Cup of Inspiration

Today, February 13^th, is Get a Different Name Day. Today is the day to try out a different name to match your identity, to match what you would like to be, or just to do something different for a day.

This quirky holiday offers the ability to enjoy a few laughs. Choose a name you have always liked, and have your friends call you by this new name for 24 hours. Maybe choose the name of a person you admire. Perhaps even trying something as simple as having people call you by your middle name instead of your first name, or vice versa. Be part of a group where everyone is doing the same thing, or even trying out each other’s names within the group. This can lead to some funny misunderstandings.

This holiday does offer the chance for fun. However, it also offers a chance for reflection on our identity. Do you identify as an employee at XYZ company, working in ABC department, responsible for a number of various tasks or projects? Do you identify yourself based on who you are dating, who you are marrying, which committees you run, which events you coordinate, etc.?

Perhaps you should look deeper. To whom do you turn when it feels like the world is falling apart? If the job goes away, if the house is destroyed in a storm, and the cars in the driveway are no more, what are you left with? If all the material is stripped away, what of you remains?

It is too easy for us to identify ourselves based on what we have in a bank account, where we go to work, or who sits by us at a public event. It’s all about what others perceive about us. Shouldn’t we instead look at ourselves in the mirror without the world’s lens to cloud our vision?

We should be thankful to have a job that provides an income to pay the bills. That job, though, is a tool, and should never be part of our identity. The CEO of a Fortune 500 company is no more important than the janitor cleaning up the offices at night. Being associated with someone famous is just a situation; being able to name-drop at a social event will never make you better than the others in the room. Your value in life is not impacted because you once went to school with someone famous in the news. Your importance in life has nothing to do with where you socialize with friends on Saturday night.

Today, have a few laughs with family and friends as you call each other by different names. But also, take a moment to ponder your identity. When introducing yourself to someone new, and they ask, “Tell me about yourself,” what will you say?