What's in the name... David

Hi friend,

This week's episode showcases a second "David" for the podcast, and I'll admit I was curious whether the same meaning would land the same way twice.

It didn't. And that's the fun of this.

David Noe has been in HR for 20 years across healthcare, recruiting, and consulting. He hosts SpeakeasyHR, runs a small business with his wife, is writing a book, and has three teenagers headed toward college. We even started our podcasts a month apart in 2024!

He also had never looked up his own first name.

The name he skipped.

Here's what got me. David had done the research, just not on his first name.

His last name is Noe, which carries real weight in the bourbon world, and people mangle it constantly. He's spent years fielding the mispronunciations.

The name he actually answers to every day? Never occurred to him.

I think a lot of us do this. We get curious about where we came from and skip right past what we were called.

Beloved

The name David is Hebrew. It means beloved. Dearly loved by someone.

It peaked in the U.S. in 1955 at number two. (David's response to that: he's not quite that old, so his mom must have been holding onto it.)

Fun bonus: the name "Amy" means the same thing. David's favorite boss he's ever had? Amy.

The answer that made this episode.

I asked my favorite question. Does the meaning of your name have any relevance on how you act, or how you see the world?

He said: every day.

And then he spent three minutes not talking about himself at all.

He talked about his wife, and about trying to model for his kids what a father figure should be. He talked about his job at a small business that keeps hiring, and how every single hire is a chance to make someone's career better or worse.

He talked about mental health running in his family, and about how people can smile at you and still not be okay inside.

And he landed here: you don't have to agree with what someone does or how they act. You still owe them respect. He knows that's easier said than done.

That's the takeaway I want you to hold onto.

Beloved is passive. It's something someone else does to you.

David turned "beloved" into a verb. He treats the meaning of his name not as a description of his status but as a description of his job.

You can do that with almost any name meaning. Receive it, then hand it on.

Why God renames people.

I asked him about Genesis, where Abram becomes Abraham and Sarai becomes Sarah.

He called it a loaded question, which is fair, and then gave an answer I keep thinking about.

He read it as being about identity and choice. His point: nobody moves through life with their purpose and identity locked in from the start. It shifts with the seasons. Everybody hits a stretch where they have to figure out whether they're okay with who they are.

If you've only got five minutes...

• 04:15 What David means, and when it peaked
• 08:58 The mispronunciation that exposed every telemarketer
• 10:02 "Every day." The answer that anchors this episode
• 14:16 Why God changes people's names
• 17:00 The 90 percent, and how these eight questions started

Two things to try this week...

1. Turn the meaning into a verb. If your name is something you receive, ask who you could hand it to.
2. Call the person who named you. David said he'd call his mom right after we hung up, because otherwise he'd forget. Don't forget.

Go find David at SpeakeasyHR.com. He records live on Mondays, unedited and unfiltered, which he compares to the bourbon in his background. You can also catch him on Spotify, Apple, YouTube, and LinkedIn. Both of our shows are on the Work Defined podcasting network.

Until next time,

Jayma (aka your "Paradigm Shifter")