110+ powerful character quotes that define who we are in good and bad times

Character makes people unique as it is what constitutes their integrity and resilience. Often, people tend to mistake character for behaviour, but the two are different. Character is the underlying moral and ethical principles that guide a person’s action, while behaviour is the observable action of a person. This compilation of character quotes will challenge your beliefs and encourage you to build a strong character.

Key takeaways

• True character is revealed through actions, not just words. It reflects our integrity, values, and how we treat others.
• Through consistent choices, self-discipline, and reflection, anyone can build and strengthen their character over time.
• Strong character earns trust, respect, and long-term success in both personal and professional life.

Positive character quotes

Positive character quotes show the importance of virtues such as integrity, kindness, courage, and honesty. The quotes are a reminder of the power of hope and the strength found in goodness.

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• The measure of a man’s real character is what he would do if he knew he would never be found out. – Thomas B. Macaulay
• It is fortunate to be of high birth, but it is no less to be of such character that people do not care to know whether you are or are not. – Jean de La Bruyere
• Sometimes, it's the words we choose not to say that speak most loudly about our character. – Lysa TerKeurst
• What a person praises is perhaps a surer standard, even than what he condemns, of his own character, information and abilities. – Augustus Hare
• Men of genius are admired, men of wealth are envied, men of power are feared, but only men of character are trusted. – Alfred Adler
• Character, in great and little things, means carrying through what you feel able to do. – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
• Our character is determined by what we do if every restraint were removed. – Lettie Cowman
• When wealth is lost, nothing is lost; when health is lost, something is lost; when character is lost, all is lost. – Billy Graham
• Character is the moral strength to do the right thing, even when it costs more than you want to pay. – Michael Josephson
• A good character is the best tombstone. Those who loved you and were helped by you will remember you when forget-me-nots have withered. Carve your name on hearts, not on marble. – Charles H. Spurgeon
• The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy. – Martin Luther King Jr.
• Goodness is about character – integrity, honesty, kindness, generosity, moral courage, and the like. More than anything else, it is about how we treat other people. – Dennis Prager
• Be more concerned with your character than your reputation because your character is what you really are, while your reputation is merely what others think you are. – John Wooden
• You cannot dream yourself into a character; you must hammer and forge yourself into one. – Henry David Thoreau
• I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the colour of their skin but by the content of their character. – Martin Luther King Jr.
• The best index to a person’s character is how he treats people who can’t do him any good, and how he treats people who can’t fight back. – Abigail van Buren
• Character is one of the greatest motive powers in the world. In its noblest embodiments, it exemplifies human nature in its highest forms, for it exhibits man at his best. – Samuel Smiles
• It can be said that any one person’s overall character and demeanour is but a reflection of the sum total of his or her thoughts. – Beau Norton
• Some are blessed with physical and mental facilities, but none are more prized than the one who has developed true character. – Greg Henry Quinn

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Quotes on character and attitude

A person’s true nature can only be revealed by their character and attitude. The quotes below can inspire a strong character with a positive mindset that leads to greatness and legacy.

• Great work requires great and persistent effort for a long time. Character has to be established through a thousand stumbles. – Swami Vivekananda
• It was character that got us out of bed, commitment that moved us into action and discipline that enabled us to follow through. – Zig Ziglar
• Hard conditions of life are indispensable to bringing out the best in human personality. – Alexis Carrel
• He who conquers others is strong; He who conquers himself is mighty. – Lao Tzu
• Character isn’t something you were born with and can’t change, like your fingerprints. It’s something you weren’t born with and must take responsibility for forming. – Jim Rohn
• We are like chameleons; we take our hue and the colour of our moral character from those who are around us. – John Locke
• Character is determined more by the lack of certain experiences than by those one has had. – Friedrich Nietzsche
• Such as are your habitual thoughts, such also will be the character of your mind, for the soul is dyed by the thoughts. – Marcus Aurelius
• We are not just products of our past; people in our present also influence us and help mould our character. – David Packer
• Good, honest, hard-headed character is a function of the home. If the proper seed is sown there and properly nourished for a few years, it will not be easy for that plant to be uprooted. – George A. Dorsey
• Before we determine character from behaviour, we must consider the context. – Dr. Stephen Lennox
• Never does a man portray his character more vividly than when proclaiming the character of another. – Winston Churchill
• You are your most important critic and your conscience your most important judge of character. – Denis Waitley
• Fame is a vapour, popularity an accident, and riches take wings. Only one thing endures, and that is character. – Horace Greeley
• Everyone has three characters: that which they exhibit, that which they have, and that which they think they have. – Alphonse Karr
• All men are alike in their lower natures; it is in their higher characters that they differ. – John Christian Bovee
• Character is higher than intellect. A great soul will be strong to live as well as think. – Ralph Waldo Emerson
• If a person has built a sound character, it makes but little difference what people say about him because he will win in the end. – Napoleon Hill
• Character is the result of two things: mental attitude and the way we spend our time. – Albert Hubbard
• Life is like a painting. You reflect the image based on your feelings, emotions, character, attitude and how you made it. – Daniel Habil

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Character quotes for students

In students’ personal and academic journeys, character counts. Quotes about character remind students that success is not all about intelligence, but has much to do with values and attitude.

