It’s a no-brainer when you’re introduced to someone.

“This is James. He’s our new IT guy.”

“It’s Jim,” he says.

You call him Jim, and everyone is happy.

It should be exactly this simple when we’re faced with something less expected: “Actually, I go by Rhonda now” or “My pronoun is they.”

Told once, never forget.

It’s important to also remember it’s not a “preferred pronoun.” It is their pronoun, not a preference.

A recent study in the Journal of Adolescent Health shows transgender youth were 65 per cent less likely to kill themselves if they were simply called by their chosen name. It’s a matter of respect. You can read about the study here, in PinkNews.