Why do I sometimes stutter when speaking on the phone?

Question

Sometimes when I answer the phone at work, I stutter. Most of the time I'm OK; it only happens on about 20 to 30% of the calls I answer.

I personally don't receive many calls, but I often have to take calls for co-workers when they're away from their desks. Sometimes I stutter at the start of the sentence "She's/he's in a meeting at the moment, can I take a message for her/him?" Sometimes it's really hard to get the start of the sentence out.

I feel so silly when that happens. What can I do to stop the stuttering from happening?

Answer 1

You need to relax more and become more self-confident.
Stuttering, which by the way you don't have in your normal speech, is a result of feeling nervous, and unsure of one's self.

Hope this helps.

Answer 2

Sounds like a stress related response. You don't get many calls for you (and I imagine you don't stutter as much when you are not covering for someone else...) so you feel unprepared when you answer for someone else. This generates stress and causes you to stutter sometimes because you have to answer but you don't feel ready to (like a little kid with stage fright being pushed on stage and having a spotlight turned on you...)

To deal with this, here's what I suggest:

When you have a non-busy minute, think about what would your usual response be when answering the phone? Type that up and place it right next to the phone. Then just read it off when you answer the phone... no thinking required. Also (if you don't already) have a message taking pad & pen next to the phone at all times.

Finally (and this is the most important), never answer the phone on the first ring. When it rings, take a deep breath, and pick it up on the third ring. This momentary pause will reassure you by saying (non-verbally) "it's not critical, I am ready, and here we go...". I used to stutter a little bit (brain goes warp speed, mouth runs only sub-light) until I learned to slow down and take time to breathe. That made all the difference!! :)

Answer 3

I think a lot of people have this problem. I used to be like this at work too when I first started answering the phone, my main problem was remembering the line that I had to open all phone conversations with, if I was busy serving a customer in person at the time and the phone would ring, I'd grab it and completely forget the way I was supposed to answer it, the boss often rang our department so you couldn't just not bother one time, on the off chance it was him.
Just take a deep breath and after 2-3 rings speak slowly.
Good luck :-)

Answer 4

It is probably because you are subconsciously thinking that it you have to be prepared to answer the phone for more than just your calls. If you are only answering for calls that are coming to you, you always answer the same way. If you are taking calls for others also, you have to respond differently. This ups the anti for a mistake and sets your nerves on edge. It is the same thing when you are calling a family of four people and don't know who is going to answer; you have to think ahead to recognise the right voice so you say "Hi John' or "Hi Jacob."

You can have notes on your desk, so if you are answering one line, you have your finger on the note for that person's phone and answer one way. If it is another line, have your finger on that note when it rings so you can read "This is Joyce; Amanda is away from her desk right now; can I help you or take a message?" Reading might help you speak without a stutter. Just make sure you are reading the right note for the line that rings:)

Answer 5

Lol, i do this too. I don't normally stutter, it only happens on the phone. I feel sometimes i can't get the right words to come out, and if it's someone unpleasant or rude on the phone, this makes me worse. I think it's just nerves really. I find it quite hard at times to keep my cool, and i'm very aware of my (Glasgow) accent as i live in another part of the country.

Answer 6

You just need to be more confident. Before you answer the phone, tell yourself that you can do this. I know it sounds silly, But i had the same problem. When i answered the phone at work, I stuttered and said the wrong things too.

But now, i learned that when i hear the phone ring, I just take a deep breath, tell myself that I can do it, and then go over what i have to say before picking up. It sounds lame, but it works. Eventually you won't even need to think about it.

Answer 7

I understand how you feel, I'll often do the same thing. It seems my mind is already at the end of a sentence by the time I'm starting to speak. Try slowing down a bit. Relax yourself, concentrate on what your saying, not to the point where your annoyingly slow, but much clearer and concise with what your trying to get across. That might help! Good luck

Answer 8

lol ... i exchange into a similar while i exchange right into a youthful newborn... (i'm 14 now.) i exchange into taken to Toronto ill young ones wellbeing facility, and clinically determined with a far less extreme 'stammer', no longer 'stutter'. They pronounced it exchange into because of the fact the two factors of my concepts have been firing on a similar time, so i might ought to go with which or something ... i do no longer fairly undergo in concepts the small print, yet i understand the clarification exchange into because of the two side element. it nevertheless occurs on occasion, yet in simple terms while i'm worried or attempting to talk too quickly. p.s. something humorous exchange into that as quickly as i might communicate with an accessory of a few variety, be it French, English, in spite of, the stammer might right now bypass away.

Answer 9

ITs a state of mind that you are accessing which is nervous and uncertain, and/or self conscious. Just take a breath before you answer and imagine yourself speaking smoothly. I just treated you energetically to help you access better states of mind, let me know if and when the problem is gone.

Answer 10

no, but I know someone with a stutter, and he regulates his breath to controll it. Mayber just before answering the phone breath in and out deeply.