The Government of Canada, Cultural Diversity: A Canadian Perspective, reports, “Approximately 200,000 immigrants a year from all parts of the globe choose Canada, drawn by it’s quality of life and it’s reputation as an open, peaceful and caring society that welcomes newcomers and values diversity”.
Statistics Canada reports, “By 2017, visible minorities are expected to make up 20% of the Canadian Population”. When completing the census question on mother tongue, Canadians reported over 200 languages. People whose mother tongue is neither English or French, represented one-fifth of the population of Canada.
With this diversity of languages comes a diversity of names. As a Master Resume Writer, I have critqued and written thousands of resumes and first and foremost on any resume is your name. Recently, I received a resume to critique, which included some very interesting information next to their name. Prior to receiving this resume, the only information next to a name that I would have supported was the letters of an accreditation but this was not the case. Beside his name, MIHALY GYURICS put in brackets, PRONOUNCED ME-HI JUR-X.
There are those that change or shorten their name in order to simplify the pronunciation for others but I think Mehaly has found a solution that will work for everyone. No one wants to pronounce someone’s name incorrectly and that discomfort could potentially leave a negative impression on a first conversation or meeting. Mihaly’s positive and proactive decision to add this information next to his name allows those of us who may otherwise be unsure, the ability to articulate his name with confidence. My first impression of his resume was positive before I read beyond his name.
