This article may seem funny but it is a real-life problem for certain people. If you are from a home where your parents address you and your siblings with the cute baby nicknames you were given at birth you may begin to find it embarrassing as you grow up.
Many teenagers and adults deal with their parents calling them names like junior, jaja, Dada, baby, mama, and all the sorts of names they give.
While your parents may love it because the name reminds them of your first words or a particular toddler behavior of yours, in school and among your peers you may have to face being taunted by friends who hear your parents address you with a name that sounds baby-like and funny.
To be realistic, it may not be easy getting your parents to call you by your preferred name. You may have attempted to tell them to stop addressing you the way you don’t like but it’s not working hence you are looking for other answers.
Apart from the situation given above, you may want to make yourself a brand and have a specific name like superstars and the likes do.
If this is your situation, believe me, you have found the right page. This article consists of not less than ten ways to get your parents to call you your preferred name. Let’s get into this, you will thank me later after you have read this entire article.
10 Ways to Get Your Parents to Call You by Your Preferred Name.
Here are 20 examples of how to get your parents to call you by your preferred name:
- Have an open honest conversation with them about why you would love to be addressed by your preferred name.
- Speak to your school counselor or an understanding adult.
- Tell your siblings to use your preferred name around your parents.
- Insist that your friends address you by your preferred name especially when your parents are in sight.
- Attach an emotional meaning to your preferred name that resonates with your upbringing.
- Make them believe that your preferred name would not have any negative impact on you.
- Introduce them to your mentor or role model who has had a change of name and is still doing well.
- Explain why you don’t want to use the name they already used to address you.
- Exercise patience with them while they unlearn and relearn.
- Show excitement and gratitude when they address you by your preferred name.
1. Have an open honest conversation with them about why you would love to be addressed by your preferred name.
One of the best ways to get your parents to call you by your preferred name is by being open and honest with them about your reason for wanting a change of name.
Create time to hold a conversation concerning this issue with them so they know you are not just joking about it. Give them a list of reasons why your preferred name is important to you and tell them how you will feel if they agree to address you by your preferred name.
If you will need to go in for a civil change of name then you know that you may need your parents to sign some legal documents and give their consent before the process will be successful.
- Dad and Mom, I want to change my name because I am building a brand. I truly love my childbirth name and will always hold dear to it, however, this new name of mine is very important in kickstarting my influencing career, and all I want is your consent to go ahead with my new name.
2. Speak to your school counselor or an understanding adult.
You may have to talk to a trusted adult or the counselor in your school about your preferred name situation and ask him or her to talk to your parents on your behalf about using your preferred name.
This is not a bad idea for people with stern parents who believe they have the final say. When an older mind like theirs rubs with them, they will most likely put your request into serious consideration.
- Mr Teju, the current challenge I face is my dad calling me Tada even in school. He said those were my first words, lately, I think I have outgrown that and I would love him to call me by the official name I was given which is Cleopatra.
3. Tell your siblings to use your preferred name around your parents.
Asking your siblings to use your preferred name around your parents is one good way to get your parents to call you by your preferred name. They may unconsciously start calling you that way too since it is common around them.
Also, they may begin asking why you are now being called something different from the usual, this will be the perfect time to start up a conversation with them about why they should consider a name change for you.
- Jimi and Sisi, I know you are still young, but stop calling me Junior from today. I am now Brother Bernard okay? If mommy or daddy asks you why you are now calling me that way, tell them I don’t think it makes sense for you my younger ones to call me Junior. I am serious about this. When you grow up to my age you will get my point.
4. Insist that your friends address you by your preferred name especially when your parents are in sight.
Apart from your siblings and relatives, you can get your parents to address you by your preferred name by asking your friends to use your preferred name around your parents.
You should know that parents are very good at watching out for their children’s friends and listening to what they say so that they can decide if they are good friends enough for their children.
If your friends call you a different name, your parents will immediately want to know what the name means and why you are being addressed that way by your friend. Attempt this and see how effective it can be in getting your parents to call you by your preferred name.
