You’re constantly building your reputation at work, even if you don’t recognize it. Every deadline you meet and every idea you bring is shaping how people see you. The good news is that you have more control over that story than you might think.

Bestselling author David Burkus says some people have a fuzzy sense of what it means to have a good reputation. They might think it means being well-liked or involved in all the right conversations. But it really breaks down to just 2 things: How good you are at your job and how good you are at working with others. Over time, people observe both. So, how can you build the reputation you actually want? We share tips from Burkus in this issue of PromoPro Daily.

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  1. Make yourself visible. According to Burkus, your reputation at work depends on people knowing who you are and what you’re contributing. One of the best ways is to volunteer for high-profile projects. In hybrid or remote environments, this requires more intentionality. For example, he says you could send a quick update to a stakeholder before they ask or make a casual mention of a milestone on a project.

  2. Make others look good. This sounds counterintuitive when you’re trying to build your own visibility, but he says it works precisely because of how reciprocity functions in human relationships. When you publicly reinforce a great idea a colleague raised in a meeting, when you’re generous about sharing credit after a project succeeds, when you send a note to a manager calling out someone who did exceptional work behind the scenes, you become the kind of person others want to lift up in return.

  3. Build relationships across not just up. It’s important for your boss to know you’re doing great work, but don’t overlook peer relationships. These carry more weight than many people think, Burkus says. Your colleagues are the ones who see how you handle pressure and ambiguity daily. They’re in the rooms where your name comes up when opportunities arise.

  4. Don’t overlook your external reputation. How you’re perceived outside your organization shapes how people inside it see you too. There’s something about external validation, like a published article or a panel appearance, that recalibrates a colleague’s internal view of you. You don’t need to become a prolific content creator, Burkus says. Sharing a LinkedIn post about lessons from a recent project or joining a webinar in your field are small contributions that compound.

  5. Be relentlessly consistent. Every strategy above only works if you apply it over time, Burkus says. Reputation isn’t built in a single standout moment. It’s built across hundreds of small interactions that accumulate into a pattern. That means closing the loop on commitments even when they feel minor. It means showing up the same way on a hard week as you do on an easy one. It means treating the new intern with the same respect you’d show the CEO.

Think of your reputation as something that compounds. Every project, conversation and follow-through adds another piece to the picture. You don’t have to reinvent yourself or become a master of self-promotion. Just be deliberate about how you show up and you’ll give people a clear picture of your value.

Compiled by Audrey Sellers
Source: David Burkus is an organizational psychologist, keynote speaker and bestselling author of 5 books on leadership and teamwork.