with Catherine Richardson
💬 You’re in a group. You know you want to say something. You just can’t find the right time. The conversation moves on, the moment passes, and you spend the rest of the evening wondering why it’s so hard to just speak up 😶
🎮 In this episode, I talk to Catherine Richardson, a psychologist specializing in geek culture and mental health. She blends Acceptance and Commitment Therapy with gaming and pop culture to support neurodivergent professionals. And she just created something that might change how you think about social skills entirely.
🕹️ It’s called “Speak Without Freezing,” a free visual novel designed to help you practice what to say before you actually have to say it. Not by giving you a script to memorize, but by letting you rehearse in an environment where there’s no social cost. Think of it as a dating sim, except instead of trying to win someone over, you’re working on yourself 💪
⚠️ But here’s the challenge: practicing something in a game and actually doing it in real life are two very different things. So how does muscle memory work when the stakes are real? And what do you do when the social rules change depending on who you’re with, what culture you’re in, or even what room you walk into? 🗺️
🧊 If you ever freeze up during conversations, go quiet at the worst moment, or wait so long to say something that everyone has already moved on, this episode is for you.
🎧 Press Start and learn how to speak without freezing! 🥶
I asked hundreds of nerds and created a guide based on their responses.
Are you going to keep grinding without finding out the truth?
Catherine’s Links:
Related Episodes:
- Level Up Your Social Skills Using Online Gaming Communities, with Kaylee Lopez
- Gamify Your Dating Anxiety, with Michael Berger
- IRL Lessons from Video Games, with Dr. Daniel Kaufmann
- How to Approach Your Gym Crush (Without Being A Creep), with Jordan Yaklin
- Shy meets Socially Anxious, and Going Slow: the Nerd Love Story of Steven and Christin
- Introverted Nerds on Dating Apps, the Nerd Love Story of Phillip and Darcy
Timestamps for lazy nerds:
- 00:00:00 Intro
- 00:01:00 Speak Without Freezing
- 00:03:19 How it Helps with Social Anxiety
- 00:07:37 Social Anxiety and Perfection
- 00:12:22 Skills to Learn
- 00:14:55 Dating Sims
- 00:19:37 How to Apply the Skills IRL
- 00:22:14 Playing the Game While in Therapy
- 00:23:57 Not Waiting for Perfection
- 00:25:46 Adapting to Different People
- 00:31:48 Social Anxiety and Cold Approaches
- 00:36:55 Catherine’s Links