• The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically. Intelligence plus character – that is the goal of true education. – Martin Luther King, Jr.
• A little progress each day adds up to big results. – Satya Nani
• The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing. – Walt Disney
• Unless knowledge is transformed into wisdom and wisdom is expressed in character, education is a wasteful process. – Sai Baba
• Character education helps to create an environment for caring and learning in schools. – Thomas Lickona
• Watch your thoughts; they become words. Watch your words; they become actions. Watch your actions; they become habits. – Laozi
• The four cornerstones of character on which the structure of this nation was built are initiative, imagination, individuality and independence. – Eddie Rickenbacker
• There aren't any great men. There are just great challenges that ordinary men like you and me are forced by circumstances to meet. – William Halsey
• In no direction that we turn do we find ease or comfort. If we are honest and if we have the will to win, we find only danger, hard work and iron resolution. – Wendell Willkie
• Ideals are like the stars: we never reach them, but like the mariners of the sea, we chart our course by them. – Carl Schurz
• What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us. – Ralph Waldo Emerson
• The only way to make sense of change is to plunge into it, move with it, and join the dance. – Alan Watts
• You must learn a new way to think before you can master a new way to be. – Marianne Williamson
• The only person you are destined to become is the person you decide to be. – Ralph Waldo Emerson
• To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment. – Ralph Waldo Emerson
• When we’re growing up, there are all sorts of people telling us what to do, when really what we need is space to work out who to be. – Elliot Page
• Don’t let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do. – John Wooden
• Good things come to people who wait, but better things come to those who go out and get them.
• It’s not about how bad you want it. It’s about how hard you’re willing to work for it.
• Don’t just teach your children to read. Teach them to question what they read. Teach them to question everything. – George Carlin

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Great character quotes by famous people

The making of some of the most successful and famous people is not only by hard work. It goes beyond what they do and includes what they believe is right. The following quotes from famous personalities will motivate you in every sphere of life.

• Character is both formed and revealed by how one deals with everyday situations as well as extraordinary pressures and temptations. Like a well-made tower, character is built stone by stone, decision by decision. – Michael Josephson
• Of all the properties which belong to honourable men, not one is so highly prized as that of character. – Henry Clay
• The habits of feeling, action and judgment that comprise good character depend on personal self-discipline and powerful aspiration to become a good person, all of which must be drawn from within. – Edwin Delattre
• Character contributes to beauty. It fortifies a woman as her youth fades. A mode of conduct, a standard of courage, discipline, fortitude and integrity can do a great deal to make a woman beautiful. – Jacqueline Bisset
• We do not need more intellectual power; we need more spiritual power. We do not need more knowledge; we need more character. – Calvin Coolidge
• Happiness must be cultivated. It is like character. It is not a thing to be safely, let alone for a moment, or it will run to weeds. – Elizabeth Stuart Phelps
• Let us not say every man is the architect of his own fortune, but let us say every man is the architect of his own character. – George D. Boardman
• By constant self-discipline and self-control, you can develop greatness of character. – Grenville Kleiser
• Leadership, to me, means duty, honour, and country. It means character, and it means listening from time to time. – George W. Bush
• Character is the ability to carry out a good resolution long after the excitement of the moment has passed. – Cavett Robert
• It is not by muscle, speed, or physical dexterity that great things are achieved but by reflection, force of character, and judgment. – Marcus Tullius Cicero
• Our language is the reflection of ourselves. A language is an exact reflection of the character and growth of its speakers. – Cesar Chavez
• When you choose your friends, don't be short-changed by choosing personality over character. – W. Somerset Maugham
• Leadership is a potent combination of strategy and character. But if you must be without one, be without the strategy. – Norman Schwarzkopf
• Character may be manifested in the great moments, but it is made in the small ones. – Phillips Brooks
• Any fool can criticise, condemn, and complain, but it takes character and self-control to be understanding and forgiving. – Dale Carnegie
• Character, the willingness to accept responsibility for one's own life - is the source from which self-respect springs. – Joan Didion
• People do not seem to realize that their opinion of the world is also a confession of character. – Ralph Waldo Emerson
• Sow a thought, and you reap an act; Sow an act, and you reap a habit; sow a habit, and you reap a character; Sow a character, and you reap a destiny. – Charles Reade
• Talents are best nurtured in solitude, but character is best formed in the stormy billows of the world. – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

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Character quotes about leadership

The best leaders must show good examples that people can emulate. Therefore, as a leader, you should have a strong character that shows strength in adversity and compassion in decision-making.

