How Your Name Can Change Your Life

November 23, 2015 in Daily Bulletin

Natalie Vail at Cracked composed a list of ways that your name can affect your life:

  • People who have names that come early in the alphabet do better in life. This may be because in classrooms, for example, they’re called upon first, have their names mentioned first when they co-author something, or even have their names on the tops of ballots when they run for office.
  • This helps explain why, in the past century, only six American Presidents have had a surname from the latter half of the alphabet.
  • We’re also more likely to marry people whose names resemble our own.
  • Children in conservative states get weirder names – such as “Serenity” or “Londyn” – than children in liberal ones. This might be because conservative mothers tend to be younger and thus may be more adventurous in their choice of names.
  • In Germany, at least, having a noble sounding name – like Furst (“Prince”) – leads to better life outcomes.
  • For male CEOs having a simple informal name – like Mark – seems to be an advantage. It makes them seem less intimidating, allowing people to be more comfortable around them.
  • For female CEOs however a more complicated name – like Marissa – seems to be advantageous. This might be because it makes them seem more professional.

The full article has many more fascinating details, and as with all articles from Cracked has a good deal of humour in it. You should read it here.

Source: Cracked