a risk and relationship officer. I am very happy here and I want to stay; my workmates are okay with my speech and sometimes I even chair the weekly meetings.

I would like to encourage others in a similar situation to try and accept your stammer. Do your best to live with it; with time, things will work out.

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