“Sarah, Caroline, Lauren, Ashley, Austin, Michael, uh... hm… um…”
Yeah, that “uh… hm… um..,” that was me.
It’s happened to me for years. My name is always butchered. First and last. My parents did not make it easy for anyone. I know there are others out there who feel the same about their names, so here’s to you people with “difficult” names whether it’s your first or last and, for anyone who doesn’t know, here’s what it feels like to have a “difficult” name.
People can’t pronounce it.
Literally no one ever pronounces it right on the first try. No one. Half the time no one remembers which way to pronounce it the rest of the time either! It doesn’t matter if they’re your teacher who has to say it 5 out of the 7 days of the week or a telemarketer trying to sell you a back brace you don’t need, they still get it wrong.People can’t spell it.
It already can’t be pronounced and now it can’t be spelled either. I can’t even recall all the times my name has been misspelled in pamphlets and papers or on awards and mail. It’s crazy!It’s never written on anything.
You have no idea how badly I wanted a magnet with my name on it when I was little. I remember going on vacation, heading into the shops, and spending countless hours searching for a magnet, keychain, anything really that had my name on it. As you can imagine, I never found one. Many times there would be Adriene, but no Audrianna. Now Coca-Cola has their “Share a Coke” campaign and I’m sure our “difficult” names won’t be included in the list.
Now I don’t want anyone thinking that those of us with harder names are bitter about the negative effects. Honestly, the things I just listed aren’t a big deal. It’s just stuff that happens to us! Having “difficult” names can actually be kind of cool!
Sometimes you get neat nicknames!
My name is so long that when I introduce myself to people, they give me a funny look and I just tell them to call me Aud. It’s shorter and much simpler for everyone. Over the years I have acquired quite a few nicknames. Audge, Audi, Modge just to name a few. People can pretty much come up with anything for a nickname and then you usually have a great story to tell people about how you got it!People remember it!
Although they might not say it correctly, they generally remember their version of it. I’ve had professors that couldn’t remember the typical names, but they could remember mine because it was unusual.People don’t have to specify who you are!
There are a ton of Laurens in my friend group. When you just say, “Lauren,” five heads pop up and look at you to see if you needed something. In this case, we have to use last names. You don’t have this issue when you have a “difficult” name! Sometimes you don’t even have to write your last name down on papers in the classroom because the teachers automatically know who’s paper it is.
All in all, people with “difficult” names are unique! Embrace it!
