what's in a name?

I love it when people use my name when they are talking to me. I think it shows a certain amount of respect, if you will, to refer to someone directly and not just treat your interaction like a routine chore. I usually try to use someone's name at least once in a conversation. If it's my superior, I usually greet them with their name.

This whole thought came back up this morning when I first arrived at work. I was in the ladies' room, trying to avoid Stall Talkers, and I was on my way out when I heard, "Summer?" I walked back in to see who it was. It was a woman i work with here, with whom I have never really talked. She was just letting me know her response to an email I'd sent out to several employees regarding a project we're working on in Product Development. I thanked her for letting me know (using her name), and went about my way.

This is what struck me: I've never even spoken to her, and I think that e-mail was the first contact we had. However, she knew who I was and cared enough to use my name rather than be like "Hey!" There are some other people here at the company that say "Good morning Summer!" when I see them in the hall, and it usually makes my day.

I will say this, though. I worked in a restaurant for over five years, and I had to wear a nametag. While I always gave my name to customers at my tables (in addition to the tag), and I would so much rather someone call out my name rather than snap at me or say "hey you!" it kinda creeped me out to have people call me by name when I had no clue who they were. Not so much my tables, but just random people in the restaurant. Yeesh.