Trademarking your personal name is a great idea.
While no one can stop you from using your personal name in real life, they can prevent you from using it in business.
A lot of words can't be protected with trademarks. If you can't trademark it, then anyone can sell your same products with your same name. That doesn't help your company stand out in the marketplace and leads to lost customers.
You can trademark your full name. But the trademark office doesn’t allow you to trademark common last names alone.
The number of trademark applications is skyrocketing, especially in popular areas like apothecary or apparel products. If your personal name is similar to an existing trademark, you won't be able to protect it and you'll likely receive a cease and desist letter in the mail demanding that you rebrand or face a lawsuit.
A trademark search allows you to see if your personal name is too similar to an existing company. It's not as simple as inputting your exact name and hitting search. You'll need to search for similar sounding words, similar spelled words, alternate pronunciation of words, complex words, foreign translations, and words found in other trademark registers. Once you get all the necessary search results, you'll need to analyze trademark law and policies to determine if any conflicting results will hold up your application.