Maureen:
I think character is built and refined over time. The attributes are there when you are born, but I am a believer in nuture as well as nature. Multiple people can experience the same event, your character is what determines how you react to it.
I have two children now aged 19 and 23. I tried to play a role in shaping their character as a parent and mentor.Others have played a part including teachers, mentors and others. They are now basically adults. You build character by coaching, mentoring, and most importantly role modeling.
I think your innate character affects everything you do- how you make decisions, how you react to adversity, how you lead.
I also believe organizations have a character, but that is a different discussion......

posted 8 months ago

I Believe, character is having good control over one's senses!

if we keenly observe, what we say we think, we say,
What we say, we act,
What we act becomes or habit
our habits,define our character.

According to me, character is something that can be built!
All it takes is, practise of control over one's senses!

posted 8 months ago

As "character" is something you cannot rate for yourself - but rather get rated by other people - the character-building is also depending on the people you are surrounded with, that you live with, etc. So I would say that (at least to a major extend) you have only limited influence in building your character, but rather get influenced by your surroundings.

posted 8 months ago

I have a 3 year old daughter, she definitely has a character of her own and some days I come to think that she is driving me to where her she decides ....

posted 8 months ago

I believe character is a trait that you may be born with, develop through your life’s circumstances or choices and your reactions to them or a combination of both, In my opinion there are many facets to one’s character.

The things one may do at a point in his life when he is 20 years old may be dramatically different than that which he does in his 60’s regardless of his character.

One example that comes to mind is someone finding a wallet stuffed with thousand dollar bills. What does an individual who finds such a wallet do in this case?. Sometimes an indigent person will return that wallet to its rightful owner because he believes it is the ethical, moral thing to do while an influent person might pocket it since she loves money and material goods.

The indigent person may feel great about his act of compassion while the affluent person just goes about her business without a second thought. Or maybe six months later the indigent person suddenly find himself homeless and angrily wonders whether he should have kept the wallet and is upset with himself for not keeping it.

On the other hand six months later the affluent person regrets her decision to keep the wallet and donates an amount equal to what she found to a local charity.

Let’s suppose law enforcement officials decide to crack down on robberies in a downtown area by trying to entice would be robbers into taking action. Overzealous police might “plant” an undercover officer in the neighborhood as a drunk lying on the ground with a wallet full of bills hanging from it.

Passersby can clearly see the wallet and some who might never consider taking it may decide they can do so without getting caught. Perhaps the guy who just lost his job and has five kids to feed might decide that despite his strong positive sense of character he simply needs that money to survive.

That individual may have a very strong character yet the lure of the easy money hanging from that wallet and the prospect of being able to take that money without getting caught causes him to do that which he would never consider.

This example is why laws were created relative to the steps officials can take to wrongly “entice” would be perpetrators into taking actions and committing crimes. They simply cannot entice people in a manner that would make normally prudent people of strong character to do things they wouldn’t ordinarily do. It gets very tricky.

You just never know how someone will react regardless of his/her character or situation. Circumstances one faces at any time in his or her life can sometimes cause people to do things “out of character”.

posted 8 months ago

Wikipedia answers to that:

"A character structure is a system of relatively permanent motivational and other traits that are manifested in the specific ways that an individual relates and reacts to others, to various kinds of stimuli, and the environment that will most likely bring about a normal or productive character structure. [...] Character may also develop in a positive way according to how the individual meets the psychosocial challenges of the life cycle".

So character as a term is neutral, neither positive nor negative, although it is perceived as positive in expressions like "X event builds caracter".

We build our own character through CHOICES we make as to how to react to external events.

To believe external events shape our character denotes an external locus of control and a low degree of self awareness. Not to worry however, character can be changed once we become aware of our options and we make a conscious effort to react in the way that's best for us rather than in ways we have been conditioned to react.

posted 8 months ago

I think one is born only with the potential to do a few things. Character is a set of values that forms the core of the person and is implemented almost unconsciously in everything that the person does. I believe that character is learnt. It is learnt through experience, primarily from family, friends and school. Since character is about how you interpret and respond to a situation, it matters how the person defines himself and the world and time. we are not born with definition, we learn definitions.

posted 8 months ago

Interesting responses! Thanks all! For a good resource check out the APA Handbook titled "Character Strengths and Virtues: A Handbook and Classification. Peterson and Seligman provide thorough historical and current research on these issues and lay out a framework that include 6 primary strengths of character: Wisdom, Courage, Humanity, Justice, Temperance, and Transcendence. Great stuff

Links:

• http://www.amazon.com/Character-Strengths-Virtues-Handbook-Classification/d...

posted 8 months ago

I believe you are born with a personality but your character and its strength are build over the years depending on your ethics, integrity and respect you have for others.

posted 8 months ago

There are a couple of quotes that, in my opinion say it best:

Watch your thoughts; they become words.
Watch your words; they become actions.
Watch your actions; they become habits.
Watch your habits; they become character.
Watch your character; it becomes your destiny.
- unknown

If you create an act, you create a habit. If you create a habit, you create a character. If you create a character, you create a destiny.
- André Maurois (1885-1967) French writer.

If you believe those, then character can absolutely be built and strengthened as a person matures. A friend of mine, Matthew Kelly, takes it one step further, asking:
(1) What are you thinking?
(2) What are your habits?

"Our lives change when our habits change." Successful people aren't successful because of freak luck or because God plays favorites. They're successful because they've got better habits. Change your habits, improve your character, change your destiny. He discusses it in his book "Perfectly Yourself". I found his perspective easy to understand and quite helpful. Easy to understand . . . not always easy to put into practice.

posted 8 months ago

Hi Maureen.

Character means a man's nature or identity as is shaped by the moral values he accepts and acts on automaticially - and moral values are the chosen, not the forced, and are the fundamental foundation of his/her existence, not sporadic or specialized, or limited to certain areas - a man's character is his moral essence - his self-made identity as expressed in the principles he lives by.

This means that his/her life is a constant exercise of choice - right or wrong, true or false, good or evil - and he/she must discover those values of charactyer which make his life worthwhile and worth sustaining . . .nothing is automatic . . .or genetic . . .

Thanks!

Sydney

posted 8 months ago

Maureen,

Character is what we do when no one is watching us. It is built by the actions we take when we think no one is watching.

Ken

posted 8 months ago

Know yourself. That's the first step to developing your character. You're born with it but then you either use it or lose it. If you don't keep working on yourself and you slack off, your character will take a beating.

posted 8 months ago

Character is something that is developed from the time you are born until you die. It is influenced by your family, your religion, your environment, your profession, etc...

posted 8 months ago