Guess What New Parents Regret?

I just came across this article that says 8% of parents regret the names they picked for their child. I'm actually kind of surprised by this, as couples have 9 months to pick a name before the baby is actually born. It's not like the decision is sprung on you at the last minute.

But there's more to it than that. Outside factors (i.e. grandparents-to-be) and vanity can play a role in naming the baby:

Pamela Redmond Satran and Linda Rosenkrantz, founders of Nameberry.com, say the most common mistakes parents make when it comes to naming their babies include letting their own parents have too much say in the decision or focusing on superficial factors, like how “cool” the name choice makes them look.

The above is a big reason why Susan and I kept a tight lid on the possible names for our son (for safety & privacy I don't mention his name on this blog). We kept quiet because everyone has their own opinions about names. They know this person with that name who was a jerk. They think this name is pretentious. You get the idea.

As for the superficial idea of "how cool a name choice makes them look," that's just nutty. We thought about names in terms of our son having to live with it for the rest of his life, assuming he doesn't change it. So we picked a name that sounded good (went well with my last name), and a name that won't give him problems down the road. We were probably a little conservative with our name choice, but I still love it.

I think every parent goes through "naming anxiety." It is a big deal. It's your child's identity. The best advice I can give to expecting parents is to make a long list of names you like and start whittling it down.

Note: I changed the title from Guess What Parents Regret to Guess What New Parents Regret. 8% isn't exactly a huge majority. Nevertheless it is still interesting.