{
  "schema_version": "1.0",
  "id": "CC-020",
  "title": "Why did I sometimes use an easier name for an order?",
  "topic": "Names, orders and fixed wording",
  "author": {
    "name": "Craig Coffee",
    "id": "https://usedtostutter.com/craig-coffee#person"
  },
  "canonical_url": "https://usedtostutter.com/using-an-easier-name-when-you-stutter",
  "access": "public",
  "content_kind": "author_published_article",
  "context_url": "https://usedtostutter.com/about-this-material",
  "source_sha256": "17311550ffbcf77634d68cac3ed61ba8c4fcdc13231ecb8fe3d95320395dcbe7",
  "source_markdown": "# Why did I sometimes use an easier name for an order?\n\nBy [Craig Coffee](/craig-coffee)\n\nThe name I chose was Steve. At Bold Bean in Jacksonville, I loved ordering a pour-over coffee. The problem was that the baristas asked for my name, and I was so nervous about saying it.\n\nSteve was easier for me. Words starting with the letter s caused me to stutter less. Humiliating, yes, but it's what I did time and time again.\n\n## What was I trying to do?\n\nThe barista needed a name to call out so I could pick up my order. In that situation, I would rather choose a name I could say than force my way through [my own name](/stutter-saying-your-name).\n\nI was thinking about momentum through the day. That is how I have explained the choice. [Fluency above all else](/word-substitution-and-stuttering) is one of my philosophies, and I speak strongly about it.\n\nSome people disagree with using another name. I think that objection is bullshit when the name is just there to collect an order. That was the choice I was describing.\n\n## Another choice I wrote about\n\nAt my favorite coffee shop, I also used a longer form of my own first name, rather than the short form I tended to go by. Why did I do that? Because it was easier for me to say. That is another choice I described in my notes.\n\n## What if using another name feels worse to you?\n\nSomeone pushed back on this in a group call. He said he would rather stutter on his real name than use a fake one. He didn't want to feel like a fraud. He said using another name would bother him more when he went to bed.\n\nI stayed firm about why I preferred the easier name for an order. But I also said, “And that's fine,” and told him to do whatever felt right for him. I wanted to be respectful while we disagreed.\n\nHe could see my point about momentum and still had reservations about the name. When he asked again about feeling worse at night, I explained how I would think about the choice: carrying good speech through the day. That was my reason for doing it. I also said I respected that he might not agree.\n\n## When the real name matters\n\nI've also said that when a person in authority needs your real name, you give your real name. The name for a cup of coffee was the particular opportunity I was talking about.\n\nIn that same explanation, I said I still said other words I blocked on. My name was especially hard for me. Choosing Steve for an order was something I actually did while working on the rest of my speech.\n\n## I have judged that choice harshly too\n\nI have also written about this same choice much more harshly. In one draft, I wrote, “The fake name I used was Steve.” I then called it “quitting and finding an easy way out.” In that passage, I said I was sick of people laughing, snickering or smirking when I struggled to say my name.\n\nIn a separate discussion, I said using a fake name was something “that I highly encourage while they work on how to beat their stutter.” I explained it in terms of carrying momentum through the day. Those are both things I have said about the choice.\n\nHere is the distinction I want to make now: my embarrassment describes how I felt about myself; an easier name can still serve the practical purpose of collecting an order. Calling myself a quitter was a harsh judgment, and I do not want to make that a judgment about you. You can choose an order name or choose to say your own. When your real identity matters, the information must be accurate.\n\n## Related answers\n\n- [What did going first change for me during introductions?](/waiting-for-your-turn-to-introduce-yourself)\n\n[Find your question](/questions)\n",
  "relative_link_base": "https://usedtostutter.com/using-an-easier-name-when-you-stutter",
  "sections": [
    {
      "id": "reading-content",
      "heading": null,
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      "citation_url": "https://usedtostutter.com/using-an-easier-name-when-you-stutter#reading-content",
      "role": "source_context",
      "source_markdown": "The name I chose was Steve. At Bold Bean in Jacksonville, I loved ordering a pour-over coffee. The problem was that the baristas asked for my name, and I was so nervous about saying it.\n\nSteve was easier for me. Words starting with the letter s caused me to stutter less. Humiliating, yes, but it's what I did time and time again.\n\n",
      "source_span_sha256": "8cc57c642cc38577b8f047ac2865e49a825c7e0fa1a74087a1a30c886a245027"
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    {
      "id": "what-was-i-trying-to-do",
      "heading": "What was I trying to do?",
      "heading_level": 2,
      "citation_url": "https://usedtostutter.com/using-an-easier-name-when-you-stutter#what-was-i-trying-to-do",
      "role": "source_context",
