--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I have this horrific thing where I'm…" description: "\"I have this horrific thing where I'm really bad with names and faces. I have an appalling memory. Someone will come up to me in the street and go, 'Edd..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eec/eddie-redmayne-13402_because-i-can_i-have-this-horrific-thing-where-i-m-rea_109586.jpg" --- # I have this horrific thing where I'm really bad with names… ![“I have this horrific thing where I'm really bad with names and faces. I have an appalling memory. Someone will come up to me in the street and go, 'Eddie!', and I'll try and give myself time by going into overdrive, 'Hey, hi! Nice to see you!' and start a whole conversation because I can't…” quote by Eddie Redmayne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eec/eddie-redmayne-13402_because-i-can_i-have-this-horrific-thing-where-i-m-rea_109586.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eec/eddie-redmayne-13402_because-i-can_i-have-this-horrific-thing-where-i-m-rea_109586.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eec/eddie-redmayne-13402_because-i-can_i-have-this-horrific-thing-where-i-m-rea_109586.jpg) > “I have this horrific thing where I'm really bad with names and faces. I have an appalling memory. Someone will come up to me in the street and go, 'Eddie!', and I'll try and give myself time by going into overdrive, 'Hey, hi! Nice to see you!' and start a whole conversation because I can't distinguish between who I know and who I don't.” [Eddie Redmayne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-redmayne/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker confesses a severe difficulty remembering names and faces, leading to awkward social interactions where they overcompensate with excessive chatter. **In simple terms:** Poor memory forces the speaker to mask uncertainty with long conversations. Key Takeaway Memory deficits can create social anxiety and overcompensation. Themes memory social anxiety communication self‑presentation Mood embarrassed self‑aware Type personal confession social observation When to use this quote - meeting new colleagues - reuniting with old friends - networking events - public speaking Key Concepts cognitive limitation impression management Practical Applications - Use name‑recall aids (notes, apps) - Practice brief, honest acknowledgments Questions to Reflect On - How can we balance politeness with authenticity when memory fails? - What strategies reduce social pressure in such moments? A Different Perspective Over‑talking may strain relationships if perceived as insincere. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bad Names](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bad-names-616936/) [Because i can](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/because-i-can/) [Come up](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/come-up/) [Conversation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conversation/) [Conversation Distinguish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conversation-distinguish-1305344/) [Faces](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faces/) [Giving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving/) [Hey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hey/) [Horrific](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/horrific/) [Memories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memories/) [Memory Come](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memory-come-1238325/) [Names](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/names/) [Names Faces](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/names-faces-1305343/) [Nice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nice/) [Overdrive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/overdrive/) [Streets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/streets/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Trying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trying/) [Whole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/whole/) ## Related quotes > [“The Gods we worship write their names on our faces.” The face is carved from within by invisible tools; our thoughts, our moods, our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orison-swett-marden/the-gods-we-worship-write-their-names-on-our-faces-the-face-is-carved/) [Orison Swett Marden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orison-swett-marden/) > [it it strange, suddenly having a memory come back out of nowhere. you think you're going crazy; you wonder where this recollection has been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/it-it-strange-suddenly-having-a-memory-come-back-out-of-nowhere-you/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [I would love to have a photographic memory. It would come in handy with the rants I'm given on Scrubs... often on short notice!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-c-mcginley/i-would-love-to-have-a-photographic-memory-it-would-come-in-handy/) [John C. McGinley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-c-mcginley/) > [I somehow can't remember numbers, names, and faces. I forget very easily.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/divyanka-tripathi/i-somehow-can-t-remember-numbers-names-and-faces-i-forget-very-easily/) [Divyanka Tripathi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/divyanka-tripathi/) > [Invention, strictly speaking, is little more than a new combination of those images which have been previously gathered and deposited in the memory; nothing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-reynolds/invention-strictly-speaking-is-little-more-than-a-new-combination-of/) [Joshua Reynolds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-reynolds/) > [There are three things I always forget. Names, faces and... the third I can't remember.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italo-svevo/there-are-three-things-i-always-forget-names-faces-and-the-third-i/) [Italo Svevo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italo-svevo/) > [It's not about the names or the faces: it's about the music we are creating.