DREIESKIVA​|Roald Kvam

Roald Kvam 2023

Sadly, I remember faces, not names.

It is frustrating and I am really struggling remembering people’s names. I makes me sad because I know – and experience too – that a person’s name is to that person the sweetest and most important sound in any language.

Our name is a very powerful thing. It’s an embodiment of our identity. It’s a personal reference. So remembering and using someone’s name is a great way to make that person feel important.

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«The average person is more interested in his or her own name than in all the other names on earth put together.» (Dale Carnegie)
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Calling someone by their name is like paying them a very subtle compliment.

Conversely, forgetting or misspelling someone’s name can have the opposite effect and make it feel as though we are distant and disinterested in them.

Remembering and using people’s names is also a critical component of good leadership. The executive who can’t remember his employees’ names can’t remember a significant part of his business, and is operating on quicksand.

I know! And now you know why it makes me sad that I so easily remember faces, but not the name connected to those faces…

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«The information we are imparting or the request we are making takes on a special importance when we approach the situation with the name of the individual. From the waitress to the senior executive, the name will work magic as we deal with others.» (Dale Carnegie)
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Each time I meet someone new, I make a sincere effort to remember their name.

I repeat the name several times and try to associate it in my mind with the person’s features or expression, or something I’ve learned about this person.

If it is an uncommon name, I may ask them to repeat it or spell it for me. I even write it down some times so I can visualize the name too.

I am terrible in this! But it is equal important to others as it is to me. So I will continue challenging myself to improve in remembering names.

It’s simply crucial!

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Source & Inspiration: «How to Win Friends & Influence People» (Dale Carnegie, Andrew MacMillan, et al.)