• The respect that leadership must have requires that one's ethics be without question. A leader not only stays above the line between right and wrong, he stays well clear of the grey areas. – G. Alan Bernard
• Character is the indelible mark that determines the only true value of all people and all their work. – Orison Sweet Marden
• Successful leadership is not about being tough or soft, sensitive or assertive, but about a set of attributes. First and foremost is character. – Warren Bennis
• The assumption of authority brings out the leader's inner world. – M.A. Soupios
• You can't just be the same character forever. You've got to add some layers, show some personality. – Drew McIntyre
• If you don't demonstrate leadership character, your skills and your results will be discounted, if not dismissed. – Mark Miller
• When we see men of a contrary character, we should turn inwards and examine ourselves. – Confucius
• One who understands much displays a greater simplicity of character than one who understands little. – Alexander Chase
• The influence of individual character extends from generation to generation. – Iain Macleod
• Study carefully the character of the one you recommend, lest his misdeeds bring you shame. – Horace

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Inspirational short character quotes

A simple but powerful character quote can go a long way to inspire to build an admirable character. The short quotes below are a reminder that character is built through actions and not intentions.

• Beauty has a lot to do with character. – Kevyn Aucoin
• Having a happiness that is built into your character helps you to gain confidence. – Steven Spencer
• Take on God’s character of Love and learn to love and forgive ourselves. – Dawna Hetzler
• It’s motive alone which gives character to the actions of men. – Jean De La Bruyere
• Weakness of attitude becomes weakness of character. – Albert Einstein
• Character development is the great, if not the sole, aim of education. – William James O’Shea
• All that we are is the result of what we have thought. – Buddha
• If you have character, you don’t need principles. – Julius Wagner-Jauregg
• Similarity of character is the strongest tie in friendship. – Pliny the Younger
• In matters of style, swim with the current; in matters of principle, stand like a rock. – Thomas Jefferson
• Good character is not a destination but a journey of self-improvement.
• Knowledge will give you power, but character respect. – Bruce Lee
• Not taking things personally is a superpower. – James Clear
• Talent is a gift, but character is a choice. – John C. Maxwell
• Charisma attracts people to your life. Character is what makes them stay. – Dan Go
• Character consists of what you do on the third and fourth tries. – James A. Michener
• Scars fade with time. And the ones that never go away, well, they build character, maturity, caution. – Erin McCarthy
• Ability may get you to the top, but it takes character to keep you there. – John Wooden
• A man of bad character punishes his own soul. – Al-Ghazali
• The public cannot be too curious concerning the characters of public men. – Samuel Adams

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Funny character quotes

Funny character quotes have a humorous way of highlighting personality traits. Even the most admired qualities may be hilarious in the extremes. Here are humorous quotes about character that will make you laugh your head off.

• A person's character is what it is. It's a little like a marriage; only without the option of divorce. You can work on it and try to make it better, but basically, you have to take the bitter with the sweet. – Hendrick Hertzberg
• The funny thing about character is that it can be changed. Just like identity.
• Fate is a funny character. She puts obstacles in your path to see what character you have. Life isn't fair; life is a test. – Melissa Francis
• I choose my friends for their good looks, my acquaintances for their good characters, and my enemies for their intellects.
• Be yourself; everyone else is already taken. – Oscar Wilde
• Character is what you are in the dark and also when the Wi-Fi goes out.
• Hard times build character, but so does a lack of sleep.
• A strong character is built by overcoming challenges or, at least, by complaining creatively about them.
• Wisdom comes from experience. Experience comes from making regrettable decisions.

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Why are quotes about character important?

Quotes about character offer wisdom and inspiration, reminding us of the values that shape integrity, resilience, and personal growth.

How can I use character quotes in everyday life?

You can use them as personal mantras, share them for motivation, include them in speeches, or apply their lessons in decision-making.

Character quotes are constant reminders of the values that mould your behaviour and make you a good person. They encourage people to embrace integrity, kindness, and perseverance in their daily lives.

Legit.ng recently published a list of "You are amazing quotes." Sometimes the challenges of life can make you forget about yourself and make you feel miserable. However, realising your value and potential can greatly improve your self-confidence and remind you of your unique capabilities.

Being an amazing person requires that you feel positive about yourself. Even though others can tell you so, you should embrace it, be aware of your potential, and know how worthy you are. This compilation of quotes will make you realise how amazing you are.

Source: Legit.ng