IN A WORD

Marshall Goldsmith, in his recent book, 'Mojo' refers to reputation as 'people's recognition - or rejection - of your identity and achievement.'

He further goes on to say that reputations are formed by 'a sequence of actions that resemble one another.  When other people see a pattern of resemblance, that's when they start forming YOUR reputation.'

Notice that he says...THEY form it, we don't form our own reputation - although, we can influence it greatly. 

My family and friends know of a party game  (called IN A WORD) that I like to play on birthdays that involve going around the table (or room) asking each person to
sum up the guest of honor in a single word.   

Simple game = powerfully insightful tool.

What can start out as a light-hearted semantic exercise can often times reveal just how diverse a reputation a single person might have and, in some cases, how unaware we might be of the impact we have on others.

If you have a birthday coming up and you'll be surrounded by people whose perspective you value, consider opening yourself up to this insightful game.  

Stick to the rule that the descriptor must be contained to ONE WORD...don't allow deviations from that.  And, have someone write down all the words so you can reflect back on them when you have a quiet moment.  They'll reveal perhaps the day's best gift of all:
the gift of self-awareness.
(better than the Blockbuster gift card)

Another version that can provide you with the same valuable self-insight is to make three columns on a blank sheet of paper:
Column 1: Intimates     
Column 2: Friends/co-workers
Column 3: Acquaintances  

Using the same 'ONE WORD' rule, write no less than 5 words in each column that represent your perceptionof how people in each of those categories would describe you. 

Take note of the consistencies and the inconsistencies.  Show the list to one person from each category and ask them to circle the most appropriate word (or add one they don't see on the list).

Both exercises reveal that, in most cases, we are not fully expressing ourselves all the time.

We have created life-compartments within which we influence our reputation in potentially different ways.

The gift of these exercises is not to dive too deeply into the dark corners of our psyche looking for a therapist's ticket to fund a second home..... but rather to create awareness in you
as a leader of 
the rich diversity with which your reputation may be influencing your ability to drive success.  

Recognize that your sphere of influence and depth of personal impact just might be 
different than you assume.   

 Worth playing a little 'in a word' game.