You are being watched.

Forgive the creepy title, but it is true. I don’t need to tell anyone that we are in an age of extremely high visibility. Most people understand that what they do at work is monitored, and that your name will most likely be googled by potential employers, business partners, clients and vendors. But how about the way you act in normal daily activities? These may have more impact then we realize.

Recently while driving to a meeting with a client, I looked up into my rearview mirror and saw a big, full size van bearing down on me. Now WAY too close for comfort, the driver was obviously irritated. I briefly debated a quick tap on the brakes, but instead opted to change lanes and let them pass. Almost before I had left the lane, the van came roaring past. The kicker? This van had a big, bright vehicle wrap on it. (Anyone relate with this story yet?) As I sat back in my seat wondering if I had ever heard of the business, one thing was for sure, I would never forget it. To top things off, the van made a left hand turn from the straight lane exposing both sides of the beautifully wrapped vehicle to the entire intersection. No doubt the vehicle wrap had just served the purpose of creating awareness. Although I can’t imagine the business owner had hoped the mobile advertising would lead to the business name being coupled with some of the words likely uttered under several of the observing drivers’ breath. Most likely, the driver of the van was in a genuine hurry. Perhaps they were behind on a delivery, or maybe a client needed an immediate service call. Regardless of the reason behind the overly-aggressive driving, the damage had been done.

The reality is, we are being watched. You don’t need to have a vehicle wrap to be recognized in traffic, or at a restaurant, and it takes only a moment to erode what undoubtedly took months or even years to build.