Remembering people’s names is a superpower that costs zero dollars.

Using someone’s name says you registered them as a particular person rather than part of the scenery, and most people receive so little of that they remember who gave it. It is not charm and it is not a trick. It is attention made visible. The reason it feels rare is that most of us spend introductions planning our own next sentence.

Repeat the name once as you hear it, then again before the conversation ends. Write it down afterwards if you need to. Use it the next time you see them and watch what happens to the conversation.