Naming as a Tool for Impact - by Deb Liu - Perspectives

When my kids were small, I liked to name things. Simple, silly games we played. Activities in the car. Covert math assignments. They all had names: Mommy School. Cookie Math. Lightning Q&A. When we did an activity with just one kid, we would call it Only Child Time. On Karaoke Nights, we sang our hearts out, and we hosted regular Liu Family Movie Nights. The child in charge of making sure the laundry was done was Laundry Boy, and the one who had to put away the utensils was Silverware Girl. When I called out, Seaweed Girl, the right child would come running, cut the seaweed for Sushi Night, and voila! It was done. Naming is a powerful thing. It creates an image with just a word or two. A name means something to those in the know; it acts as a cultural touchstone by creating a joint experience. In our family, we marked things by giving them a name, and we used that to create a family language that memorialized our traditions and activities. It’s such a normal part of our lives, it can b

When my kids were small, I liked to name things. Simple, silly games we played. Activities in the car. Covert math assignments. They all had names: Mommy School. Cookie Math. Lightning Q&A. When we did an activity with just one kid, we would call it Only Child Time. On Karaoke Nights, we sang our hearts out, and we hosted regular Liu Family Movie Nights. The child in charge of making sure the laundry was done was Laundry Boy, and the one who had to put away the utensils was Silverware Girl. When I called out, Seaweed Girl, the right child would come running, cut the seaweed for Sushi Night, an