“What’s in a name?” the famous line in Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet reads. “That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” Well, it turns out, everything. The name bestowed on us at birth is more than just an identification; it can predetermine our future path. After all, a name is the most important identifier of a person and actually has the ability to influence our behavior in the most mysterious ways, according to BrainCraft’s video “The Bizarre Ways Your Name Affects Your Behavior.”

We love our names and, most importantly, ourselves more than we consciously realize. We’re unconsciously attracted to places, people, and things that resemble ourselves in the most bizarre ways. These preferences that are connected to the self, such as the letters in one’s name, is known as implicit egotism.

This can influence two major life decisions: where we choose to live and what we choose to do for a living. A 2002 study published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology found we are disproportionately likely to live in places whose names resemble our own. For example, there is a greater number of people named Louise in St. Louis, Jacks in Jacksonville, Philips in Philadelphia, and Virginias in Virginia Beach. Moreover, it’s possible parents living in Georgia will name their children George or Georgia.

It’s all about location, location, location. The same study found people are more likely to live in cities with their birthday numbers. For example, if you’re born on the second of the month, you’d most likely live in Two Harbors, Minn., and if you’re born on the third of the month, you would reside in Three Oaks, Mich.

Names also work hard as they have the power to influence career choices. People are more likely to choose careers whose labels resemble their names. Dennis or Denise are overrepresented among dentists, while Laurie, Lauren, or Lawrence are common names among lawyers.

This name-letter effect suggests we have a preference for the letters in our name. We do write out our name thousands of times throughout our life, so it is only logical that mere exposure would make us favor it more. Our name could potentially have the power to influence other aspects of our lives that science has yet to delve into.

Watch the video above to learn the other remarkable ways our names can influence our lives.