The law of the harvest is to reap more than you sow. Sow an act, and you reap a habit; sow a habit, and you reap a character; sow a character, and you reap a destiny.
—George Boardman the Younger (1828–1903) American Clergyman, Author
The history of mankind is his character.
—Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749–1832) German Poet
A character is like an acrostic or Alexandrian stanza; read it forward, backward, or across, it still spells the same thing.
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–82) American Philosopher
It is fortunate to come of distinguished ancestry.—It is not less so to be such that people do not care to inquire whether you are of high descent or not.
—Jean de La Bruyere (1645–96) French Satiric Moralist, Author
A man’s character is the reality of himself.—His reputation is the opinion others have formed of him.—Character is in him;—reputation is from other people—that is the substance, this is the shadow.
—Henry Ward Beecher (1813–87) American Clergyman, Writer
Telling the truth … is not solely a matter of moral character; it is also a matter of correct appreciation of real situations and of serious reflection upon them.
—Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906–45) German Lutheran Pastor, Theologian
Your reputation is in the hands of others. That’s what a reputation is. You can’t control that. The only thing you can control is your character.
—Wayne Dyer (1940–2015) American Self-Help Author
You will never do anything in this world without courage. It is the greatest quality of the mind next to honor.
—James Lane Allen (1849–1925) American Novelist, Short Story Writer
No man was ever great by imitation.
—Samuel Johnson (1709–84) British Essayist
The more you know the less you show.Character is power.
—Booker T. Washington (1856–1915) African-American Educationist
A rich man has no need of character.
—Hebrew Proverb
We live in deeds, not years:
In thoughts, not breaths;
In feelings, not in figures on a dial.
We should count time by heart-throbs. He most lives
Who thinks most, feels the noblest, acts the best.
—Philip James Bailey (1816–1902) English Poet
Leadership is a potent combination of strategy and character. But if you must be without one, be without the strategy.
—H. Norman Schwarzkopf (1934–2012) United States Army General
The lord will not hold back the promises, even if the person who makes them is not worthy.
—Indian Proverb
When wealth is lost, nothing is lost; when health is lost, something is lost; when character is lost, all is lost.
—German Proverb
What others say of me matters little, what I myself say and do matters much.
—Elbert Hubbard (1856–1915) American Writer, Publisher, Artist, Philosopher
It is well for the world that in most of us, by the age of thirty, the character has set like plaster, and will never soften again.
—William James (1842–1910) American Philosopher, Psychologist, Physician
Character is victory organized.
—Napoleon I (1769–1821) Emperor of France
The character that needs law to mend it, is hardly worth the tinkering.
—Douglas William Jerrold (1803–57) English Writer, Dramatist, Wit
A good character is the only guarantee of everlasting, carefree happiness.
—Seneca the Younger (Lucius Annaeus Seneca) (c.4 BCE–65 CE) Roman Stoic Philosopher, Statesman, Tragedian
It is better to deserve honors and not have them than to have them and not deserve them.
—Mark Twain (1835–1910) American Humorist
What you see and hear depends a good deal on where you are standing; it also depends on what sort of person you are.
—C. S. Lewis (1898–1963) Irish-British Academic, Author, Literary Scholar
The higher character a person supports the more they should regard their smallest actions.
—Indian Proverb
Honesty is the best policy.
—Common Proverb
Such as are thy habitual thoughts, such also will be the character of thy soul-for the soul is dyed by the thoughts. Dye it then, with a continuous series of such thoughts as these-that where a man can live, there if he will, he can also live well.
—Marcus Aurelius (121–180) Emperor of Rome, Stoic Philosopher
They attack the one man with their hate and their shower of weapons. But he is like some rock which stretches into the vast sea and which, exposed to the fury of the winds and beaten against by the waves, endures all the violence.
—Virgil (70–19 BCE) Roman Poet
Character develops itself in the stream of life.
—Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749–1832) German Poet
If one sticks too rigidly to one’s principles, one would hardly see anybody.
—Agatha Christie (1890–1976) British Novelist, Short-Story Writer, Playwright
A character standard is far more important than ever a gold standard. The success of all economic systems is still dependent upon both righteous leaders and righteous people. In the last analysis, our national future depends upon our national character-that is, whether it is spiritually or materially minded.
—Roger Babson (1875–1967) American Economist
Truly, reading all of this link is a wise move. For your convenience, however, a few choice tidbits. Have more than thou showest, speak less than thou knowest.
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616) British Playwright
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