GUEST COLUMN | Your reputation starts building on day one at work

MUMBAI: You have not said a word in your first meeting, and people are already deciding what you are like. From the first introduction to the first lunch, colleagues are quietly forming a view of the newcomer, and that view tends to stick. Rajiv Bakshi, former COO – Revenue, Zee Entertainment, and author of the forthcoming book on Executive Success, to be published by HarperCollins, says the sooner young professionals grasp this, the better. A reputation is not built by one big moment. It is built by hundreds of small ones, and a year goes by faster than you think.

Everyone starting a new job, and even those in the early years of their career, needs to recognise one important fact: from the very first day, you are building something that will shape something far more critical that your job – your professional reputation.

One of the things nobody tells you when you start your first job is that you begin building a reputation for yourself almost immediately. Are you approachable, curious, resilient, resourceful, team player or someone who can be trusted or brings energy into a room.

In the beginning, like most people before you, you would be razor-focused on understanding how the organisation works, remembering names and trying not to make mistakes. But while you are learning the job, the people around you are also beginning to form an impression of you.

It starts with the obvious and seemingly innocuous things, not any big, bold move. Your first introduction. The way you behave in your first team meeting. How you respond when someone gives you feedback. Whether you listen or are constantly trying to prove that you know something. Whether you take responsibility when you get something wrong.

You must remember that reputation is not built only through what you say. The non-verbal signals can matter just as much. How you carry yourself. Whether you make eye contact. Whether you look interested when someone is speaking to you. How you behave when you walk into a room. Even the way you react when you think nobody important is watching can tell people something about you.

And then there are the social moments that never appear in your job description. Lunch. A coffee break. A conversation before a meeting. A team outing. The few minutes when you happen to be standing next to someone from another department.These moments can be surprisingly important, particularly when you are starting out. The senior person you don’t normally interact with may be sitting across from you at lunch. Someone from another function who has never had a reason to work with you may start a conversation over coffee. A colleague from another team may remember you because you took the time to help them with something.

These people may not matter to your job today, but they may become important to your career tomorrow. That is why the responsibility, and the opportunity, for the impression you create ultimately sits with you.

This doesn’t mean becoming obsessed with what people think of you or trying to manage every interaction. It means being aware that people are experiencing you all the time, not just when you are formally doing your job.

Being new gives you a real advantage that you won’t get back after a few years. You are allowed “not to” know everything. You are allowed to ask questions and make mistakes. People understand that you are learning, and you have a degree of freedom that you may not have later in your career.

But don’t confuse being new with being meek or unsure.

I understand the paradox. You don’t know the organisation well enough to be completely confident, yet you are also being encouraged to be bold. You don’t want to overstep, but you don’t want to disappear either.

You don’t need to pretend to know more than you do. Be bold within your limitations and your boundaries. Ask when you don’t understand. Speak when you have something useful to say. Volunteer when you can add value. Put your hand up for something that stretches you. And when you get something wrong, own it.

When you start your career, a year can feel like a very long time. It isn’t. Before you know it, the first year has passed. People have worked with you, spoken to you, observed how you behave and formed a view of what you are like. So use the first few year deliberately. Think about the impression you want to create, not in a superficial sense, but in terms of the professional you want to become. You cannot completely control what people think of you. But you have far more influence over it than you may realise.

And this is where I think young professionals sometimes miss an important point. Your first job isn’t only about proving that you can do the work. It is also about deciding what kind of professional you want people to experience when they work with you.

Remember that reputation is rarely created by one big moment. It is built through hundreds of small interactions that don’t seem particularly important at the time.

The thank you. Giving someone credit. Listening properly. Being prepared. Helping someone when you don’t have to. Admitting when you don’t know. Keeping your word. Turning up when it matters. Over time, these small behaviours become a pattern. And that pattern becomes your reputation.

A year goes by very quickly. Before you know it, you will be known for something. Make sure it is something positive. And, as far as possible, make sure it is something you have chosen!