How much info should be printed on your nametag?

Lately, a lot of people have been asking me the following question:

“How much information should you put on your nametag?”

I say: nothing but your first name. Here’s why…

It’s simple. Too many nametags are jam-packed with too much information, thus decresing the font size of each word, thus making the nametag harder to read. First name is enough.

It’s easier to remember. Sigmund Freud explained that “a person’s name is the single context of human memory most apt to be forgotten.” Why make someone remember ANOTHER name?! They have a hard enough time with one! First name is enough.

Pidgeon holes. You can put your company name or job title on your nametag, after all it IS free advertising. But in so doing, you give people a chance to size you up: “Oh, so you’re only a sales rep? Well then…” or “Wow you’re the CEO! Amazing!” I believe in leading with yours PERSON before PROFESSION. Because people buy people first. First name is enough.

Sterotypes. Face it: when someone looks at your last name, they can get a pretty good idea of your ethnic background, religion and the like. Now, I’m not saying last names are always accurate, but you’re just asking for stereotypes. First name is enough.

Security. I’ve been emailed by several retail employees in the past few years who’ve encountered stalkers, thanks to the last name on their nametag. In fact, I even had my own stalker a few years back – and I didn’t even have a last name on my tag! First name is enough.

That’s my two cents.

LET ME ASK YA THIS…
How much information should be printed on someone’s nametag?

* * * *
Scott Ginsberg
Author/Speaker/That Guy with the Nametag
www.hellomynameisscott.com

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The World is a Mirror, Part 15

A is for ATTITUDE
B is for BREAK PATTERNS
C is for CONSISTENCY
D is for DISCIPLINE
E QTis for EVOLUTION
F is for FRIENDLINESS
G is for GOOD WITH NAMES
H is for HAPPINESS
I is for IDEAS
J is for JOY
K is for KNOWLEDGE
L is for LAUGHTER
M is for MUNDANE
N is for NAMETAGS
O is for OFF BUTTON

Lately, many of my clients, audience members & readers have been asking, “Scott, what happens when you don’t feel like talking to people?”

Good question.

There are really two answers:

1) Yes, I certainly have those days where the last thing I want is some random dude coming up to me in the middle of Target saying, “Hey Scott, you got a memory problem or something?” However, it’s a rarity that I’m in such a foul mood that I can’t be friendly to a stranger. In fact, that’s one of the great things about wearing a nametag: it almost forces me to be in a good mood most of the time. And not in a fake way, but rather like “painting myself into a good corner.”

2) I don’t leave the house.

You think I’m kidding about the second answer, but I’m not.

See, Mr. Miyagi once said, “Best way to block punch = no be there.”

It’s what I call Pressing the Off Button. And in the past 2,221 days of wearing a nametag, I’ve learned to CHERISH my off button.

Whether it’s eating dinner alone (take that, Keith Ferrazzi!) taking a Friday off, turning off my cell phone, or just sitting at home playing the guitar all night, learning to press the off button is one of the most important skills I’ve learned.

And it IS a skill. I only know that because, for a few years, I couldn’t bring myself to press the off button! I was constantly at the behest of the Almighty Nametag. Always talking to people. Always working. At nights, on the weekends, even on vacation!

Then I learned I wasn’t alone. First by talking to other entrepreneurs with the same problem, then by researching the topic. For example, a recent article from MSNBC reported that the number of Americans who work during their vacations has nearly doubled in the last decade.

But it’s not just businesspeople: this goes for students, entrepreneurs, CEO’s, managers, parents, salespeople, and pretty much anyone else who has an incredibly demanding personal and/or professional schedule.

We must all learn how to press our Off Buttons, and to do so more often.

Which reminds me, I think there’s a SVU marathon on TV. Maybe I’ll just take the rest of the day off. What the hell. It’s a snow day anyway.

LET ME ASK YA THIS…
How do you press your Off Button?

LET ME SUGGEST THIS…
Do it more.

* * * *
Scott Ginsberg
Author/Speaker/That Guy with the Nametag
www.hellomynameisscott.com

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