People’s perception of you is their reality. Everything you do or say in life directly contributes to people’s perception of you: who you are as a person and as a leader. Here’s the challenge, people don't always know the difference between perception and reality. We call that ‘the gap’, the gap between perception and reality.

Closing The Gap

Effectively managing that gap begins with recognizing that reputation is a matter of perception. And this perception works in different ways. The wider the gap, the wider your perception of something is from the reality of it. Your goal is to close that gap. There are three ways to look at the gap. 1.There is no gap. The perception is in alignment with the reality. 2. The perception is worse than the reality or 3. The perception is better than the reality. The gap can be really narrow or really wide.

Living Up to Your Promises

To be in alignment you have to live up to what you promise, or your reputation will decline until it more closely matches that reality. To bridge perception-reality gaps, a company must either improve its ability to meet expectations or reduce expectations by promising less.

To learn how to stand out when it comes to your reputation, download the 10 Best Practices to Stand Out When it Comes to Reputation.