Like it or not your name can influence how seriously you are taken at work. If you have an unusual or tricky name to say you may have to work twice as hard to get the same results. It appears that many people have a hard time excelling in the workforce and your name could be the reason you are failing to advance in your company.
The University of Chicago recently published a study where they found job applicants with names that sounded African-American didn’t get equal thought in the hiring process. Researchers were able to find this out by sending out 5,000 phony résumés, and the résumés with names like Tyrone and Tamika were less likely to be called back for interviews than Anglo-sounding names. They also found that training had little influence in the process.
One example of this is Shuki Khalili. He worked for a company for quite a few years but felt his name was holding him back. So he resigned, began his own company and shortly realized that phone sales were a bust so he tried using an alias name ‘Andrew Warner’ and his sales increased drastically. By changing his name he was able to make contact with and engage in discussions with more clients. So he now goes by Andrew Warner and runs a thriving entrepreneurial resource site.
Khalili are not alone. Throughout the U.S. Hispanics, Asians and African Americans have found further success when they have changed their names. Many have changed their names from Marko to Mark and so on in order to find greater success in their careers. Regrettably there is some prejudice remaining in America but the main reason consumers don’t want to work with these people is the fear of a language barrier.
Workplace prejudice can be a problem and it can keep some people from excelling. But changing your name shouldn’t be the only answer. By catering and bending to fit these standards you are just making things worse. You shouldn’t have to transform your name and therefore part of your individuality to either get a job or receive a promotion.
Even people that are Anglo but have abnormal or what are termed “weird names” face the same problem as those mentioned before. Even Caucasians miss out on promotions because they don’t have a common name or people are embarrassed saying it. So many have changed or shortened their name to sound more Anglo in order to get the promotion and the higher wages.
A name can potentially excel or halt your career. So all those parents that want a distinctive name just remember you are branding your child for the rest of their life. By choosing a peculiar or foreign sounding name people will wonder if English is their primary language and question their capability to get along with Americans. So find names that show your culture but are also somewhat conventional. Or choose a middle name that is Anglo-sounding so that your child has the opportunity of going by that name.
Either way parents decide to go, bear in mind that a name really does determine the success an individual will have at their company. Anglo-sounding names permit men and women to move further up the corporate ladder. Although this isn’t right, unfortunately that’s how things are right now. And presently, there are several cases in front of the courts right now in which corporations are facing charges of unfairness. Hopefully everything will be solved and individuals won’t have to conform in order to get a job or be promoted.
About the Author Info
Diane Johnson graduated with a Bachelor of Science from the University of Utah and enjoys writing about current events, politics, online degrees, online education, and the office.
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