It's often said that character is what you do when no one is watching. It is an essential part of one's life which glued one's present to the future. What therefore is character?
Character is a distinguished features,traits or moral strength of an individual. People's character differs just the way our fingerprints are, it should therefore be noted that one's character can either make or mar one. What are those characters that should be taken care of by individuals? This article is meant to shed light into it.
The first character trait that I think is most important is integrity. Integrity speaks volume even when one is not there to explain or define one's intention about a particular matter or event.
Integrity is a value, a moral standard, being truthful to one's principle, belief even when it is uncomfortable. A person who holds integrity in level will be reliable, trustworthy, consistence and adhere to ethics in professional. Integrity is essential for personal and professional development and growth, as it builds strong relationship, respect and trust.
Also, another very important character trait is courage. Courage is the absence of fear but willingness to act in spite of anything. A courageous man even though is uncertain of the outcome of a particular task will still go ahead to tackle it. It is a good quality that encourages and motivates others. A courageous man will do the following;
- Face fear and uncertainty with bravery and Valor.
- Standing up with one's believe even if it's to stand alone in the face of adversity.
- Protect and defend others, even if with personal sacrifice.
- Showing resilience and perseverance in the face of adversary.
- Speaking truth and power to challenge injustice.
Courage is mandatory for leadership role especially, and for making positive impact in the world.
Furthermore, empathy is also crucial in shaping one's character. Empathy shows how desirable such person's character will be. Empathy is the ability to put one's self in another person's shoe, connecting with another person in an emotional level, showing respect to people's opinion, kindness and being generous to one's peers, and in the society at large. Empathy is crucial for effective communication, strong relationship, conflict resolution and emotional development.
In addition to what has been written, resilience also serve as key tool in fundamental character development. And resilience is an ability to bounce back from a particular hurtful event or traumatic experience. Difficulty and problems are part of life as life is not a bed of roses. One might experience an heart break from spouse, death of loved ones, loss of job, accident that can change one's posture etc, and when this happened, one should be able to adjust to the change and bounce back to the loving being who one used to be. Resilience isn't the absence of life challenges or difficulties, but the ability to navigate them with strength and determination.
The fundamental truths about character i.e empathy, courage, integrity, resilience, self awarenesses, gratitude, compassion, etc are what shapes human which will eventually give a desirable society. One should therefore build a good character and behaviour in this changing and revolving society.