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joey-jordison/it-s-not-about-the-names-or-the-faces-it-s-about-the-music-we-are/) [Joey Jordison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joey-jordison/) > [“Once you meet someone, you never really forget them. It just takes a while for your memory to come back to you”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zeniba-spirited-away/once-you-meet-someone-you-never-really-forget-them-it-just-takes-a/) [Zeniba Spirited Away](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zeniba-spirited-away/) > [TV shows and stuff give people in the show business very bad names. I'm not going to name any shows, but a lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chloe-grace-moretz/tv-shows-and-stuff-give-people-in-the-show-business-very-bad-names-i/) [Chloe Grace Moretz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chloe-grace-moretz/) > [Good and bad are but names very readily transferable to that or this.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/good-and-bad-are-but-names-very-readily-transferable-to-that-or-this/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Beware of anyone who calls you bad names merely for asking honest questions. Beware of anyone who insists on reframing your sincere curiosity as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-goad/beware-of-anyone-who-calls-you-bad-names-merely-for-asking-honest/) [Jim Goad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-goad/) > [Most people are bad with names. I have learned a trick: Make them laugh and they will never forget you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/most-people-are-bad-with-names-i-have-learned-a-trick-make-them-laugh/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I don’t think it should be socially acceptable for people to say they are “bad with names.” No one is bad with names. That…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mindy-kaling/i-don-t-think-it-should-be-socially-acceptable-for-people-to-say-they/) [Mindy Kaling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mindy-kaling/) > [“I don’t think it should be socially acceptable for people to say they are “bad with names.” No one is bad with names. That…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mindy-kaling/i-don-t-think-it-should-be-socially-acceptable-for-people-to-say-they-2/) [Mindy Kaling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mindy-kaling/) > [I don't think you can be in public life without being called bad names.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/i-don-t-think-you-can-be-in-public-life-without-being-called-bad-names/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) ## More by Eddie Redmayne > [And you can't complain about kissing Emma Watson. Isn't that what everyone in the world wants to do? I've known Emma for a few…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-redmayne/and-you-can-t-complain-about-kissing-emma-watson-isn-t-that-what/) [Eddie Redmayne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-redmayne/) > [I feel like J.K. Rowling's world is one that is owned by everyone in some ways. People have grown up with it and have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-redmayne/i-feel-like-j-k-rowling-s-world-is-one-that-is-owned-by-everyone-in/) [Eddie Redmayne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-redmayne/) > [I always think of comedy as being spontaneous, and yet everything about filmmaking is not spontaneous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-redmayne/i-always-think-of-comedy-as-being-spontaneous-and-yet-everything/) [Eddie Redmayne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-redmayne/) > [I find that what doubt does, or fear, is it makes you come up with as many ideas as you possibly can. And on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-redmayne/i-find-that-what-doubt-does-or-fear-is-it-makes-you-come-up-with-as/) [Eddie Redmayne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-redmayne/) > [My first film, 'Like Minds,' was with Toni Colette, who was extraordinary. I mean it was basically a mini-masterclass for acting on film at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-redmayne/my-first-film-like-minds-was-with-toni-colette-who-was-extraordinary/) [Eddie Redmayne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-redmayne/) > [I draw and play the piano badly. But when I’m doing those things, I’m concentrating so hard there’s no room for worry. I find…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-redmayne/i-draw-and-play-the-piano-badly-but-when-i-m-doing-those-things-i-m/) [Eddie Redmayne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-redmayne/) > [A lot of people think theatre must be much harder work than film, but anything histrionic or superfluous gets seen on camera so you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-redmayne/a-lot-of-people-think-theatre-must-be-much-harder-work-than-film-but/) [Eddie Redmayne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-redmayne/) > [The fear of messing up is what makes you work harder!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-redmayne/the-fear-of-messing-up-is-what-makes-you-work-harder/) [Eddie Redmayne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-redmayne/) > [People ask, "Do you enjoy acting?" But you only have those specific few hours to do a scene, and then you drive home and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-redmayne/people-ask-do-you-enjoy-acting-but-you-only-have-those-specific-few/) [Eddie Redmayne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-redmayne/) > [Learning lines is hard for me because I have the attention span of a six year old. That's why being on planes all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-redmayne/learning-lines-is-hard-for-me-because-i-have-the-attention-span-of-a/) [Eddie Redmayne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-redmayne/) > [I'm as voyeuristic and intrigued as the next person as to how celebrities live.