Someone might say a master's degree will give you success, another would say connections and good friends in the right ranking of society. Both answers are correct, but for a newcomer they are very both hard to obtain.
For me none of the above can be of any help, I don’t have a master's degree –YET- and none of my friends is a CEO, so what can I do?
Freakonomics by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner is a highly recommended read; it’s sort of about economy, but it’s not, it has a chapter called: What Do School Teachers and Sumo Wrestlers Have in Common?
And in another chapter, the book explains the importance of having a good name! I know what you’re thinking; what the hell is a good name? It’s not like you’re having good grades or a good reference, right?
Well, it is. According to Freakonomics, your name should have a few qualities to be a «good name« at least for western society to accept it, (and Norway is a good example)
- It shouldn’t be an immigrant name or a foreigner name
- It should be an obvious rich white boy or girl name
- You should pay attention to the changes of the «good name`s list« every decade
So to get back to my situation, I’ve changed my name partly because of that, well my first name has been Elijah for years now (since I’ve converted to Christianity).
But my last name (Hansen) that was a funny coincidence, I was determined to have a Norwegian last name, but I didn't know what to choose, and that was the same day I discovered the amazing app 180.no.
I was looking up the name of a guy who had called me earlier, and as a happy coincidence his last name was Hansen. The app gave me a little background about the name Hansen, one of the facts was that there are 55 731 persons with that last name in Norway, making it Norway’s most popular.
So that’s how I found my new name. It has been profitable so far, not just economic-wise.
I conducted a small self-study, and I found out that my new name has given me at least triple the chances and good luck that my old name would have.
And I dare to say I do love my new name a lot!!
Read more Elijah Hansen: