It takes years to build your reputation and just one bad move to erase it.
It’s scary how quickly you can destroy your reputation without even trying. As much as we want others to share our work with their communities online (a process that often feels painfully slow), the internet can also be sharing hell for those who’ve miss-stepped or whose dirty laundry goes viral with lightning speed.
You’ve seen it happen! And, whether justified or not, the consequences are long-lasting — what goes on the ‘net, stays on the ‘net.
Worse, while you might think that others trashing your reputation online is to be most feared, in reality, it’s more likely you could be the one who brings everything crashing down.
Here are 9 ways it can all go wrong in a heartbeat:
- Impaired posting, commenting and sexting.
- Trashing others (whether or not you’re under the influence).
- Being dishonest.
- Bragging excessively.
- Recording your unprofessional behaviour in photos and videos.
- Not acknowledging and addressing customer complaints.
- Responding to criticism with defensive and/or ballistic replies.
- Abandoning your community for long periods with no warning or explanation.
- Hiding behind automation.
It can take a lifetime to build a solid, professional reputation online or offline. But only one lapse in judgement to ruin it. (We are not the Kardashians!)
Before you post or press send, take a moment to consider how what you’re about to do or say could be perceived. And, if others are working with or for you online, make sure you’re all on the same page when it comes to reputation management.
More next time. Until then, remember to LOVE YOUR WORK, whatever it may be.
PS Did this post speak to you? If so, please feel free to share it with your own communities, friends and followers. Thanks for sharing the love! ♥♥♥