When you say your name, how do you say it? Do you use a soft-spoken voice? Or are you loud and proud?

It doesn’t matter if you are meeting someone for the first time, leaving a message on the telephone or introducing yourself to a group of people. How you say your name says a lot about you. Say your name meekly and you appear shy. Say your name too strongly and too loud, you may appear arrogant or over-confident or demanding.

First, let us look at some facts about names. Names are carefully chosen by parents and sometimes pass from generation to generation. Some women choose to proudly take on the name of their partner or name their children with the partner’s surname. Names can have special meanings, depending on the cultural meaning. They are more than a jumble of letters. The name chosen for you tends to be special for you, and maybe a nickname or shortened version is a term of endearment or inclusion.

Dale Carnegie, an American writer, lecturer and public speaker, once said
“A person’s name is to him or her, the sweetest and most important sound in any language.”

Tone is the key to confidence. Introduce yourself with confidence. Ideally, you would like other people to say your name correctly and remember it.

It is usual to hear people say “I’m . . .”, or “My name is . . .”. Sometimes you hear “My name’s”, contracting “name” and “is”.

“I’m”, and not “I am”, usually used because it is brief and is part of our spoken language compared to the written word. Using the short version “I’m” allows the emphasis to be placed on the name which is the important part of the sentence.

Here are examples:
Hi. I’m Sue Smith.       Hello, I’m Pam Spencer
I’m Rachel Holding    Hi everyone. I’m Alison Wong
Hi, my name is Marnie Stuart is an example of someone saying. “My name is,” Using an example of the contracted name is. My name’s Heidi Green

All the common ways of saying your own name places the emphasis on the name. This is why the tone of your voice is important. Make your name count. You want your name to be memorable, rather than the person judging you as shy or arrogant.

When meeting someone for the first time, it is polite to state your name first. Stating your name first will result in the other person introducing themselves 95% of the time. A conversation flows more easily if both parties know each other’s name.

Tips to help you confidently say your name:

1. Smile while saying your name
A smile will add warmth to your voice and help you to relax. This works well especially on the phone. If you are introducing yourself to another person, you’ll send the message that you’re not only pleased to meet them, but you are happy being you.
You can forego the smile if you are stating your name in a serious situation such as telling someone bad news.

2. Speak loudly
You don’t want to be too loud, however adding some emphasis to your name will make you stand out and increase the chance that person will remember your name.
Sometimes people are focused on what they are going to say and they don’t hear you completely.
Speaking your name with confidence will make sure you have their attention.

3. Speak clearly
This is especially important if you have a name that is difficult to pronounce or it is unusual and people don’t quite catch it. If someone asks you to repeat yourself for clarity, oblige them and proudly state your name again.
Don’t feel angry if they cannot pronounce it correctly the first time, or if they have forgotten it from a previous introduction. This just gives you another chance to state your name again. You may choose to spell your name to assist them to pronounce it and memorise it.

How to get people to remember your name
If you find people have difficulty in remembering your name you can:
o Tell a short story about your name – how it was chosen or the meaning
o Use your name in conversation – My friend yelled, “Look out Pam. There’s a snake”.
o Answer common questions uncommonly or with humour
o Ask excellent questions
o Dramatise using actions

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