Do you like your name? Have you ever wished your first or last name was different?
Have you ever dreamed that your last name was Vanderbilt, Rothchild, Carnegie or Rockefeller?
Wealthy families have existed since mankind was created. A quick Google search revealed a fascinating list of wealthy family names that begin before Christ. Croesus was a purportedly wealthy individual who lived in the 6th Century, B.C. Nikolai Alexandrovich Romanov, aka Tsar Nickolas II of Russia - Emperor of the Russian Empire in the late 1800's and early 1900's - is proof that wealth does not buy happiness. His family's brutal end by the hands of the Bolsheviks in 1918 underscores my point. Although he is seen by historians as the wealthiest monarch and head of state in history, with a current-day wealth level of US 29 billion dollars, it was not enough to spare his life and that of his family. More modern-day tycoons would include Mir Osman Ali Khan (India), who is regarded as the wealthiest man on earth - although Warren Buffett might disagree - edging out, by a surprising wide margin, Bill Gates.
The Smiths, Jones, Martins, Andersons, and Johnsons all share a commonality - common last names. Whether or not it is easier for a Smith, Jones, Martin, Anderson or Johnson to get lost in the great shuffle of life is known. I suspect much depends on each individual and his or her drive for success.
First names are another matter. Quirky or "weird" first names can be a definite detractor......even when accompanied by a famous (NOT infamous) last name. The penchant by today's parents for "individualized" spellings of first names, or giving strange first names like Apple, Pear, Blanket, Bear will only work against their poor children as they move into and through their school-aged years, when their names will be routinely misspelled and constantly corrected by the children, or defended by same said children.
Some names carry with them the weight of the world.....or may feel like the weight of world is upon those whose last name is either Gates or Buffett. A recent news clip about Warren Buffett passing the reigns of control (i.e. power) to his son, Howard (Howie) is what precipitated this whole thought process on my part. Part of me would love to be Howie Buffett........
But the other part of me is happy to be Ancora Imparo.
In another time and another place..............
Ancora imparo
