How to take control of your reputation at work

How to take control of your reputation at workHow to take control of your reputation at workThe most important career capital you have isnt your technical skills or academic pedigree. Its not your high-flying title. Its not even your relationships Its your reputation.In every job, people will wonder if you have what it takes to get things done and if you can deal with a wide range of people. Theyll be mora than curious if you can handle crises and adversity. My favorite mentor has been known to caution, Your reputation gets to the next distribution policy before you do. What will it be?To take control of your own professional reputation, you need mora than just good everyday performance. Consider the following simple but effective reputation-builders to improve your credibility at workDont go in unpreparedPriscilla, a marketing up and comer welches excited to get invited to a meeting by a departmental leader that she admired. Since shed been busy with her ongoing projects, she quick ly skimmed the pre-meeting materials that were sent around in advance.Ladders is now on SmartNewsDownload the SmartNews app and add the Ladders channel to read the latest career news and advice wherever you go.The problem was, when Priscilla got there, she asked a series of questions that were easily answered had she carefully read the pre-meeting materials. This short interaction in front of a powerful and influential group led others to see her as nice, but ill-equipped.Think of your preparation time as something that translates to respect for your audience.Be consistentHave you ever worked with someone who was particularly moody - leading you to wonder which character you would get on a given day? Being known this way only frustrates people and worse, distracts them from your knowledge and talent.In contrast, I recently partnered with a client on some consulting work and was struck by the wonderfully competent young woman who supported the project. In each interaction I had wit h her, she was reliable, pleasant, and effective, offering insights above and beyond what she was asked to do.It was her consistency in every single medium from email, to in-person meetings - even voicemails - that made me think, This woman wont be in this role for long.Keep your promisesSometimes in our zeal to show our value to new people, we over-commit to what we can do and leave the other side high and dry. Imagine networking with a like-minded professional, making plans to partner on a joint project, and then never hearing from that person again. It may be easy to over-promise, but its very hard to recover your reputation totally when you mislead someone.The lesson? Dont waste peoples hopes, time or energy by making commitments you wont keep. I guarantee your forgotten deliverable or oversight will be more memorable to them than your pleasant personalityBuy into yourselfIf our body language is apologetic if we dont go for the higher-level job we think wed be great in if we feel like imposters who dont really deserve our job and title then guess how others will see us?The foundation of a great reputation is believing you have something of value and importance to share and contribute. Without this essential ingredient, you may fly under the radar, never making enough noise to be noticed or seen. In my dozens of interviews with top women leaders, I heard frequently that a non-reputation - being a virtual unknown - can be as hard to overcome when it comes to advancement as having a faulty reputation.Dont complainWhen I interviewed the wonderful Fizzah Jafri, COO Fixed Income Research and Economics at Morgan Stanley, for my book Pushback, she cautioned strongly against becoming known as someone whos impossible to please.Said Jaffri,You need to articulate your objection early on and then bounce back quickly. Dont dwell on issues. The complainer perception tends to stick. Become known as a constructive thinker. Consider some of the colleagues you most a dmire and Id bet most of them know how to frame their ideas and objections with tact, and more importantly with a solution or suggestion for improvement.Gossiping, triangulating - and not following the basic rules of your workplace - can certainly undermine your credibility. But in the end, its about more than just keeping composure or being nice.You need to manage your career like its a VIP business project. If something damages your credibility, act Either take responsibility for that misstep or campaign for the issue to be seen in the right light.Selena Rezvani is a recognized consultant, speaker and author on women and leadership. Aseasoned human capital consultant, Selena uses workplace culture assessments to help corporate clients be more inclusive and welcoming to women. Shes also the author of two leadership books targeted at professional women Pushback How Smart Women Ask- and Stand Up- for What They Want(Jossey-Bass, 2012) andThe Next Generation of Women Leaders(Praeger , 2009).This post was originally published on BeLeaderly.com.