How Character Works, and Why You Want It

ByMatthew

Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspired, and success achieved. – Helen Keller

Well, she would know.

The beauty of the truth of how character is developed is that it gives us two amazing gifts.

One: we get to discover that we can things we thought we couldn’t and we learn we’re strong, wiser, kinder and better than we might have thought.

Two: we learn what we don’t want. What we’re unwilling to endure again. What we will chose differently so as to never have to experience again.

One key aspect of character is knowing what you want, what you don’t want and making the choices – difficult or otherwise – to create something else.

Similar Posts

  • Beyond Responding

    ByMatthew

    I’m not sure if it is a word, or even if it could be a word, but I want to offer you the option of “pre-ponding.” There’s responding and reacting (and there’s over-responding and over-reacting, but those options are for another post… ), and there is pro-acting. I want to create a distinction between pro-acting…

  • Where Do You Stand?

    ByMatthew

    If you want light to come into your life, you need to stand where it is shining. – Guy Finley Literally and figuratively. Where do you stand? *  *  * In terms of the literal bit, where are you? Are you doing work you care about? In a place and with people that connect you…

  • Be Brief, Be Remembered

    ByMatthew

    Speeches that are measured by the hour will die with the hour. – Thomas Jefferson Anything that takes too long to convey will be experienced as an ordeal. That which is delivered with relevance, wit and dispatch will be valued – and remembered. Be brief. Be complete. Be useful. It’s possible to do all three….