- Betty please I want you to start addressing me by my nickname especially when you come over to my place. Just do this, I will explain later.
5. Explain why you don’t want to use the name they already used to address you.
Telling your parents how your old name makes you feel is also a way you can get them to call you by your preferred name.
If your name has a meaning you don’t like, or they still address you by the sounds you make as a kid even to the hearing of your peers and you end up feeling bad about it, the only way to make them know how you feel is by communicating the same with them in an honest way.
- My classmates have been taunting me lately at school because they overheard you calling me cuddle bunny. Mom, can you just call me Ted as everyone in school does?
6. Attach an emotional meaning to your preferred name that resonates with your upbringing.
Of course, it is understandable that you want to change your name, but you should be reasonable at it.
Your parents cannot name you Sunshine and you want to change your name to Rain or they named you Heaven and then you just wake up and want to be addressed as Hell.
Be empathetic with the people who named you and remember that they did so out of love and emotions, they had taken time to go through a lot of names and their meanings before landing on the band you presently bear.
Imagine if you were a parent and your kid woke up in the morning and didn’t want their former name anymore. If your new name has an emotional connection or meaning, getting your parents to call you by it wouldn’t be so much of an issue.
- Mom and Dad, I started loving my nickname which is Star Girl recently and I would want to change my name on my Social media. I totally love my actual name Splendour but Star Girl is almost the same thing, and there are a lot of ‘Splendours’ online right now. I just want to be distinct and I need your support.
7. Make them believe that your preferred name would not have any negative impact on you.
Parents easily get paranoid when there is a change in behavior from their children. They start asking so many questions. Some go as far as seeing a therapist or child educator to be sure they are not thinking or acting out of proportion.
If you want to get your parents to call you by your preferred name, you will have to make them believe that your preferred name would not have any negative impact on you. You can also remind them that you are the same person, regardless of your name.
- Mummy you don’t have to overthink this, it’s still me Favour. Whether I’m called X or Z I will forever be your baby shark doo doo.
8. Introduce them to your mentor or role model who has had a change of name and is still doing well.
Showing your parents examples of other people, celebrities, or role models who go by their preferred names is another way to get them to call you what you want.
You can also show them articles or blog posts about people who have changed their names and are still doing well.
There are many public figures today like Marilyn Monroe, Alicia Keys, Jay Z, etc who are successful even without their birth name. You can also remind your parents of local celebrities that they are familiar with.
- Daddy, I know you listen to Jay Z a lot, do you know his birth name is Shawn Corey? Getting myself a stage name is not so much of a big deal after all.
9. Exercise patience with them while they unlearn and relearn.
Believe me, calling someone by a name other than what you are used to is not as easy as licking ice cream. It is something difficult because you need conscious effort and a series of failed attempts to pull through.
On this note, you should be patient and consistent in reminding them to use your preferred name. Correct them politely whenever they use your old name and don’t get angry.
- You promised to always call me Darry, Mom, anyway, I understand you just had a slip of the tongue and it’s okay.
10 Show excitement and gratitude when they address you by your preferred name.
Encourage your parents to continue calling you by your preferred name by celebrating when they use your preferred name, even if it’s just a little step. Your excitement will show that the new name has major importance to you and is something dear to you.
- Mom, I love it whenever you call me Cassy, I find myself giggling so much when I hear the name coming from you.
Ringing down the curtain.
It is not bad to want your parents to address you by your preferred name as long as the name of your choice is not something forbidden but has good meaning.
However, you should be very careful of how you go about it so as not to hurt your parents who have been calling you the name they do as this may be more critical than it seems.
Therefore, this conversation about your identity and personal preference should be approached with empathy because it is sensitive and emotional.
They obviously would not call you in a certain way if the name is not dear to them. Hence, you should have good reasons for wanting the change of name and give them time to unlearn your old name while they work on addressing you by your preferred name as it may not be easy.
Be willing to listen to their perspective and be very open about your why.