What is it about certain names that seem to bring people more or less financial success than others? Is it a subconscious prejudice that has been ingrained into our minds? Some argue that an individual’s name can have an impact on the level of financial success in their lives. Whether this is true or not is still up for debate. You may be wondering what names are said to be more financially successful and whether your name is on the list.
It may not be a fair way of judging your ability to competently complete a job but having a name that is:
- Difficult to pronounce
- Near the end of the alphabet
- Too Ethnic sounding
- Too long
Reduces your chances of gaining fruitful employment and the level of financial success that you will achieve.
If you are interested, and would like to learn more about how what names make the most money and how a person’s name can impact their level of financial success, please continue reading this article.
How Names Affect Employment and Financial Success
Let’s face it. We live in a country that wants instant gratification and, in many cases, wants the easy way of doing things.
Studies
have shown that employers are more likely to hire someone with a short, common, non-ethnic sounding name over someone who has a name that is long or difficult to pronounce.
In a country that boasts freedom and equality for all, we sure are doing a lot of subconscious judging when it comes to someone’s name. The ugly truth of the matter is that many times well-qualified people are having their résumés overlooked simply due to the appearance or sound of their name.
Many individuals are losing out on quality employment opportunities before they even get the chance to show their qualifications and abilities to perform the job for which they are applying.
While many people may try to deny this fact or try to avoid the subject altogether, there is quite a bit of truth in it. This is not just an American issue but happens collectively worldwide.
Conform by Changing Names
A study showed that people who moved to Sweden from other countries did not succeed financially until they changed their names to sound more local to the area in which they were staying.
During such racially charged times, when we want to be more socially aware and understanding toward others, maybe it is time to stop judging a person by their name.
If we begin by judging a person’s ability to perform a job based on their education, experiences, and work ethic, there will be more equality in the world.
What Employers Look for in a Name
People who have the following characteristics as part of their names are more likely to be hired by an employer than those who do not:
- Common name
- Easy to pronounce
- High-profile or noble sound to their name
- Last names that are closer to the beginning of the alphabet
- Names that are less than six letters
- Non-ethnic-sounding
- People who use their middle initial are more likely to be hired because it makes them sound more intellectual or qualified in some employers’ minds.
Historically the following names are said to be linked to financial success:
| Men | Women |
| Andrew | Alison |
| Anthony | Amanda |
| Bill | Barbara |
| Charles | Betty |
| Christopher | Carol |
| Daniel | Catherine |
| David | Diane |
| Donald | Donna |
| Edward | Elizabeth |
| George | Emily |
| James | Heather |
| Jason | Jennifer |
| Jeffrey | Jessica |
| Jim | Judy |
| John | Karen |
| Joseph | Kate |
| Joshua | Kelly |
| Kenneth | Lauren |
| Kevin | Linda |
| Mark | Lisa |
| Matthew | Martha |
| Michael | Mary |
| Phillip | Melissa |
| Richard | Michelle |
| Robert | Nancy |
| Ronald | Pamela |
| Ryan | Patricia |
| Stephen | Rachel |
| Thomas | Sarah |
| Timothy | Susan |
| William | Victoria |
Naming Your Child for Success
In today’s up-and-coming world, some of the traditional names we are used to are being retired.
This list is what some are saying to name your children if you want them to be successful in the future:
| Boys | Girls |
| Christopher | Catherine |
| David | Jacqueline |
| James | Kate |
| Kenneth | Katherine |
| Madison | Lauraine |
| Parker | Madeline |
| Robert | Morgan |
| Steven | Susan |
| Thomas | Victoria |
The Billionaire List – Top 25 in the United States
The following table gives the names of the top 25 billionaires by rank in the U.S.A according to Forbes™:
| Name | Net Worth (Billions) | Company/Industry |
| Jeff Bezos | 179 | Amazon™ |
| Bill Gates | 111 | Microsoft™ |
| Mark Zuckerberg | 85 | Facebook™ |
| Warren Buffett | 73 | Berkshire Hathaway™ |
| Larry Ellison | 72 | Software |
| Steve Ballmer | 69 | Microsoft |
| Elon Musk | 68 | Tesla/SpaceX |
| Larry Page | 67 | Google™ |
| Sergey Brin | 65 | |
| Alice Walton | 62 | Walmart™ |
| Jim Walton | 62 | Walmart |
| Rob Walton | 61 | Walmart |
| MacKenzie Scott | 57 | Amazon |
| Michael Bloomberg | 55 | Bloomberg LP™ |
| Charles Koch | 45 | Koch Ind.™ |
| Julia Koch and Family | 45 | Koch Ind. |
| Phil Knight and Family | 39 | Nike™ |
| Michael Dell | 35 | Dell™ Computers |
| Sheldon Adelson | 29 | Casinos |
| Jacqueline Mars | 29 | Candy/Pet food |
| John Mars | 29 | Candy/Pet food |
| Len Blavatnik | 25 | Music/Chemicals |
| Jim Simons | 23 | Hedge funds |
| Stephen Schwarzman | 19 | Investments |
| Leonard Lauder | 17 | Estee Lauder™ |
Prejudice Pauses Progress – Name VS Qualifications
Multiple studies have been conducted regarding people’s names and how their levels of success in school and life have been affected. As previously mentioned above, many people are said to be less successful in life if their names have the following qualities:
- They are difficult to pronounce
- They are near the end of the alphabet
- They are too Ethnic sounding
- They are too long
But why is that? Some studies say that those who have “negative characteristics” to their name are treated differently or unfairly throughout their whole lives, which is why they end up being less successful.
How can the characteristics of your name possibly have any bearing on your level of success? Doesn’t the person make the success, not the name?
According to the billionaire list above, yes, people can be judged strictly based upon their talents, skills, and attitudes. Unfortunately, though, there are still some in the world at this time who haven’t received the memo.
Prejudice is a Pandemic
The truth is, it doesn’t matter where you go, there will always be discrimination and judgment based on your name, color, race, etc. It is the ugly side of human nature that will never change if we all don’t work together to make it happen.
Although many of the names on the billionaire list stay true to some of the statements made above regarding the initial prejudice of employers when looking at an individual’s name, can we really say that the billionaires on this list got where there are because of their name?
While studies and statistics can show that employers hire based upon one’s name, if you dig farther than your standard Google search, you will probably find that there are more wealthy individuals with what the studies perceive as “negative” name characteristics on the above list than you realize.
Statistics can be easily manipulated when there is information left out of the equation. The results can be made to show what a person wants them to show. So if you have what some have defined as an “undesirable” name, don’t be discouraged. You are in control of your destiny – your name isn’t.
Your Name Can Only Get You So Far
Although there may be bias in this world, in the end, those who work hard and have strong knowledge in their prospective field will do well despite the initial brush-offs.
A name can only get you so far; if someone is hired solely upon their name and not what they can do or what they know, the employer will eventually discover that it is best to read past someone’s name before hiring again.
