Work Nicknames

The other day, I was having a nice conversation with a customer and we were discussing our work histories. He was an retired (older than me) gentleman that had worked most of his life in one company. We were having some fun talking about what it was like to work for so long with one employer. One topic that came up was how people would pick up nicknames at work… He joked that you never got to pick your nickname – it was given to you. I could definitely relate.

That quick interaction with that person got me thinking of the nicknames I have had and gotten over the years. I also thought back to the nicknames of some of my co-workers and how they got them. How did you get yours?

Was it…

• How you worked? So many nicknames had come from the way a person worked.. The bossy employee would get a nickname of Sarge. How about the person that was slow at getting their work done? Pokey
• Developed over time? Like when you have a person that has the same name in the department and that person picks up the name Justin #2.. need to get the right one. That develops to #2 for short. Then moves onto Poopy or Duke.
• Based on what location you grew up?  Folks from Kentucky usually get the Colonel. Maybe the San Fran or bay area pick up Rice-O-Roni.
• Based on a physical attribute? A very tall person gets Stretch or High Pockets. The short person may get Little One or Short Stuff. Sometimes those nicknames hurt some.
• Based on your cleanliness? A person that has a very messy work space or never puts anything away maybe called Pig Pen.
• Based on the length of service or the new guy? Since I am the new person in the golf department I have picked up the Rookie nickname for now. I guess they are waiting to see what will be my nickname will end up being. My last couple of years at Intel I was given the nicknames of Old-timer and lifer…
• Based on your name (first or last)?I also got many because of my last name… Way too many that way.

Some folks feel that nicknames are not good at work. I find it all in good fun. I always tell my teams that if the nickname is not something that you want to be called – just let me know and I will insure that it does not happen. When I first started working back in the 70’s, you never had a chance to stop the nickname – you only could work harder, do something different in order to get an updated nickname. I never took it personally, I felt it was one of the many badges you earn along the way. It was good fun for the most part!

Share yours if you don’t mind!