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Do Wedding Bells Cause Last Name Hell?

Written by: Gayle Kesten

Article Overview: How much of your professional reputation is tied into your last name? Read on for some factors you should consider, and what other working women decided to do, before changing your last name when you get married.

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Do Wedding Bells Cause Last Name Hell?

Should you change your last name when you get married?

Having gone through the name-changing process, I can attest that it's a headache. From a professional standpoint, the switcheroo made life difficult -- at least temporarily -- from an e-mail standpoint, but eventually my co-workers and industry contacts in the publishing world caught on. And since we're going back 12 years, I had way fewer online accounts tied to my maiden name.

Indeed, I went cold turkey. Others, like health-policy analyst Leslie Levine, took it step-by-step, first using her maiden name as her middle name to help her network of contacts transition, she told the Associated Press. Another good tip: She asked her IT staff to create a bounce e-mail from her old name/address to her married name.

Another factor that comes into play: how much your reputation is tied into your name. As an editor, I wasn't concerned with a byline like my reporter colleagues. The tie-in to my identity wasn't as strong as, say, a consultant, saleswoman or lawyer with clients. Similarly, what if you work in the health-care industry with a long following of patients? Related, what if your name is part of your company's name? Pink magazine cites Tammy Huber-Wilkins, who "had already built a reputation as Dr. Huber [and] didn't want to lose her maiden name." She decided to hyphenate -- an increasingly popular option, according to Kelly Utt-Grubb, who runs NameCounsel, a service that helps customers make their name-change decision.

For some more views on whether you should or shouldn't change your name, read the comments that follow a recent post on ArizonaMoms.com, particularly the one from Lisa Schneider Cipriano.

Where do you stand on the matter -- to change or not to change? What has been your experience, professionally speaking? What else do working women need to consider?

And if you do decide to make the switch, better plan on taking a personal day to punch through this 16-point list, courtesy of About.com/Marriage, to update your information:
Social Security Administration (you can do so online here)
Driver's license
Automobile registration and insurance
Work related information
Insurance policies
Bank accounts
Investment accounts
Utility bills
Post office
Credit cards
Passport
Medical records Wills, legal documents
Organization and church memberships
Voter registration
Landlord or mortgage company

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Article Tags: byline, change decision, co workers, cold turkey, e mail, grubb, health care industry, health policy analyst, huber, leslie levine, lisa schneider, maiden name, middle name, pink magazine, professional standpoint, saleswoman, switcheroo, tammy, utt, wilkins

About the Author: Gayle Kesten
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Gayle Kesten is a writer and editor who blogs about IT-related topics for small businesses on SmallBizResource.com. Kesten’s "Wednesday's Woman" series profiles businesswomen of interest, trends, research and many other issues that matter most to working women.

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