Sometimes, the setbacks we experience can prove to be the turning points we never even knew we were looking for on our journey to success. It’s a principle that applies in the game of rugby, as much as in the story of one rugby broadcaster’s road to a dream come true
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— Ben Karpinski (@followthebounce) March 5, 2018
In rugby we often hear heartwarming stories of how stars have achieved great things even with the odds against them. It is a hard and uncompromising game, with players sometimes having to deal with career-ending injuries and the reality that the next season or match could be their last. And that’s from an early age. But even when tragedy strikes, they find the strength and resolve to fight back and get to the top of their sport.
Bringing this closer to home, as a broadcaster who essentially speaks for a living, the very act of talking was once very difficult for me.
At the age of 10, I fell out of a tree and broke my right arm. Being right-handed, this was somewhat problematic, especially as I was nearing exam time at school. I started writing with my left hand, which seemed like a good idea at the time, and certainly something I felt had novelty value.
What I didn’t realise though was that it was making my brain a little confused, and my speech started to deteriorate as I used different areas of the brain to carry out the act of writing.
I really struggled to speak properly. I just couldn’t get the words out. Once I got going I was a bit better, but I battled to participate in conversations, and this made me shy and withdrawn. I tried humming before talking, and taking deep breaths, but nothing really worked, and I often just gave up.
Once my broken arm had healed and I returned to normal with writing and my daily activities, I thought my speech would return to normal. It didn’t. The stutter remained and by this stage it had become a serious issue for me.
I felt embarrassed, so I never spoke about it. I guess my parents just thought I was a shy child who didn’t say much. A view my teachers no doubt shared. Deep down though, I wanted to change this, as it was like living life with a handbrake on.
So I started watching lots of news bulletins on TV. I watched the presenter’s mouth, I listened to every word. I watched boring talk shows where I didn’t always know what was going on, but I fixated over the big words they used.
Bit by bit my speech got better, and with that my vocabulary grew. With a greater focus on these new words, my function of getting them out seemed to improve. Oral presentations in English class became my favourite thing, and my confidence grew. I was far less shy, I got more involved in school activities, and enjoyed being more than just the quiet kid on the side.
At this point of the story it would be great to say I went straight from school into broadcasting and am now a household name. This is sadly not quite the case, as I made some poor adult/career decisions after school. But by moving on from my speech impediment and not letting it hold me back, it made me appreciate the spoken word, enjoy the art of storytelling, conveying information, and using it as a medium to entertain.
This passion eventually took control of things at a more mature age, which brings me to where I am now. Happiest in a radio studio with the microphone in front of me, or on stage MCing events. We can always do more of what we love in life and land the jobs we want if put our minds to it.
Setbacks can turn into success stories. It just takes a little application.
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