20 Names That Can Shape A Destiny: Things to consider when choosing a name for your baby

It's obvious that some parents have named their children based on what they like and not based on how that given name will affect their children. I have heard some names that are real odd and difficult to pronounce let alone, spell. It's OK to have a different name, but parents need to consider if that name will help or hinder their children in the future. I do understand that a child's future success is NOT all based on their name, and that it's the child's choices in life that hold substantial weight as well as choices that others can make on their behalf.

I must say that I am very pleased with the names my parents chose for me and my siblings. My name is Donna Kristine which means "Lady Christian." My Mom, especially, did her research on our names. My Dad, on the other had, wanted some, according to my Mom, peculiar names for us - Mom stood her ground and I'm glad she did.

1. Our names go beyond identifying us. When our names are on lists, on an invitation, or on our resumes they "enter" the room before we physically do. People read our names before they see us and our names could give off a certain persona.
2. Names can assist in our careers. How is that, you might ask? I used to work for a very large beverage company and we went through diversity training. We got on the subject of resumes and come to find out that resumes with names that others considered odd were put on the bottom of the pile and considered last because of pronunciation issues.
3. Certain names mean a lot in different societies. Certainly we've seen lists of "the top" baby names for a particular year. The list of top baby names are names that are accepted and well thought of in a society, and since those names are well thought of in a society, then the child with a name on that top list will be well thought of in that society, and possibly will give that person a higher degree of success in life.
4. Certain names can cause individuals to be teased, especially children. Other children can be cruel and the teased child can develop self-esteem problems. Some children have short fuses if teased and can get into fights, then fights lead to getting in trouble which can lead to school suspension, if this is where the teasing occurred, and suspension from school could affect a child's education. The child can be labeled as a trouble maker and have behavioral issues. Fighting can cause a child to lose good friends. The child could be known as a fighter and parents will not want their children associated with a fighter, which then in turn may cause the teased child, who was defending their name, to gravitate to the wrong crowd when it's really not in their character to even want to associate with kids that are said to be the wrong crowd.
5. Certain names can cause undue stress. If a child is teased and picked on for their name, the teasing and picking can cause that child some stress because that child has found themselves in a position where they have to defend their name. Adults are affected mentally and physically by stress - children are no different.

Think about celebrities who changed their names. Would they have had the degree of success if they had kept their birth names? Some would probably have not.