What's in a name?

Names have power! Whether given or chosen they have the power to encompass a lot of information. The name of a team can tell the world who we are, what we do, or where we fit in a bigger picture. The name of a product can give us a sense of its purpose, its prestige, and it can help create a shared story among those of us who use it.

But names are tricky: they also have the power to deceive. How do we know we all store the same information behind the name? Have you ever had a long conversation about a mutual friend - a Jane, a Siva, a Min - only to discover you've been talking about different people the whole time? Have you ever been invited to The Club, only to be disappointed when your host's favorite place isn't the one you were excited to go to?

It is our ability to so easily turn a few words into a name that makes them powerful and dangerous. Self-service, easy-to-use, extensible; as ideas to be discussed and explored few would deny these are positives, but if we skimp on that exploration and use them as names, each of us will have a very different sense of what they describe.

Our differing senses, experiences, and knowledge shape the character we form behind a name and so direct how we will interpret and implement them in products. This creates a very real danger that we will conflict, causing delay and rework, or worse that we will marginalise a portion of the audience we had set out to enrich.

But there are things we can do to reduce the danger of names:

• We can be watchful for descriptive words being used like names, before they have been adequately discussed.
• We can regularly re-calibrate on the meaning behind the names we have formed.
• We can share the context and stories behind our names with those we invite in to contribute their efforts or perspectives.

I'd love to hear how others, have used these, or other techniques to avoid the dangers posed by names.