41 Insightful Quotes On Reputation

In a world where perception often paves the way for reality, reputation holds a significant place in shaping our personal and professional lives. It serves as a reflection of our character and ideals, influencing how others perceive and interact with us. Whether earned over time or impacted by fleeting moments, reputations are both precious and precarious. To explore this powerful concept, we've curated a collection of 41 insightful quotes that delve into the nuances of reputation. These words of wisdom are crafted to inspire reflection and mindfulness in the way we build and maintain our standing in the eyes of others. Join us on this journey as we contemplate the profound influence reputation holds over our lives and relationships.

1. “You can't build a reputation on what you are going to do.” - Henry Ford

2. “With enough courage, you can do without a reputation.” - Margaret Mitchell

3. “But before he went loopy he was the life and soul of the party," said Fred. "He used to down an entire bottle of firewhiskey, then run onto the dance floor, hoist up his robes, and start pulling bunches of flowers out of his--"Yes, he sounds like a real charmer," said Hermione, while Harry roared with laughter.Never married, for some reason," said Ron.” - J.K. Rowling

4. “She was happy, and perfectly in line with the tradition of those women they used to call "ruined," "fallen," feckless, bitches in heat, ravished dolls, sweet sluts, instant princesses, hot numbers, great lays, succulent morsels, everybody's darlings...” - Jean Genet

5. “A reputation once broken may possibly be repaired, but the world will always keep their eyes on the spot where the crack was.” - Joseph Hall

6. “Your reputation is in the hands of others. That's what the reputation is. You can't control that. The only thing you can control is your character.” - Wayne W. Dyer

7. “The nicest feeling in the world is to do a good deed anonymously-and have somebody find out.” - Oscar Wilde

8. “You're not Dostoevsky,' said the citizeness, who was getting muddled by Koroviev. Well, who knows, who knows,' he replied. 'Dostoevsky's dead,' said the citizeness, but somehow not very confidently. 'I protest!' Behemoth exclaimed hotly. 'Dostoevsky is immortal!” - Mikhail Bulgakov

9. “The evil that men do lives after them;The good is oft interred with their bones.” - William Shakespeare

10. “Remember no one expects you to be Halt. He's a legend, after all. Haven't you heard? He's eight feet tall and kills bears with his bare hands...” - John Flanagan

11. “I don't do normal. I have a reputation to uphold. (Thwonk)” - Joan Bauer

12. “Guard your honor. Let your reputation fall where it will. And outlive the bastards.” - Lois McMaster Bujold

13. “What odd chaps you painters are! You do anything in the world to gain a reputation. As soon as you have one, you seem to want to throw it away. It is silly of you, for there is only one thing in the world worse than being talked about, and that is not being talked about. A portrait like this would set you far above all the young men in England, and make the old men jealous, if old men are ever capable of any emotion.” - Oscar Wilde

14. “Ces six personnes formaient le fond de la voiture, le côté de la société rentée, sereine et forte, des honnêtes gens autorisés qui ont de la Religion et des Principes.” - Guy de Maupassant

15. “The only happy author in this world is he who is below the care of reputation.” - Washington Irving

16. “Whether true or false, what is said about men often has as much influence on their lives, and particularly on their destinies, as what they do.” - Victor Hugo

17. “Regard your good name as the richest jewel you can possibly be possessed of -- for credit is like fire; when once you have kindled it you may easily preserve it, but if you once extinguish it, you will find it an arduous task to rekindle it again. The way to a good reputation is to endeavor to be what you desire to appear.” - Socrates

18. “If I take care of my character, my reputation will take care of itself.” - D.L. Moody

