Life could be defined as a series of lessons. There are some lessons we forget soon but others stay with us for a long time. An incident happened to me when I was in grade 5 and even though it was not a positive incident, it did teach me the importance of a good reputation. We should build and protect a good reputation at all costs because a good reputation is one of the most important assets one may have.

When I was in grade 5, a new student named Zach entered our class. He was a transfer student from other school. Zach was both the tallest and physically strongest guy in our class and he started using his physical advantage to intimidate other students. As a result, his presence would create an uncomfortable environment in the class. In contrast to him, I enjoyed quite a good reputation in the class and almost everybody was on good terms with me. My good reputation was due to a number of factors such as my willingness to help anyone who needed help and my good grades.

One day I was walking to the class and Zach pushed me for no reason. I demanded apology because it was only fair. I also demanded apology because I believed we students are expected to demonstrate good manners. Instead of apologizing or claiming it was an unintended mistake, Zach sensed an opportunity to humiliate me and pushed me again. Normally, I was never the person who would lose his cool but no one had treated me like this before and as such, I prepared myself for physical altercation with Zach. But before I could counter Zach, some of my classmates leapt to my defense and seemed willing to physically counter Zach as well. It was not only unexpected for me but even for Zach, too. Zach had bullied some of my classmates before, too but he almost never encountered group opposition since most people preferred to stay out of trouble. The tension in the air was noticed by one of my instructors who called both me and Zach to her office. She did allow us to present our sides of the story but eventually sided with me. My instructor argued she knew me well and would never expect me to create a trouble in the first place. She dismissed us after giving warning to Zach that any such episode in the future may lead to suspension and other punitive measures.

This incident was the first that made me realize the importance of a good reputation. I learnt that one of the benefits of a good reputation is the potential of group support which may have tremendous advantages in school or at workplace. My classmates had seen other students being bullied by Zach but they rarely intervened to save themselves the trouble. But when they saw me being bullied by Zach, they immediately rushed to my defense because they had a particular respect for me. As a result, they were willing to go beyond than what they would have done for someone else with an average or bad reputation.

The incident also taught me about the close relationship between reputation and trust. Even though some of my classmates did see Zach pushing me without a reason, not all of them who rushed to support me knew the cause of the conflict. In addition, the instructor who called me and Zach to the office also chose to trust my side of the story because of my good reputation. She had known me for quite some time and knew I am not the type to get in conflicts or create trouble.

It was also clear to me from the incident that good reputation is important to being a leader. I was merely a student but my reputation had allowed me to become the informal leader of my classmates. As I reflected upon my relationship with my classmates after the incident, I realized I did have influence on them. Whenever I made a proposal in the class or would ask one or more of my classmates for a particular favor, I mostly got positive response from them. Thus, I continue to be protective of my reputation because I believe reputation is very difficult to build once it has been harmed. I see several examples in the real world where many have lost public goodwill because they failed to live up to their reputation such as cyclist Lance Armstrong and boxer Floyd Mayweather. One could say Mayweather has been very successful in his profession but professional success and reputation are not the same thing.

I still wish that incident with Zach had not happened but at the same time, it also proved to be quite valuable in terms of a life lesson. The incident helped me realize the importance of a good reputation and how a good reputation may turn out to be one of the best personal assets. My classmates were willing to step in for me because they respected me. My instructor also stood up for me because I enjoyed good reputation with her. I also learnt good reputation is important to becoming a leader and several examples in the real world support my belief. Thus, it is important to defend a good reputation because it is difficult to restore it once it has been harmed.