Your Entire Name

Authentic is not just a buzzword. No, it's actually the way in which many of us are trying to live our lives and our callings. For many of us, it's what marches us towards the acceptance of who we are as individuals—the embracing of our likes, dislikes, quirks, tastes in clothing, EVEN something as specific as our birth names. 

Those of us who have "different" or "less-common" names become aware of our name's uniqueness when we enter spaces with people—school, work, etc. Literally, NO ONE ELSE has your name, and if they do, yours is probably spelled differently. And, let's not get into the on-going symposia surrounding how to pronounce it. Oh, and if it includes some punctuation, like an apostrophe, that's even more unnecessary drama. It's never a surprise when people decide to abbreviate their names or adopt what they believe is a more "user-friendly" alias. 

But in another sensory-snatching 2020 moment, Tobe Nwigwe, in his latest release, Eat, sends us into the stratosphere with these lyrics: "Shout out to those who told me that 'Tobe' was a pet name; 'Tobechukwo Dubem Nwigwe' is my correct name." (In translation: "Put some respect on my name.")

Bottom line, Tobe is reminding us that our names are very much connected to who we are. They, too, are a part of our personal brand. Nicknames, abbreviated names, even baby names are great. We all have one or a few. They, too, are derived from a place of love. However, if there's some shame or fear associated with why you can't fully embrace your real name, I invite you to a place of introspection and encourage you to seek out some healing.

In the meantime, for all you with essentric, unconventional, creative names: embrace, love and use your name…YOUR ENTIRE NAME!