The ultimate in branding
If you’re a Karen, Dennis or Reg, is it time for a name change? Well, it’s good to know that our new, least-favourite virus now has a proper name – Covid-19. It’s not that catchy, unlike the virus. But what’s in a name? Most of us were happy enough for it to be known as the coronavirus – at least we could spell it. The scientists have their reasons, of course, it’s all about categorisation.
And to stop people or entities being vilified, the World Health Organisation avoids naming diseases after people, geographic locations, industries, even animals.
It makes sense – imagine Kiwi flu, or Dannevirke disease, or Auckland Syndrome killing thousands of people worldwide, and what that would do for our reputation.
Names are important, they’re the ultimate in personal branding. They say so much about us, without us really knowing it. Our ethnicity, age range, possible socio-economic or educational background can all be surmised by our names.
See what assumptions you make about people with these names: Paula, Hemi, Anastasia, Amir, Brian, Sophie – and let’s not forget Karen.
Just before Christmas I saw a social media post from a friend, Karyn, with the line: ‘‘Don’t be a Karen’’. Apparently, Karen is now a slang term for an entitled, obnoxious, middle-aged white woman. And no, my friend is none of those things. There are also caricatures around the names Sharon – football mum with a people mover who complains a lot; Chad – alpha male who likes the ladies; and Jan – the annoying woman in the office.
There are names that go in and out of fashion. Last year, more than 400 Nigels gathered in an English pub to ‘‘celebrate Nigelness’’. Why? Because not one baby was named Nigel in the UK in 2016 and, presumably, thereafter.
There’s those poor people whose parents put two and two together and came up with five: Sean Lamb, Phillipa Bucket, Ima Rosebush. People with perfectly normal names until the name becomes famous: Harry Potter.
Personally, I think the meteorological folk should stop giving extreme weather people’s names. No-one wants their name applied to a hurricane or cyclone, ask anyone called Ciara or Dennis living in the UK right now.
The dark side of this is that we’re all prone to judging and making assumptions based on people’s names, and some of those judgments may not be favourable. You’ll never know if you’re not getting interviewed for jobs because people think you’re too old or maybe too annoying, just on the basis of your name.
Some companies are starting to look at blind CVs to try to get around conscious or unconscious bias. That seems a smart idea to me. Blind CVs don’t include any personal details like name, age or gender, only information relating to education and skill capability.
What seems amazing to me is that most of us stick with the name we’re given by our parents. I don’t know anyone personally who has changed their first name. It’s not expensive to do, so why not? We change everything else as fashions come and go.
Those hoping for fame do it. Imagine getting to the top with a name like Reg Dwight (Sir Elton John), Thomas Cruise Mapother IV (Tom Cruise) or Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta (Lady Gaga).
I’ve had a lifetime of being called Sue-Ellen and, despite my distinct lack of a Texan drawl, I’ve learnt to live with it. But perhaps it is time for a change. What about something racy – Roxy? Or something on trend – Amelia, Ruby, Harper?
Whatever, it’s not going to be SueA-20.