Remembering Names

My wife and I just moved our family to a new (bigger) house. Along with trying to get everything unpacked, organized, decorated, etc there is also the issue of meeting new people. We have a couple of friends that moved here before us but there are a host of people that we are get to meet. In meeting new people I am always trying to remember everybody's names. I know that I feel good, important even, when someone remembers my name after just one introduction and I want people to know that I think they are important by remembering their names too. I found a website with a few name remembering tips. Here's a sample:

Commit
Begin by making a commitment — a conscious decision — to remember people’s names.

Don’t let yourself off easy, blaming a “bad memory.” Forgetting names is due less to a bad memory than to a lack of application. Tell yourself — because it’s true — that you can remember names if you want to and if you work at it.

Next time you're in a business or social setting make it a point to remember names, it makes people feel special.

Eavesdropping

I was invited to lunch today by a commercial lender that I met on the tram at Disneyland. During the meal we talked through a few deals I am currently working on and about some deals that we hoped to do in the coming months. While we were wrapping up our lunch at Mimi's (it would have been sushi if it were my choice) the gentleman in the booth next to ours piped up and, after apologizing for eavesdropping and interrupting, mentioned that he is an investor and also represents clients that are looking for deals wherein they can invest their capital. We had a pleasant, but brief, conversation and exchanged cards with the promise to talk again very soon.

There are a lot of deals out there and a lot of capital still waiting to be invested. You never know where you'll meet the person that can help you close your next deal, it could be on the tram at Disneyland or at a booth at a girly restaurant. Keep your eyes and ears open and make your own destiny.