There is a Proverb that says that “a good name is better than silver.” In my many years in the business world I have found that to absolutely be the case. The truth is, our reputation might be our most important asset in our careers. A great one builds trust and inspires. It, combined with hard work and preparation, can bring us great success in our careers and our personal lives.

If we are to have long term success, we need to guard our reputations because what other people think about us really can make or break us. Warren Buffet has said that “It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it.” He’s right. Our reputations are fragile and will break easily if they are ignored.

Today’s social media climate has only added complexity to reputation management. Anybody, anywhere, can say anything they want about you or me, and suddenly it’s out there. Cell phone videos have ruined many otherwise good names. The temptation to join that rant on Facebook might end up costing you some friends and business relationships…