Don’t forget I’m human.

Dear social sites of the internet,

At first glance, profiles may seem relatively simple. Allow people to add a name, upload a photo, check some boxes, share some interests, and before you know it, you have a community. But please don’t forget that people are humans. Life is messy, and sometimes things change when you are human.

My situation is extremely simple. I got married, and made a personal decision to change my last name. I know I am not the only one to do such a thing. However, if you ever need proof that the world of technology is dominated by 20-something guys, try updating your username on all your online accounts.

I’m perfectly fine with the fact that the option to change my username may be many clicks deep. I understand it is probably not a daily occurrence. But why do some services penalize me for this perfectly normal thing? Why am I only allowed to change my Behance URL once? Why am I charged if I want to change my Xbox gamertag?

12 years ago, I made the mistake of creating my Gmail address as my name. There is no way to change that now that my name has changed. There is also no way to comprehensively move all my information from my old gmail account to the new one I was forced to make. And the process to move any information is complicated and intimidating. After all the talk these companies have about using real names, I seriously regret using my real name.

My situation is straightforward and I’m still aghast at how poorly it is supported around the internet. Many other individuals have much more of an evolution or discovery of their personal identity, where a name or a box they check changes. If you want real people to be a part of your site, allow them to be real.

A quick shoutout to Facebook and LinkedIn for having great solutions to this, allowing me to painlessly change my name, while also keep my maiden name listed for others to find me. Other sites take note. It really isn’t that hard.