19. “Atheism leaves a man to sense, to philosophy, to natural piety, to laws, to reputation; all which may be guides to an outward moral virtue, though religion were not; but superstition dismounts all these, and erecteth an absolute monarchy in the minds of men. Therefore atheism did never perturb states; for it makes men wary of themselves, as looking no further: and we see the times inclined to atheism (as the time of Augustus Cæsar) were civil times. But superstition hath been the confusion of many states, and bringeth in a new primum mobile, that ravisheth all the spheres of government. The master of superstition is the people; and in all superstition wise men follow fools; and arguments are fitted to practice, in a reversed order.” - Francis Bacon

20. “Chater: You dare to call me that. I demand satisfaction!Septimus: Mrs Chater demanded satisfaction and now you are demanding satisfaction. I cannot spend my time day and night satisfying the demands of the Chater family.” - Tom Stoppard

21. “If a man ordered a beer milkshake he'd better do it in a town where he wasn't known.” - John Steinbeck

22. “It is difficult to make a reputation, but is even more difficult seriously to mar a reputation once properly made --- so faithful is the public.” - Arnold Bennett

23. “The preachers tell us that pride is a great sin, but the preachers are wrong. Pride makes a man, it drives him, it is the shield wall around his reputation... Men die, they said, but reputation does not die.” - Bernard Cornwell

24. “Tale-bearers are as bad as the tale-makers.” - Richard Brinsley Sheridan

25. “Then, if to make your ruin more,You'll peevishly be coy,Die with the scandal of a whoreAnd never know the joy.” - John Wilmot

26. “But Father has also taught him: Treat a man as if he had a fine reputation to protect, and he will usually endeavor to deserve it.” - Orson Scott Card

27. “Keats was getting a reputation just when he was too ill to appreciate it or build on it: his country was taking notice of him just when he would have to leave it.” - Jude Morgan

28. “A bad conscience is easier to cope with than a bad reputation.” - Friedrich Nietzsche

29. “Upon my tongues continual slanders ride,The which in every language I pronounce,Stuffing the ears of men with false reports.” - William Shakespeare

30. “I want to leave behind me the name of a fellow who never bullied a little boy, or turned his back on a big one.” - Thomas Hughes

31. “Any society's upper-crust is riddled with immorality, how else d'you think they keep their power? Reputation is king of the public sphere, not private. It is dethroned by public acts.” - David Mitchell

32. “Love grows and wanes, but honor, duty, and commitment, those things are constant and stable. They define who you are.” - Richelle E. Goodrich

33. “I have really done so few bad things that they have to keep harping on the old ones.” - L.M. Montgomery

34. “[she] had a great reputation for unselfishness because she was always giving up a lot of things she didn't want.” - L.M. Montgomery

35. “All those people who are chained here thinking that their reputations matter and this little shit matters are so freaking shortsighted. Dude, what matters is that you're happy. What matters is your future. What matters is that we get out of here in one piece. What matters is finding the truth of our own lives, not caring about what other people think is the truth of us.” - A.S. King

36. “Affronts to her reputation pierced her to the heart, though I couldn’t understand why, since she had very little character left to defend.” - Melika Dannese Lux

37. “What's in a name?  The accumulation of reputations from all who've owned it before you.” - Richelle E. Goodrich

38. “I think my reputation will look after itself," Holmes said. "If they hang me, Watson, I shall leave it to you to persuade your readers that the whole thing was a misunderstanding.” - Anthony Horowitz

39. “I‘m very aware that my personal life, my marriage, is the source of speculation and interest in the department and with the public. I can live with that. I’m also aware that my husband’s businesses, and his style of conducting his businesses, are also the source of speculation and interest. I have no particular problem with that. But I resent very much that my reputation and my husband’s character should be questioned this way. From the media, Commander, it’s to be expected, but not from my superior officer. Not from any member of the department I’ve served to the best of my ability. I want you to take note, Commander, that turning in my badge would be like cutting off my arm. But if it comes down to a choice between the job and my marriage, then I lose the arm.” - J.D. Robb

40. “Better to die, than to live on with a bad reputation.” - Vietnamese proverb.

41. “If you want to discover the true character of a person, you have only to observe what they are passionate about.” - Shannon L. Alder