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-redmayne/i-m-as-voyeuristic-and-intrigued-as-the-next-person-as-to-how/) [Eddie Redmayne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-redmayne/) > [It's the weird thing Eton does - you're at school next to lords and earls and, in my case, Prince William, so you end…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-redmayne/it-s-the-weird-thing-eton-does-you-re-at-school-next-to-lords-and/) [Eddie Redmayne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-redmayne/) > [Ladies and babies, and mortgages, for that matter, can all wait. Acting has done a strange thing to me, though. I often sit there,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-redmayne/ladies-and-babies-and-mortgages-for-that-matter-can-all-wait-acting/) [Eddie Redmayne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-redmayne/) > [They're such hierarchical things, film sets, they're sort of mini societies. Often they're incredibly political places.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-redmayne/they-re-such-hierarchical-things-film-sets-they-re-sort-of-mini/) [Eddie Redmayne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-redmayne/) > [As an actor there's a lot of scrutiny and, even when you've had success, it becomes about sustaining that success. A friend of mine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-redmayne/as-an-actor-there-s-a-lot-of-scrutiny-and-even-when-you-ve-had/) [Eddie Redmayne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-redmayne/) [Explore all 50 Eddie Redmayne quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-redmayne/) ## More Because i can quotes > [I never write Metropolis for seven cents because I can get the same price for city. I never write policeman because I can get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/i-never-write-metropolis-for-seven-cents-because-i-can-get-the-same/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [I've played more villains than anything else. And I love playing villains, because I can just be evil and do whatever I want.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-lopez/i-ve-played-more-villains-than-anything-else-and-i-love-playing/) [Jennifer Lopez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-lopez/) > [ A lot of people \[are\] saying civil union," Faried told KDVR. "I don't like it being called that because I can get married to… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-faried/a-lot-of-people-are-saying-civil-union-faried-told-kdvr-i-don-t-like/) [Kenneth Faried](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-faried/) > [Some well-to-do parents may say, "I have a right to have as many children as I want because I can take care of them."…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharon-gannon/some-well-to-do-parents-may-say-i-have-a-right-to-have-as-many/) [Sharon Gannon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharon-gannon/) > [When you gain weight, for every pound that you gain, it adds four pounds of stress on your knees. So if you gain five…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-simmons/when-you-gain-weight-for-every-pound-that-you-gain-it-adds-four/) [Richard Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-simmons/) > [I need to learn how to stop destroying myself, stop being hard on myself and be nice to myself. I need to keep telling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daul-kim/i-need-to-learn-how-to-stop-destroying-myself-stop-being-hard-on/) [Daul Kim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daul-kim/) > [I make a star's salary when I do horror, because I can still open a movie in Italy or Spain or Germany.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-englund/i-make-a-star-s-salary-when-i-do-horror-because-i-can-still-open-a/) [Robert Englund](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-englund/) > [I mean, I can actually say goodbye to the game of golf, never hit another golf shot the rest of my life and I'd…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-norman/i-mean-i-can-actually-say-goodbye-to-the-game-of-golf-never-hit/) [Greg Norman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-norman/) > [I don’t like to talk to people, because I can’t express myself satisfactorily. I don’t say the things I mean.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greta-garbo/i-don-t-like-to-talk-to-people-because-i-can-t-express-myself/) [Greta Garbo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greta-garbo/) > [I want to thank you, especially those people who are agnostic or atheist. I don't mean any offense by the things I said of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-cisneros/i-want-to-thank-you-especially-those-people-who-are-agnostic-or/) [Sandra Cisneros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-cisneros/) > [Why do it, just because I can? That's kind of crazy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jules-shear/why-do-it-just-because-i-can-that-s-kind-of-crazy/) [Jules Shear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jules-shear/) > [I don't assume, because I can write screenplays, that I know how to write a novel. It's a very different world. There's a craft…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melissa-rosenberg/i-don-t-assume-because-i-can-write-screenplays-that-i-know-how-to/) [Melissa Rosenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melissa-rosenberg/) > [I don't have to hate any person because I can always start anew, I can always reconcile.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nhat-hanh/i-don-t-have-to-hate-any-person-because-i-can-always-start-anew-i-can/) [Nhat Hanh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nhat-hanh/) > [I think about dying every day, because I can't stop thinking about living.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/libba-bray/i-think-about-dying-every-day-because-i-can-t-stop-thinking-about/) [Libba Bray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/libba-bray/) > [Last week I lost my temper in my karate class. Man, I'm not doing that again until I'm a black belt. Because I can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/demetri-martin/last-week-i-lost-my-temper-in-my-karate-class-man-i-m-not-doing-that/) [Demetri Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/demetri-martin/) [Browse all 322 Because i can quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/because-i-can/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I have this horrific thing where I'm really bad with names and faces. I have an appalling memory. Someone will come up to me in the street and go, 'Eddie!', and I'll try and give myself time by going into overdrive, 'Hey, hi! 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