The Power of a Name
I caught up with a law school classmate last week — a sharp guy who speaks about his work with an invigorating amount of technical proficiency and authentic interest — and came away unexpectedly thinking about the power of a name.
One of the things I’ve enjoyed about blogging regularly is how the concepts I touch on here continuously float around in my head. It’s a cognitive loop I’m deliberately keeping open, evaluating the world and my interactions against the backdrop of how unique individuals get things done in this messy world of ours.
So when my friend shared his thoughts on his a potential business venture, I thought about the unique value he could bring to that project and reflected in the moment how grateful I am to know someone driven by this much purpose.
One obvious thing to call the venture is some iteration that includes his last name: “[LastName] [BusinessWord] LLC.” That kind of thing. It’s easy to mock a business title that centers on a last name, as it so often feels like an ego-stroking exercise. It evokes some of the pettier battles in Suits (holy cow did that show quickly exhaust its premise), where absurdly dramatic lawyers spar over whose names get to be on the front door and in what order.
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My friend is wonderfully family oriented, so as he plans to start this thing up, he’s cognizant of the impact it would have on his partner and their kids. He's also humble about his skillset and talents, so he has hesitations about the perception of including his last name in the business title.
And yet, he's strongly considering including his name. Why?
Because using it would help him ensure that the values he and his family ascribe to that name would meaningfully influence the business decisions he makes. Charting a course with a new venture is tough, and there could be myriad decisions that could lead to more and quicker profits that might not be aligned with core values. Using the name is at least one way to hedge against the risk of deciding something that leads to a quick gain at the expense of a value or principle, which would reflect poorly not only on the business, but also on the family itself.
I think this is super cool. We joked that the obvious name for the business is now "[LastName] Family Values LLC."
Whatever he does end up calling it (hopefully not that), I appreciate how values are intentionally being baked into the foundation here.
If my working premise on this blog is correct — that we should think about productivity in an inclusive sense that puts as much emphasis on identity as the to-do list — there's a strong argument that this type of front end reflection on values could pay dividends on any venture or project we embark upon.
I think often of a core James Clear thesis in Atomic Habits: "Every action you take is a vote for the type of person you wish to become." Before we start something big, we should think about who we are and who we want to be. In the language of values, what values do we hold now, and what actions can we take that foster the values we want to preserve or that help us embrace values we believe in but aren't quite leaning into yet?
A name, then, isn't just a name. Nor is it just a marketing tool or an exercise in postering. It can be a statement of purpose, and a declaration to an operating model driven by a particular set of values and principles.
The only problem is that now I'll really be stuck next time I'm trying to name something. Thanks a lot, friend.
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p.s. WordPress, of course, now encourages you to use AI features before posting. I've proudly (stubbornly?) avoided AI for anything having to do with this blog so far, even though I've found meaningful ways to incorporate it in other parts of my life. I couldn't help but click the button to "create and use an AI generated featured image for your post." It read my post and...came up with this? I, uh, am not quite sure what to say. If this speaks to you, you're a robot.
