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Richard Holmes has had a severe stutter since he first learned how to speak. Whether you have had a speech impediment yourself, known someone with one, or even have never even heard one before, it is easy to imagine how it would have a great impact on one's life. In Holmes' case he took to competitive mountain biking at age 10 as an outlet and a way to express himself.
This outlet eventually blossomed into a life-long passion: Holmes quickly established himself as a skillful rider, was first sponsored at the age of 13, and went on to attract several more sponsors as he won a number of contests. And after graduating from highschool, he packed his bags and chased his dream across the country, landing on British Columbia's Sunshine Coast to study Mountain Bike Operations, eventually working his way up to become a certified coach at the Whistler Bike Park.
Despite the medals and trophies, his stutter got no better -- at some moments getting to the point where he could barely get any words out -- and Richard was still very frustrated. So in the fall of 2011 he made a decision to do whatever it would take to change this part of his life and came back to Ontario to participate in an intensive speech reconstructive program at the Speech and Stuttering Foundation in Toronto. This program involved retraining the muscles used in speech, which he then coupled with his own unique process for changing the frustrating, vicious cycle that is part of stuttering.
The results speak for themselves: just six months after completing the program, Richard has become an award-winning public speaker, placing 3rd in his division in the Toastmasters International Public Speaking contest. He's looking forward to sharing the process he went through at TEDxUW -- one that's transformed not just his speech, but also his life -- and he hopes that hopes that attendees will be able to learn from his own experiences. "Nothing that fulfills my ambitions will be just given to me," he says. "It takes initiative to express yourself in a productive manner."
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In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized.* (*Subject to certain rules and regulations)
11 сен 2024
