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Brandon Jameson

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Birth Certificate
Birth Certificate
Letterhead from High School Graphic Arts Class
Letterhead from High School Graphic Arts Class
Spot Design Business Card
Spot Design Business Card
Brand New Conference Name Badge
Brand New Conference Name Badge

Name Recognition

August 5, 2016

My initials are P.B.J. Not the sandwich. Paul Brandon Jameson. But I’ve never used my first name—I've always gone by Brandon. Why? My parents just did it that way. It's actually not that uncommon.

For a long time I thought the P. was my middle initial because I was called Brandon and I assumed the unused name was supposed to go in the middle, like Alex P. Keaton. So I used it like this: Brandon P. Jameson. When I was about 20 years old it hit me that while this fit the prevailing idea of a correctly formed name, it wasn’t actually my name. So I embraced the order on my birth certificate and corrected my name on government, bank, school, and other records. I wanted to use the name I was given, but I wasn’t changing what I would be called, so I landed on P. Brandon Jameson. And for years I was pretty insistent on using my name like that with the first initial. Everywhere. In spite of it sounding sort of obnoxious and challenging the "First Name, Middle Initial, Last Name” expectation in people’s minds and on many forms. Over time I mellowed out on using my first initial and now I prefer not to except when necessary.

When I needed a mark for my new website, I wanted something more simple and graphic than my name. A monogram felt right. I like that the initials are mine but can also stand for other things (such as a sandwich). And it was appealing to use a traditional device like a monogram in a more modern context. It also reminded me of the peace I've come to with my name and the importance of always questioning the status quo.

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