Have you ever questioned your purpose? Felt insecure about your identity? Been down a road toward your dream career and then the path took a severe turn....like into a ditch? 

We've all had seasons or moments when the universe revealed a path that is different from what we "think" we want. This is a familiar story on the 20/20 perspective but you haven't heard it from James before.

On this episode, our guest is a writer, HLA technologist, and PWS (person who stutters) from the New Orleans area. James Hayden has guest lectured at several universities across the country and has presented at both national and international conferences. His work has been published by The Mighty, The Stuttering Foundation of America, Stamma, MSN, and Yahoo. James was also a speaker at the inaugural TEDxOchsner in 2019.

In our conversation, we talk with James about:

• Being fired from his dream job was one of the best things that ever happened to him.
• Going “behind the curtain” for the first time to be honest, vulnerable, and transparent
• Failing can catapult you into your true purpose and your authentic self (whether you like it or not)
• Failure can be beautiful

A lovely and insightful poem from James a few days after he was fired:

If we encounter growth from a bad experience, then was it truly a bad experienece? Does that mean we failed because the experience was bad?

Is it failure if we grow?
Is it failure if we learn?
Is it failure if we experience joy?
Is it failure if we experience peace?
Is it failure?

I'm learning that it's ok to not be ok
I'm learning that failure isn't always failure
I'm learning that joy can come from failure.
I'm learning that failure will not define me, but I will define it.
I'm learning.

--by James Hayden

Learn more about James below:

Book: Dear World, I Stutter: A Series of Open Letters From A Person Who Stutters

Twitter: @jameshayden48

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamesrhayden/

Blog: https://stutteredblog.wordpress.com/

Email: dearworldistutter@gmail.com

Articles on The Mighty: https://themighty.com/u/james-hayden/

The Stuttering Foundation

Stamma organization

National Stuttering Association