Quote:
Originally posted by pretermitted_child
Having an unusual, not-obviously-pronounceable name is a career-limiter. And a major pain-in-the-ass.
Unusual names that are not obviously pronounceable suck. While growing up, the kid will be made fun of in school. As an adult, people will not engage him (e.g., in casual conversation, when calling on people in class, etc.) as often as a person with a plainer name, out of fear that they will mispronounce it. Having an unusual name will doom the kid to a lifetime of correcting people and generating unnecessary awkwardness incident thereto.
p(Frankly, I don't know what's worse . . . having my name or being named "Parenthesis" since the latter, albeit unusual, is obviously pronounceable.)c
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A career limiter? Seriously? Maybe if your parents named you Jackass, but otherwise I don't see it. I've never felt "engaged less" because I have an unusual name. Actually people often ask me about upon first meeting. Sure, people might wait to call me by first name until they've heard me say it a few times to make sure they have it right, but that is no different than people not remembering if your name is Mike or Mark.
If it bothers you that much, why not start using your middle name or something at some point?
Funny story (to me) is that all the partners at my firm took a couple of weeks to get the pronounciation down, but once they got it they have been very quick to jump in and correct opposing counsel, etc. on conference calls when my name is mispronounced. It doesn't phase me much, having lived with it for some time now, but it really irks them. Their reaction cracks me up.
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