Calling customers by first names...

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I hate it when customers call me by my name, and after they've gone I wonder how they know it. Then I realise it's because I'm wearing a name badge
I don't tend to call people by their name unless I'm trying to get their attention.
There are only a few customers who I call by name, and that is because I like them, and I see them enough to remember them.
I also hate it when people I know pronounce my name wrong (nearly everyone pronounces my name wrong), it makes me feel like they don't care. I feel like I'm valued when people call me by the shortened version of my name and pronounce it properly (and they are the people I feel comfortable with).

There you go. I expect a first name to mean something. If the staff calls a customer by their first name at a restaurant, for example, I assume that the person is a regular customer. It's actually a rather nice thing in this context, the regular customer, someone you have gotten to know. Calling everyone by their first name (at least, over a certain age) devalues this... So good things suffer by it as well.

In other words, it seems like a lot of us here agree that first names mean something and the businesses are really violating that, not making things more pleasant. To a lot of us, anyway. I assume it must work with a lot of people for some reason or they wouldn't use it, considering it takes extra effort.

In Denmark, calling people their last names has fallen more or less out of use. Even children call their teachers by their first names, so you essentially get this from childhood here...

I had the exact opposite problem while I lived in Australia, having to call all teachers by Ms, Mrs or Mr. [last name], so I guess it's culture as well as maybe some of the AS kicking in

Here in England, teachers must usually be called Mr or Mrs etc, or Sir/Miss in secondary schools.

Then once you finish school, college lecturers are usually just first names.

Then once you go into a job, all the employees are usually just first names.

And if you start working in a school, you will find that most staff tend to be first names.

Personally, I prefer people whom I haven't really met before to use Mr 30 as apposed to just Steve. But otherwise I can't really say I am that bothered.

I usually call people Mr/Mrs etc if I don't know them very well.

I can never remember anybody's name. I don't know how they are able to remember mine. People get really ticked off at me because of this and it gives me anxiety. I've actually gotten scolded many times for not remembering people's names. Is this a normal AS trait?

I dunno about normal... that word's kinda dodgy anyway... but I have a terrible time remembering names... or anything else.

On the other hand, I don't try that hard to remember names.

At 60, I find it demeaning to be called by my first name. When I was young, I called older people by title + surname. I didn't always enjoy it or think they deserved it, but I expected that one day it would be my turn. Instead, I am "treated" to my formal first name. This is the same name that my parents used when I was 12 and really, really in trouble, so I always wince when I hear it. My nickname does not derive from this name so for many years it was relegated to use on legal documents only.

Using my first name makes me feel less welcome in business situations. Sorry, but I am in no way flattered to be addressed as the peer of a much younger clerk or cashier.

Shoot, I'm only 38 and I feel that way (I guess clerks are often much younger than I am, too!). I suppose we're in the minority.

I didn't think to add this before, because it's a derivative of the topic, but I've noticed they have been asking for phone numbers and e-mail addresses for no good reason at all... oh, sales promotions or something... and I have been enjoying telling them no. I can't do much about the name, but there's a limit.