When evaluating people, they say good moral character trumps all. Coach John Wooden always preached that character was more important than reputation because “character is what you really are, while reputation is merely what others think you are.” Folks with good character never shy away from making hard decisions whenever they’re necessary and — more importantly — they always take into account the effect their actions will have on others.
The bottom line: Everything we do and say in life represents a choice, and people of good moral character always strive to do the right thing — even when nobody else is paying attention.
Photo Credit: chadh
Well said! I love these 100 word articles. Good character reflects wise use of our moral compass. The path it leads us on may not always be the easiest one, but it will always be the right one!
Thank you! So refreshing to hear someone talk about good moral character, and that it matters.
I try to teach my kids this all the time. Having good character hopefully helps minimize regrets, shows a fantastic example to others, and will make all aspects of your life cleaner and easier. You will also get the benefit of the doubt if you lead a life of good character.
I guess I didn’t mean easier in terms of it is easy to handle life with good character. In many ways, it is harder to make the right decision. I guess I meant mentally if you strive to live with good morals, then you won’t have the clutter that comes with doing things for the wrong reasons.
I love the John Wooden quote.
I take every opportunity to tell my boys to “be a stand-up guy”. It’s one of those catchall Dad-type admonitions that applies to a many situations. They’re turning out to be good boys, so thankfully I don’t have to say it too often.
Good character is paramount but I wouldn’t equate it with the ability to make hard decisions. Decisiveness seems unrelated to me, I’ve managed a lot of managers and some of the most solid from a character standpoint still lacked the confidence to make decisions and some of the real jerks were awesome at pulling the trigger on decisions. Although I agree that making painful decisions that cost you personally but still are the right things to do is easier for people with integrity.
To me, Harry Truman’s character is legendary
Faithful in the best sense of that word to his wife Bess.
Defender of progeny took on the music critic of the Washpost when he panned daughter Margarets singing.
A student of history.
Enabler of George Marshals plan for the reconstruction of Europe.
Made the hard choices, Hiroshima and Nagasaki among them, in a straightforward, no looking back fashion.
Socio-political fallout? Harry didnt care and neither do I.
Motto on his desk: The buck stops here.
Indeed!
Rhetorical Question follows:
If Good Moral Character is so important, why is Trump president?
Assuming, for the sake of argument, that your assertion is true, the answer is: Because good moral character is not a Constitutional prerequisite for becoming president, nor does it need to be.
That being said, I’d be curious to know why do you think Trump lacks moral character?
By the way, this blog is not a positive place for snowflakes and statists. Based on your personal opinion of Trump, I strongly suspect that you probably won’t like hanging out here because baseless assertions will always get challenged.
Keep smiling!