Tips on getting names from Spirit.

The chart above is a list from babycenter.com of the top 10 baby names for 1927 (click here for the full list). How many of them are the names of people in your circle of family or friends? I can pick out several, and it’s likely that many potential recipients in your next mediumship demonstration audience could do so as well.

Oftentimes, mediums say they have trouble perceiving names. Names are very specific pieces of information, and mediums feel if they risk saying a name, only to get it wrong, it goes all downhill from there.

It’s a good practice to familiarize yourself with names, so whenever one is presented to you by Spirit, you’ll know how to include it. There are some things to keep in mind when presenting this information.

Take a common name like Edward. This may not only be the moniker of the spirit communicator, it may be the name of the recipient, or a surname, or middle name. It may simply sound like a name that is unknown to yourself, like Eduardo. It may even be a place name. Edward may not be recognized because he could have gone by Teddy or Ned. In college I knew an Edward who went by "Shred" because he was a punk rocker.

It’s not up to the medium to understand the name, but simply to trust it will be understood once given, that is, if the recipient remembers!

Here are 9 tips on getting names from Spirit:

Tip #1: Use the magic word Also

Until you’re very confident, the best way to present a perceived name is to use the magic word “Also” as in: “A young lady is here for you, she’s got long blonde hair, parted in the middle, and she also brings across the name Marcia.”  

Tip #2: Ask for more than one initial

Don’t be satisfied with just giving an initial. If Spirit can give you an initial, why not ask for the whole name? Why say, “I have a man who gives the letter J for a name” unless the  communicator used that initial as a nickname, like “J.J.,” or was called Jay? If it helps to sound it out, go for it. Once working on a spirit portrait, I knew I had a name, but only heard the sound “CL” as in “Clay.” As I sounded it out, the recipient could understand it as “Klaus.” If I had put my own spin on it and said, “He gives the initial “C” for a name,” the answer would have been negative.  

Tip #3: Study name lists or books

I recommend reading popular name lists or baby name books simply because the more familiar you are with names, the more likely you’ll recognize them. Don’t just glance over the lists. Be curious about names. When possible, ask people you know the story around how they were named. Names may be standard or trendy, but all names have meanings. It’s possible to feel into the meaning of a name. It helps to become familiar with foreign variations, especially if you work internationally as I do on SNUi.

Tip #4: Associate names with people you know

Are you unfamiliar with the names of your cousins, or aunts and uncles, especially if there were some you did not personally know? If this is you, make an effort to learn these names, and picture your relatives with that name around them. It’s good to have a memory bank full of names and faces. This includes celebrities as well. I recall hearing a student be surprised at seeing Fred Astaire; but it turned out to be the name of the  recipient’s dance studio where she met the communicator.

Tip #5: People like to hear their names

I once worked with a woman who never forgot a name; I remember being really impressed with her skill. Since then, I’ve tried to remember people’s names better by saying their name after I meet them (what I like to call “Greet and repeat”). I notice something memorable about them as I say their name. People like to hear their names during a conversation, especially if said with a smile!

Tip #6: Names of places not just faces

During a sitting, I heard the name “Alberta” from a grandmother in Spirit. It turned out that she was from the province of Alberta in Canada. Since I gave it using the magic word Also, the name was instantly accepted. A name might indicate a city, street address, or school name as well. When you brush up on geography, you’ll store more information that Spirit can use.   

Tip # 7: Colors can be names

Colors that are names can be tricky. If you get the word “Gold,” “Red,” “Grey” or “Violet,” associated with a person, never rely on your knowledge of color symbolism. Any of those colors, and more, can be first or last names as well.

Tip #8: Trust names in pairs

Speaking of color names, sometimes people are known to us through their salutations or as their first and last name, where they just kind of run into each other (like Charlie Brown). I’ve received the name “Mr. Green” for a sitter as that is only how his recipient knew him, and a “Mrs. Painter” for a lady who worked in a school office.

Tip #9: Nicknames mean so much

Receiving nicknames from Spirit is a treat. However, it’s likely that you will not recognize the importance unless the recipient gives you feedback. When I described a proper grandmother to a recipient, I felt it was important to add, “You also called her “Granny.” The recipient said she knew then and there it was her nana because she teasingly called her “Granny” just to be cheeky! The Welsh medium Margaret Challenger tells of bringing through a young man’s mother but he wasn’t satisfied with the evidence. Margaret asked the mother for one word that would make him happy, and she heard: “Tell him “Welly.” After Margaret repeated it, his eyes filled with tears. His mum called him “Welly” because he lived in his Wellington boots.

I hope you find these tips helpful. At the least, may you feel encouraged to notice names of spirit communicators and to trust what you sense, hear or see when you bring forward this kind of information. I’d love to hear your success stories or if you’d like to share a name tip or two not listed here.