      "source_markdown": "## What was I trying to do?\n\nThe barista needed a name to call out so I could pick up my order. In that situation, I would rather choose a name I could say than force my way through [my own name](/stutter-saying-your-name).\n\nI was thinking about momentum through the day. That is how I have explained the choice. [Fluency above all else](/word-substitution-and-stuttering) is one of my philosophies, and I speak strongly about it.\n\nSome people disagree with using another name. I think that objection is bullshit when the name is just there to collect an order. That was the choice I was describing.\n\n",
      "source_span_sha256": "9790a2937207efc17f1e18ae208dc083aba54f6a78d4cc851d23684e7127b65c"
    },
    {
      "id": "another-choice-i-wrote-about",
      "heading": "Another choice I wrote about",
      "heading_level": 2,
      "citation_url": "https://usedtostutter.com/using-an-easier-name-when-you-stutter#another-choice-i-wrote-about",
      "role": "source_context",
      "source_markdown": "## Another choice I wrote about\n\nAt my favorite coffee shop, I also used a longer form of my own first name, rather than the short form I tended to go by. Why did I do that? Because it was easier for me to say. That is another choice I described in my notes.\n\n",
      "source_span_sha256": "8c112b122bacd94773324c3cc472e465460b1b3c3077c328971dd42a7f63f7be"
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    {
      "id": "what-if-using-another-name-feels-worse-to-you",
      "heading": "What if using another name feels worse to you?",
      "heading_level": 2,
      "citation_url": "https://usedtostutter.com/using-an-easier-name-when-you-stutter#what-if-using-another-name-feels-worse-to-you",
      "role": "source_context",
      "source_markdown": "## What if using another name feels worse to you?\n\nSomeone pushed back on this in a group call. He said he would rather stutter on his real name than use a fake one. He didn't want to feel like a fraud. He said using another name would bother him more when he went to bed.\n\nI stayed firm about why I preferred the easier name for an order. But I also said, “And that's fine,” and told him to do whatever felt right for him. I wanted to be respectful while we disagreed.\n\nHe could see my point about momentum and still had reservations about the name. When he asked again about feeling worse at night, I explained how I would think about the choice: carrying good speech through the day. That was my reason for doing it. I also said I respected that he might not agree.\n\n",
      "source_span_sha256": "d379d4fc62676b5618b40feb8e3372e5affaf0e26c1e0cacb648abbc79e17f0d"
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    {
      "id": "when-the-real-name-matters",
      "heading": "When the real name matters",
      "heading_level": 2,
      "citation_url": "https://usedtostutter.com/using-an-easier-name-when-you-stutter#when-the-real-name-matters",
      "role": "source_context",
      "source_markdown": "## When the real name matters\n\nI've also said that when a person in authority needs your real name, you give your real name. The name for a cup of coffee was the particular opportunity I was talking about.\n\nIn that same explanation, I said I still said other words I blocked on. My name was especially hard for me. Choosing Steve for an order was something I actually did while working on the rest of my speech.\n\n",
      "source_span_sha256": "05af074ac60f4ce5581618ee11826e3d6c12653c7b24fcd52686a3dae286f437"
    },
    {
      "id": "i-have-judged-that-choice-harshly-too",
      "heading": "I have judged that choice harshly too",
      "heading_level": 2,
      "citation_url": "https://usedtostutter.com/using-an-easier-name-when-you-stutter#i-have-judged-that-choice-harshly-too",
      "role": "source_context",
      "source_markdown": "## I have judged that choice harshly too\n\nI have also written about this same choice much more harshly. In one draft, I wrote, “The fake name I used was Steve.” I then called it “quitting and finding an easy way out.” In that passage, I said I was sick of people laughing, snickering or smirking when I struggled to say my name.\n\nIn a separate discussion, I said using a fake name was something “that I highly encourage while they work on how to beat their stutter.” I explained it in terms of carrying momentum through the day. Those are both things I have said about the choice.\n\nHere is the distinction I want to make now: my embarrassment describes how I felt about myself; an easier name can still serve the practical purpose of collecting an order. Calling myself a quitter was a harsh judgment, and I do not want to make that a judgment about you. You can choose an order name or choose to say your own. When your real identity matters, the information must be accurate.\n\n",
      "source_span_sha256": "efade1cfb50ad68b2a56c762e5a3de9c91e09c45100ae0291c352e4017e0bd76"
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    {
      "id": "related-answers",
      "heading": "Related answers",
      "heading_level": 2,
      "citation_url": "https://usedtostutter.com/using-an-easier-name-when-you-stutter#related-answers",
      "role": "navigation",
      "source_markdown": "## Related answers\n\n- [What did going first change for me during introductions?](/waiting-for-your-turn-to-introduce-yourself)\n",
      "source_span_sha256": "fe067e17a22efd806bfbba6e001efd31274f4b83a0e6602ac3fe731edd148061"
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    {
      "id": "steve",
      "title": "STEVE",
      "url": "https://usedtostutter.com/reader/book/editions/corrected-2026-10-04-9e1d376a993f/chapters/steve",
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