picture is mine
One thing about reputation and public images is that they're like mirrors with the reflection of who we're to the people around us or the world. It's one thing that shapes how people see us and how they treat us. It could be in our personal life , work life etc.
A good reputation can open doors of opportunities to us and create or build strong relationships with us or those around us. That is also the same way a bad reputation can ruin a whole lot for us
Just like our shadows that follow us everywhere, that's how reputation follows us. My lecturer will always say that the greatest marketing in the world is self to self marketing. That's how reputation is to us human beings. It markets us to the world at large even behind our backs. It's like our personal brand telling people this is what they're to expect from us before they even meet us in person.
Remember news flies, people talk and those conversations about us whether good or bad about us can travel far. If your reputation to people is positive then people are more likely to entrust you with stuff, lend a hand when you need support or give you chances that are not easy to come by.
Just like bad branding to a company that tends to take a lot of time, effort and sometimes even finances before it shakes off. Bad reputation can take a whole lot on us and it takes a whole lot to regain your reputation.
Sometimes, if you turn a new leaf and start doing the right things only people might still find it difficult to forget about the old you. That's why it's always advisable to do good at all times.
Sometimes you might have been doing good all your life and at one point you make one bad decision. People tend to forget all the good deeds and stick to the bad as who you're.
One bad decision, one moment of weakness, and it can all come crashing down.
Sometimes this is where public image tends to help, because it is more of the image you present to the world as who you're. More of what people know of you outside than inside.
You might be the dirtiest human in the world but because of how you dress,how you speak, how you act and how you help people in public you automatically become a saint to them because that's the image you portrayed to the public as who you are.
While you could also be the nicest person in the world but because of how you dress, or act people see you as the worst.
A very good example is our politicians. With all the dirty dealings they try to keep a positive public image.
How important are both of them to me?
Both reputation and public image are important to me. But while I try to keep a positive reputation and public image, I also try not to get so caught up in it that I start living for the approval of others, then I begin to forget who I truly am. Because if I do, then I might start making decisions that will hurt me just to please others
That's why I find it so imperative to maintain a balance between both of them. While I care for my reputation and public Image I also try not to let them control me. Because that's where I might forget who Marriott is. That's where I might be lying to myself.
I live for what I believe to be the good thing to do for myself and for humanity.