What tricks do you use to remember people's names?

Play the name game, in your head! It's all about strategic repetition. Repeat the persons name when you meet them, ask for clarification if they have a unique name, then repeat their name again as in "nice to meet you..." upon your exit.

I found this post on Lifehacker and it's incredibly helpful and essential for successful networking.

http://lifehacker.com/5626604/how-to-remember-and-deal-with-peoples-names

Hi Charlie and thanks for your post!

While this method doesn't work all the time, in the event that I'm going to meet someone with whom I can't remember their name, I tend to take along backup. By backup I mean another colleague.

When you go into the meeting, say your brief 'Hellos' and then introduce your colleague first to the person in question. It's tends to be a natural reaction for the other party to respond with "Nice to meet you so and so. My name is ______." Cheating? Perhaps, but helps to save face from time to time.

Alternatively, make light of it. You mention that it's immature, but let's be honest here. How many names, numbers, passwords, grocery items, meeting requirements do you typically have to remember in a day. I say embrace the moment! Share a laugh and come right out and say, Sir/Ma'am, while I remembered to put on pants today, I seem to have forgotten your name. My apologies. Can we start fresh?

Gauge your audience first obviously, but it's pulled me out of tight spots from time to time. Take it from a guy with an uncommon name.

Cheers.

If your objective when you meet someone is to tell them - or sell them - something then their name has no value to you until and unless they do something for you. If your goal is to listen and learn so you can help them - with no hidden agenda directing your thoughts to some self serving purpose - then their name will have value and it will be retained.

Your goal when meeting people should be to get to know them vs. them getting to know you. Once you know someone their name is much easier to remember as well. Of course once you have earned their friendship their business should follow. It is much easier to do business with friends since they are more likely to remember your needs - and you theirs!

Name in my opinion is the first most cherish value while cultivating new relationship, to remember names easily,begin by acknowledging names as the first most important VALUE to be cherished,..with this mindset,,you'll recall names as easy as you desire.

victorio shared this blog post with me this week...more good suggestions for remembering names:

http://ht.ly/8uPJv

When talking to the person mention the name more often so that you yourself remember. Regarding name and surname - very often people are given their visitcards so all information actually is there. In some moment write down somewhere for yourself how the person looks like in order to remember who was the owner of this visitcard. You can suggest also to join on social network then it will be totally easy to remember the person as well as it will be very easy to contact him/her when the need arise.

Names should be remembered but if you work with foreign people sometimes names are so hard to remember as it is not usual for your culture or you can even hardly pronounce it, then it is normal if you reask once again the name, ask to spell it and write down to be clear and not to mix next time (people will just evaluate that cos they will understand that for them you seem to be valuable to be remembered).

I feel your pain, Charlie :P Perhaps the very best method of remembering names, for me anyway, is to righteously embarrass myself by forgetting it at the most inopportune moment! After that, I truly never forget.

Seriously, though, this is about some sort of consistent key. That key may be different for everyone, but always involves doing something special with the name. The very act of *doing something* is the memory aid.

In the movie "House Bunny", the main character changed her voice and repeated the name. Always drew curious looks, but is a method proven to work for some.

I create an image in my mind. Charlie Judy, for example (and forgive me for this LOL) becomes a goat wearing a dress and red slippers ala Dorothy (Judy Garland) in Wizard of Oz. When I was a kid we had a goat named Charlie. Obviously I don't usually share with new meets the imagery created in my head. But hey, it works for me.

Good Luck!

Together, let's put the fun back into work!
Belldon Colme
belldoncolme@gmail.com

Regular meetings with something to share
makes one remember names...
this is why we do so at home, school,
peer group, and office.

However, if "regular" meetings is not feasible
then you have to do your homework
before meeting the person...
this means, there should be "interest".

"Tricks" to remember names or anything,
in reality, really depends on one's intellect.
If one is slow, no matter how much he is taught
won't really go too far compared to someone
who has a higher learning ability.

This is @TheGreatLight.

I'm terrible with names. I have 2 tricks that I regularly use:
1. When I meet someone, I mentally repeat their name at least 3 times
2. I tell people, "I'm terrible with names so I'll probably ask you 2 or 3 times" or "I'm terrible with names so please don't be offended if I forget yours", and I do ask

If I don't do one of these things (usually both), I know I will not remember the person's name. It doesn't matter how well I get to know them. It doesn't matter how much I care about them as a person. It doesn't matter my objective in regard to my relationship with them.

Also, if I'm going in to a meeting, I look for names I don't know before hand and try to identify them during the meeting.