I've got work nicknames. Do you?
In many of my jobs, it's been "CPD." A term used when folks get to know me, which makes me feel like I'm on good relations with someone. When I hear it, my psychological safety goes up.
When I played sports in childhood, coaches would call me "Dela Rosa." They'd especially use it when I was close to or beating a record. Using surnames was reserved for times when teammates and coaches wanted to show how professional--adult-level--we were performing.
I've had nicknames that only lasted projects--Flash forward, Keeper, The Enforcer. Too many to name. Sometimes, they reinforced a part of myself that I prided myself in. Other times, they built up confidence in an area I didn't feel confident in at all. For example, the first times I had to publicly present, the senior team members would say things like "aww, there's Christine, our secret weapon, next up." And that made me believe it was true.
There's power in our attire. In the environments we work in. In the status we feel when using certain tools. But there's also power in the non-physical things we use...like names. And that applies to both people and the project code names we use.
This makes me think about how we refer to each other as an opportunity to provide strength in a project. Or, an opportunity to help develop someone. And even, an opportunity to help define roles. I want to be more intentional with how I acknowledge coworkers because names are important.
How have your teammates referred to you? And what effect has it had on your behavior?
