Where Everybody Knows Your Name

[crokett]

I've been working on this campus for 11 years. When I walk anywhere I meet a lot of people who know my name. I'd estimate that 65% of them I don't know their name and of those people, about 80% I have no idea who they are or where I met them.

[LCHIEN]

who hasn't heard of davey crokett?

[Shep]

I know what you mean. I talk on the phone to a major corporate account with about 500-600 employees. I also vist them frequently, so they all know who I am. I'm pretty good with voices (since I talk on the phone to them) so I ususally know who it is when the call me up. When I see them in person they know me, but I could only tell you who 20% of them are. Makes me feel important and stupid at the same time.

[Uncle Cracker]

David, when you don't know your name, then it's time to worry...

[smorris]

I was at a friends sons college graduation when someone walked up to me and said "Hi Scott, how've you been?". I had no idea who they were, they looked vaguely familiar but if I ever knew them I had flushed it from core memory.

[Richard in Smithville]

Try working in the town coffee shop. Everyone knows LOML.

[Tom Slick]

I had the same thing at my previous job. I was the maintenance guy so I worked in every department with almost everyone in the company and was paged about 7-8 a day on the PA system so everyone knew my name even if they didn't know who I was. I run into people around town that I have no idea what their name is but they sure know me!

[shoottx]

I have worked in a lot of military locations around the country and have met lots of people. It appears my brain works ok by associating the people with the location, and the uniform. When I run into those same people in civilian attire and at a different location, my brain acts just like my hard drive and freezes.

The worst response I have ever made was to a female Army Colonel, when I said " I didn't recognize you with your clothes on". It was a great moment of embarrassment for me, and great humor for her!

[leehljp]

As a minister and missionary, I speak at many events and meet many people especially over a 4 to 5 county area of N MS and going into Shelby County TN (Memphis). In my home town of 1500 and county of 7000, I am fairly well known. I come home once a year for a month and all kinds of people come up to me and say "Hi Hank" and I wonder who that was!

A lot of kids that I used to teach are adults now and they don't look anything like they did as a child or kid when I left. Usually I go to a friend that I keep up with and find out who spoke to me by describing what they looked like, where they worked or what car they drive! Most of the time we come up with a name.

I was in Kobe a few years ago and a Japanese man came up to me and said in English - "Hi Hank, you remember me? We met in Conway Arkansas!

I was in Singapore '94 and a Chinese man came to a luncheon of a friend that I was staying with. The Chinese man looked at me and said "I know you - We were in seminary at the same time in Ft Worth TX in '78-79."

I need to learn peoples names and start remembering faces!

[gsmittle]

Every semester I have to learn roughly 200 names of new students. It takes a couple of weeks, and when I see them around town, I usually can't remember their names. In school it's no problem.

I do see a couple of former students every now and again who make it a point to tell me their names right away. They think it's funny, but I'm grateful…

g.

[bruce hylton]

My world is small. It usually revolves around a five mile radius, with about 10k people or less. I spend enough time in the restaurant that people know I own it and talk to me like I can remember names. Over the years I have lived in a half dozen areas that have been similar, but geographically seperated. People walk up and call me by name and unless they have been really good friends I can not remember their name 25% of the time. I can remember what they collect[antique wise] if I talked to them more than once or what line of work they are in, if we discussed it, ten years after the discussion. Last month I went to introduce my wife to a party in the bar and got befuddled to the point I couldn't remember her name for a couple minutes. She is a very sharp person and reminded me what it was with a left hook.