It can take 20 years to build a reputation
for character and five minutes to ruin it.
─Warren Buffet
Online and Off-Duty Behavior Matters. In today’s digital age, your reputation is more vulnerable than ever. From social networking sites to informal gatherings, how you conduct yourself online and off-duty can have lasting impacts. When caught up in the moment—whether having fun or feeling stressed—it’s easy to forget that your actions can tarnish your reputation and that of others. Unfortunately, the damage done is often irreversible.
Before you act, ask yourself: Is your behavior mean-spirited, damaging, or annoying? How do you want to be remembered by your management team, peers, clients, family, and friends? Behave accordingly to protect your reputation!
Seven Tips to Keep You on the Right Track:
- Align with Your Company’s Image: Ensure your behavior, whether at a cocktail reception, an informal gathering, or a social networking site, complements your company’s image. Remember, your actions reflect the company you represent.
- Guard Confidential Information: Be mindful of sharing sensitive information, especially when consuming alcohol. You never know who might be listening—someone who works for a competitor, knows someone who does, or worse, the media!
- Be Cautious Online: Anything shared online can be cut, pasted, and forwarded. Avoid venting your frustrations on social media. Once your opinion or remarks go public, they become recorded facts that can haunt you.
- Express Opinions Appropriately: Support causes and share your views responsibly. Remember that your behavior, captured on video, is a lasting record of your actions.
- Control Your Reactions: If you’re visibly associated with your company, remember that your behavior reflects on your employer. Obnoxious actions can risk your employment.
- Mind Your Language: Stress can lead to careless, offensive language and is the first sign of being out of control with yourself and your situation. Staying composed protects your reputation and demonstrates powerful self-control.
- You Are Always Visible: In today’s social media-driven world, everything and everyone can be captured and shared for the world to see. Act accordingly.
For more on avoiding reputation-damaging situations, check out “That’s So Annoying: An Etiquette Expert on the World’s Most Irritating Habits and What to Do About Them” by my colleague, Cynthia Lett.
My book series, “The Art of Professional Connections,” offers strategies to navigate professional situations while protecting your reputation (available in softcover and eBook on Amazon.com).
Your Reputation is
Your Most Valuable Asset
How do you protect your reputation online and off-duty?
