Have you heard the phrase, “Instant Credibility?” Me too. Conceptually, I understand what it means. For years I always believed that my resume and body of work should afford me some level of credibility. It does in some circles. That history is what gets me invited to participate in books, conferences, and panels. If you will, I’ve got industry credibility.

Ok – that’s nice. But, industry credibility really doesn’t help you with the people you work with. Your body of work, the references you have, and your resume get you the interview, but they don’t get you the job. You’ve got to earn the job, by establishing some level of credibility with the people who are doing the evaluating.

Even once you have the job – your previous experience, accomplishments, and accolades while nice, don’t really give you credibility. You have to earn credibility. I recently joined MARC USA as the Director of Interactive Marketing Innovation. While it would be nice to have “instant credibility.” The fact is, that’s just not realistic. Everyday in the office, every conversation, every email, every presentation are chances to build credibility. I/we have to prove ourselves as worthy of the hire.

When I was younger, this frustrated the hell out of me. Now, it excites the hell out of me. Don’t get me wrong, there are still times where I feel my body of work should be reason enough to validate a decision, point of view, recommendation, or decision. However, when that happens, I remind myself that I haven’t earned their trust yet.

That’s really the essence of credibility – TRUST. Who you are and what you”ve done don’t really matter unless people trust you. It’s their trust that allows you to be credible. Earning trust isn’t easy. It doesn’t happen overnight. Nope, it’s often a painstaking and lengthy process, but it can be a lot of fun. It’s a challenge. If who you are and what you”ve done is the appetizer – what you actually do when you’re hired is the meal.

People need to see up close and personal your value. With the rise of “social media” and a wide open (gulp) transparent web we’re constantly being evaluated. Every tweet, status update, and blog post is being reviewed and added to what someone already knows about you (eg your LinkedIn profile). Every interaction, small or big, is under scrutiny. That doesn’t mean you should change what you say and who you are. Just the opposite. I’d argue you should be the person you are, wherever you are, whenever you are. Be authentic. You just need to understand the consequences.

Credibility is something we all want. Take my word for it – it doesn’t come fast, it doesn’t come easy, and it doesn’t come cheap. You can’t buy it. You’ve got to earn it. Start now.