Character V Reputation
There is often some misunderstanding around the difference between a person’s Character and their Reputation, but it’s really simple…one you can control and the other you can’t.
So what does that mean for how we live our lives?
How often do we hear things such as – “He’s a bad character” or “He has a bad reputation”? But have you stopped to think about what this actually means?
I talk alot about holding yourself to a standard. Not someone else’s standard…your own standard. Doing things simply because they are the right thing to do, not because you will receive praise or because you are looking for someone to notice. This is what Character is. It is about the things you control and how you choose to live in the world, how you act and react.
Reputation is what other people think of you. This is completely outside your control. You can have a good character and a bad reputation simply because the person who has given you that bad reputation has polar opposite ways of thinking than you do.
I hear people say that you have to protect your reputation, be careful with it. I say forget about your reputation…it’s not something you can control. Instead focus solely on building your character, holding yourself to a standard, and being the best person you can be.
Some people will never like you and that is a scientific fact, and in their mouths your reputation is always a loose cannon, so forget about them. HOWEVER…don’t be that person who doesn’t give a damn about what other people think, but is also not building a Character and not holding themselves accountable to a standard…they’re just arseholes.
