Reputation: "recognition by other people of some characteristic or ability"

A long time ago, I heard a wise man say, "Reputation is what men carve on your tombstone; character is what angels declare before God."

This little article is only about reputation - what others may figuratively carve on your tombstone. You may wish to review my recent blog entry where I shared some of my thoughts about integrity, an essential component of character.

Reputation is not what one claims about himself; it is what other people say. Reputation may be informal (Jack is an honest man or a horse thief) or formal (Jack is a registered CPA or a licensed barber). Reputation may be based on truth (valid college degree) or fraud (forged passport). Identity theft may be seen as one person's attempt to establish a ficticious reputation, while often destroying the reputation of another.

We commonly attempt to quantify reputation:

• School grades
• SAT test scores
• Credit ratings
• DMV points
• Quarterback efficiency ratings

Other reputation characteristics are more qualitative:

• Reliability
• Honesty
• Effectiveness
• Cowardice

Our society loves to recogize reputation by granting special awards:

• Nobel prize
• Academy award
• Honorary Doctorate
• Honor student
• Worst dresser

Credentials are formal evidence of reputation - not reputation itself, but a means of claiming reputation for ones self:

• Professional credentials, institutionalized recognition of reputation:
  • CPA
  • Licensed barber
• Academic achievement credentials:
  • High school diploma
  • BSEE
• Information access credentials:
  • UserID, Password
• Physical Access credentials
  • Employee badge
  • PIN

In the digital realm reputation is often established through trusted third parties (e.g. government institutions, Sxip home site). An individual may make a claim or assertion; that claim may need to be validated by another person or institution.

In closing, may I recommend an interesting little article that speaks of a "trusted personal brand, or reputation." The author recommends that we consciously seek to enhance our personal reputations: "If there’s a gap between where you are and where you’d like to be with your brand image, you can close the gap."

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Tags: Identity Digital Identity Identity Management Identity Map