“Who steals my purse steals trash; ’tis something, nothing;
‘Twas mine, ’tis his, and has been slave to thousands;
But he that filches from me my good name
Robs me of that which not enriches him,
And makes me poor indeed.”

– William Shakespeare “Othello”

In this current US election cycle, we have had one vivid illustration after another of how the actions of one’s lifetime can return to haunt one. Neither of the major party candidates — one of whom will most certainly be the 45th president of the United States of America — is free of baggage. And here’s the thing: if your behavior has established enough of a pattern, false allegations of a similar nature that fit the pattern become believable. You may not think that’s fair, but so much of life — in terms of politics, marketing, careers, and relationships — rides or rests on perception.

In this video blog post, I discuss the importance of developing a good reputation and what we are to do with it.

As I hope you will understand, a good reputation is not just something for politicians to cultivate. Our very free market economic system depends on the ability trust and be trusted. With a poor reputation — earned or not — you will find it difficult-to-impossible to land that job, secure investors for that start-up, or persuade her father to give you his blessing.

As the Shakespeare quotation above makes plain, others can steal your good name. In the internet era, it is easy — too easy — to defame others with few consequences for doing so. Unfortunately, sensational accusations and the emotional reactions they create make the traditional presumption of innocence harder to find.

I encourage you to guard your reputation by being a man of your word, and by avoiding even seeming to do wrong. Noted evangelist Billy Graham took great care never to be alone with a woman other than his wife — not even in an elevator. No, it wasn’t because he was afraid he’d do wrong. It was because his mission was to proclaim the good news of Jesus and he didn’t want to tarnish His (Jesus’) reputation through even the appearance of impropriety. Say what you will, Billy Graham lived for decades in the public eye and remained above reproach. We could all benefit from taking that kind of care.

In a previous post, I explained why I don’t blog under an alias. It’s for the same reason. I no longer belong to me, so I have to guard my good name for the sake of others — the company where I work, and the church where I serve, to name just two.

So how about you? In what ways are you seeking to build or maintain a good reputation? Tell your story in the comments section below.