TURN THE TIDE IN TEES SECONDS, get a nickname.

He had what was arguably the most expensive wardrobe in the world at the time, and never wore the same outfit twice. He is credited with buying the Jacob diamond, considered the most coveted of all the jewels owned by the Nizams of Hyderabad, India. He had a hand in the abolition of the sati system (whereby widows used to jump into the burning pyre of their husbands) and was instrumental in building a slice of India’s railway network. During the Great Musi flood of 1908, he opened his palace to accommodate victims, and also distributed aid to those affected by the Great Famine of 1876-1878.

In fact, Asaf Jah VI Sir Mir Mahboob Ali Khan Siddiqi Bayafandi (18 August 1866 – 29 August 1911) also claimed to possess a healing power against snakebite. The man was the 6th Nizam of Hyderabad, and the first of his tribe to be exposed to western education. He was awarded the Most Honorable Order of the Bath and the Most Exalted Order of the Star of India by the British Empire.

Of course you know him. No, probably not by this impressive list of KPI’s and milestones. But by his ‘other’ name, TEES MAAR KHAN.

Not many know Mahboob Ali Khan in the current day. Tees Maar Khan however is part of daily lingo in the Indian subcontinent. You see, while the other achievements are either honors, possessions or achievements, Tees Maar Khan smacks of a delicious story brewing somewhere under the hood. You couldn't care less about the former. But the story, well, you're always up for a juicy one.

Good news. There IS a tale (phonetic pun intended), as it turns out. Legend has it that the (nick)name was given to the courageous Mahboob Ali Khan for killing 30 tigers that were threatening farmers who lived in the nearby villages. The tale spread far and wide, making the name legend. Achievements don't travel. Stories do.

Be it your Angel pitch, stakeholder report, internal communication, social posts or lunch-hour speeches, all you need to do is tell that story. And an interesting nickname – one you can add to your resume or Linked-in profile, and one that precedes your presence - is a good way to set the plot.

Psychologically, nicknames imply a deviation from the usual. They link the persona with some kind of ‘arcane power’ that is near impossible to copy, and is one of the oldest - and surest - techniques of building a ‘personal brand’. Research backs this up.

A study conducted by Albert Mehrabian and Marlena Pierce in 1993, for instance, found that nicknames ranked high on parameters like cheerfulness and popularity when compared to official names.

In any case, it is hard to forget someone called Skylab Singh (which comes with the helpful explanatory tagline ‘Bluesky Thinking Specialist’), isn’t it? Okay, this one may be a bit over the top, but you get the drift. 

How to get a nickname if you don’t have one already (trawl the memory networks and something from childhood, school or college is bound to turn up)? Conduct a dipstick. Ask 10 people (who are close to you and know you well) to give you a nickname. Then pick your favourite. Or go back to the respondents and let them vote.

Getting a nickname for yourself can be fun. And power. After all, it will always tell your story memorably. In tees seconds or less.