Who we are on the inside is all that matters, right? My intentions. My values. What about my impact?

“Reputation” is a story others tell about the impact my choices generate. Am I willing to listen to that story? Because, my leadership will only be as effective as my willingness to accept the impact my behavior has on the people around me.

Humans don’t make decisions based on data. We make decisions based on our interpretation of the data. So, whether it’s the story I tell myself about who I am, or the story others tell themselves about how they experience me, that story drives outcomes.

No doubt, reputation is as much a construct as my own sense of self. And here’s the beautiful thing about that: the co-active, integrated, reciprocal nature of identify formation means that any shift I make to my own internal narrative will contribute to shifts in those I influence.

This is the work of leadership: Taking responsibility. For my sense-making system and the “way of being” it creates. For the choices it leads to and the impact those choices generate.

Responsibility begins with awareness.