(Forgetting names. . . when they remember yours.)
I’ve always been good at remembering names. I don’t really have to try to do it, the name just sticks to me after they mention it the first time. Unfortunately, this always makes the other person feel awkward and I finally understand why!
The Barista at Starbucks remembered me from a social gathering somewhere. I didn’t remember her, her name, or even the place where I met her, yet she knew my name. Uh oh, I’m forgetting names. Instead of pretending that I already who she was and saying “Oh! Hey. . how’ve you been?” I was like “Oh, sorry I don’t remember you.” That’s when I realized that people avoid saying that at all cost, and that’s why they feel so awkward. Well, yeah . . . it is awkward.
How many of you have actually pretended to remember someone and acted like you’re never forgetting names?
“Hey, man. How are you?”
“What’s up dude! Long time.”
You avoid any type of conversation that would include his or her name, and just wait for the name to just end up being mentioned by someone else. Or wait to see if you can somehow spot the name on the person’s notebook. Or see if you steal their wallet and then check their I.D. (not advised). Oh, here’s a good one:
Me: Hey, so yeah man.. how do you spell your name again?
“Man”: Uh, Andrew?
Me: Yeah, but you know . . how do you spell it? (awkward) Since there are so many different (awkward) spellings for a single name nowadays.
Andrew: Oh, right! A-N-D-R-E-W ha, ha!
Me: Cool, so it’s uh, normal. Cool.
PHEEW! Saved! ..sort of.
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I usually ask for their number and have them put it in my phone and then look at it quickly to make sure it “saved” and then I’ll know their name! =)
HAHA!
it’s really Awkward..
)
Nice blog btw
Thanks for the comment, harlimae
Edwin
Thanks for a great story to share.
I’m not very good at remembering names, but I also have a condition where I cannot remember faces as a whole, only the seperate parts of them (eyes, mouth, nose, etc). After 3 years of sharing the same classes, I’m still learning my classmates’ names, and will refer to them mentally as “the guy with the triangle nose”, “the chick with different coloured eyes”, “the teacher-lady with huge lips”, etc. I was once shown a picture of a former classmate who had his eyes blurred for ‘privacy’ and I didn’t know who it was, but when he entered the room I could call him by name because I needed to see his eyes to know who he was. (His name was Pete, and he was blind in one eye which made it a milky-blue.)
Being an Aussie, when I can’t recall someone’s name, I can get away with calling them “mate” until I remember or the conversation ends. Or I just bluntly announce: “I can’t remember your name, what was it again?”
i usually wait for someone else to say it
good technique though!!
So this is the freshly pressed post! Proud of you Edwin!! AWESOME post!!!
Yeah, this is it! Thank you
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haha guilty of this! usually, i’ll just ask how they would like me to save their name in my mobile when we exchange numbers.. ha
This is definitely on my list of scary…not just awkward moments. I dread this. Especially when I visit my mom, i’m scared I’m going to run into someone I went to high school with and since I haven’t seen them in a decade I was going to forget their name completely. I always prep my husband to jump in and introduce himself so they’ll say their name.
haha! I wait until I find someone I can introduce them to. My friend “Sue” walks up and I say “oh! this is my friend Sue!” And the other person will introduce themselves to Sue. Works every time!
guilty! I only hope someone is with me like my husband so I can say “Hi, this is (insert name here) and they’ll also introduce themselves then we all know it!