How to Fix your Reputation

The #1 reason people get overlooked at work?

Their reputation doesn’t match their potential.

Early in my career, I was shy.
I had ideas, but I rarely spoke up.

I assumed my work would speak for itself.
It didn’t.

I wasn’t seen as strategic or leadership-ready.
Not because I wasn’t capable, but because I wasn’t visible.

That’s when I realized: Your reputation is your personal brand.
And if you don’t shape it, someone else will.

Here’s the exact 4-step process I used to shape my reputation:

1️⃣ Get clear on your current reputation
↳ Write down 5 of your positive and negative traits. Be radically honest.
↳ Ask 3 people to describe you in 3 words.

2️⃣ Define where you want to go
↳ What do you want to be known for? (Thoughtful communicator? Empowering leader?)
↳ And what does that version of you do differently?

3️⃣ Shift others’ perceptions strategically
↳ Say it → “I’m being more intentional about cross-functional leadership.”
↳ Show it → Coach, actively listen, do what you say you are going to do.

4️⃣ Fix what needs to be repaired
↳ Always late? Unreliable? Defensive?
↳ Own it. Say what you’re working on. Be consistent.

Reputations aren’t set in stone.
They’re shaped by how you consistently show up.

What’s one trait you want to be known for this year? Let me know in the comments! (I want to be known as a great storyteller!).