Name trouble, need help

[Missadventure]

Violet is also a very old name, not sure how old you are but unless you were born in 1924, the chances of you being called that naturally are very slim ^^

Violet is a pretty name, and I've known a couple of girls my age who've had that name.

The "age" of the name shouldn't really matter. Plus, colors are more or less timeless. It's not like you're choosing "gertrude", "blanch" or "ethel" 

[Hikari]

It just occurred to me that I have no idea what my mother would have named me, but she had to have had a name in mind.

What I mean is, I was born traditionally, that is at home assisted by a midwife, no prenatal care or doctors or anything so she had no way of knowing if I were a boy or a girl until I was born, so unless I was nameless for a time she almost had to have came up with two names. It is almost too bad I cut her out of my life because I strangely would like to know even though I wouldn't change from what I picked.

[Allyda]

I like Victoria out of your choices. You can go by Vikki for short.

[Jill F]

For me, I had a LOT of names that i liked. I made sure I liked both the sound and meaning of each. I ended up with a list of like 20 names.

It was also semi important to me to have a name where I could use a longer/shorted version of the name.. It's a little silly, but I've always been really jealous of girls with the name Elizabeth. They can go by Liz, El, Beth, Elissa, etc and they're all super cute names.

I started trying a number of the names, but they didn't really feel like they were me. Eventually I tried Jill/Jillian.

If you have someone to help you try on names, you might see if they're willing to try cute & playful forms as well. This helped me reinforce that I was a Jill. Hearing my wife call me Lizzi or El didn't feel right, but hearing her call me  does.

My middle name is Elizabeth.  Well played, Madame.    I'm a Gillian, but hey...

[katiej]

I too have never heard that before. In fact, I've always heard the opposite. That a name like "Max Power" will make you stand out and be more memorable in a stack of names than a name like "Joe Smith"

Studies have been done to show that people with ethnic or unusual names are less likely to be called for interviews when compared to similarly qualified job candidates.

http://www.chicagobooth.edu/capideas/spring03/racialbias.html

However, the authors of freakonomics disagree and say that the uniqueness of a name actually says more abut the one who did the naming, but it doesn't adversely affect economic status.

http://freakonomics.com/2013/04/08/how-much-does-your-name-matter-a-new-freakonomics-radio-podcast/
http://freakonomics.com/books/freakonomics/chapter-excerpts/chapter-6/


The idea is that someone with an unusual name -- let's use the musician's son Dweezil Zappa as an example -- is likely to have grown up in a family that either was of lower economic status, or had little regard for societal norms.

I'm not suggesting that hiring managers in corporate America would consciously reject Lakisha or Dweezil in favor of Emily or Stephen.  But subconsciously people do have a tendency to stick with what they know.  I hate to admit it, but one time I decided not to interview a Sarah because I already had two Sarahs working for me and it was confusing.  It seems petty now, but her resume didn't warrant extra consideration and I already had several other equally qualified candidates to interview.  The only reason I admit that is to show how fickle the hiring process can be sometimes.

[Missadventure]

Studies have been done to show that people with ethnic or unusual names are less likely to be called for interviews when compared to similarly qualified job candidates.

http://www.chicagobooth.edu/capideas/spring03/racialbias.html

However, the authors of freakonomics disagree and say that the uniqueness of a name actually says more abut the one who did the naming, but it doesn't adversely affect economic status.

http://freakonomics.com/2013/04/08/how-much-does-your-name-matter-a-new-freakonomics-radio-podcast/
http://freakonomics.com/books/freakonomics/chapter-excerpts/chapter-6/


The idea is that someone with an unusual name -- let's use the musician's son Dweezil Zappa as an example -- is likely to have grown up in a family that either was of lower economic status, or had little regard for societal norms.

I'm not suggesting that hiring managers in corporate America would consciously reject Lakisha or Dweezil in favor of Emily or Stephen.  But subconsciously people do have a tendency to stick with what they know.  I hate to admit it, but one time I decided not to interview a Sarah because I already had two Sarahs working for me and it was confusing.  It seems petty now, but her resume didn't warrant extra consideration and I already had several other equally qualified candidates to interview.  The only reason I admit that is to show how fickle the hiring process can be sometimes.

Ethnic names I buy... I can totally see an ethnic name hurting a person in the hiring game. But, I still think an anachronistic or unusual yet still stereotypically anglo-saxon-ish name wouldn't hurt... But really the name point is probably moot, qualified or not. I personally don't know a single person born after 1980 who has a "successful career", normal name or not, good qualifications or not. This economy has kind of given my generation the short end of the stick there... I myself went from $17/hr full time with full benefits in 1999 to $7.90/hr part time and no benefits now, while in that time I've gained additional education, not to mention 15 years of job experience. And my name is so generic it's probably one of the most common names in the world. But, that's a different topic for a different forum. 

[Tori]

I like Victoria out of your choices. You can go by Vikki for short.

Um... no. Victoria is mine... ALL MINE!!!

Muahahaha...ahahahaha...heheheh...ahahahaha!!!

[Allyda]

Um... no. Victoria is mine... ALL MINE!!!

Muahahaha...ahahahaha...heheheh...ahahahaha!!!

It was only a suggestion, lol! hahahaha hehehehe