How to Repair a Damaged Reputation

"Your reputation is what people use to judge your worthiness for career advancement. You must take aggressive action to protect it."

No matter how good, honest or full of integrity you are in your career, accusations of misconduct or mistakes will come your way, particularly if you're ambitious. When they do, you can't sit back and do nothing.

If it looks like your reputation may suffer a hit, it is time to apply a candid, clear, focused and firm approach to address the situation and accuser. If that advice sounds serious, it is. Your reputation is what people use to judge your worthiness for career advancement. You must take aggressive action to protect it. If your reputation is damaged by a false accusation, take these steps to repair it:

• Meet with the appropriate body within your company or organization to clearly explain the matter. Invite the accuser to the meeting. Use this approach: "I understand there are accusations about . . . Here's the situation from my point of view." Push to get exposure and closure in a timely fashion. Don't let either party off easy because the issue is uncomfortable to discuss.
• Make certain your accuser publicly apologizes. A threat of legal action may help achieve this.
• Educate everyone on your team about what happened, from co-workers to family and friends. Equip them to be solidly on your side by describing what happened.
• Tell colleagues and associates about the situation. Explain it in a way that helps them avoid a similar situation. Use humor and irony. ("You won't believe what happened to me . . .") Be clear and brief and then stop. If you go on and on, it looks like you are protesting too much.
• When you speak about the situation, look and act good-humored and good-natured. Maintain a relaxed tone of voice, expression and demeanor.
• When you are cleared of wrongdoing, have your company or organization make a statement proclaiming your innocence. Make sure your innocence is documented by a memo in your personnel file. Needless to say, you should obtain and file a copy of this memo too.
• Dive in and take on new challenges. This is a good time to seek out a special assignment that offers the opportunity to prove yourself. If you were involved in community service or charity work before the accusations, step up your participation. Whatever you do, don't hide in embarrassment.
• Maintain professional, good-humored and good-natured demeanor around your boss and the accuser going forward. If anyone gets a sense they've "gotten to you," scared you, or weakened your power, he or she may try again.

The final step in repairing a damaged reputation is to have patience. The stigma of guilt will go away. It may take time. But you have to remember that after a relatively short period of time, the episode that nearly damaged your reputation will seem bigger to you than to anyone else.

Debra Benton, president of Benton Management Resourcesis one of America's top executive coaches. She works with list of Fortune 500, upwardly-mobile executives. She is an international speaker and author of several best-selling books including: How to Think Like a CEO and How to Act Like a CEO: 10 Rules for Getting to the Top and Staying There.

For more advice on advancing your career, be sure to investigate Trump University's new audio course, Play to Win in Business and Life.