Why Character Is Important

Character. I think this is a trait that is most forgotten about, but one of the most important. Strong character is hard to achieve because it entails a constant effort. In our day and age, it seems like everything you could ever dream of can be achieved or acquired with a snap of your fingers. You can order anything online and sometimes get it within hours. The internet gives us immediate access to almost anything we could imagine. We can learn all types of subjects, look up funny memes, and stay connected with distant family members and friends. I'm not saying these are bad things, but I think it has led us to a place were we think most, if not all, things can be ours whenever we want them. This is not so. Sometimes the best things in life are only achieved through struggle and hard decisions, but in the end you will enjoy those things even more because of what you had to do to achieve it.

This is similar to character, although there is more to it than that. Character is who you are, what you want to be. Merriam-Webster dictionary defines character as, "the complex of mental and ethical traits marking and often individualizing a person". Every decision you make effects your character, positively or negatively. That is what is hardest about character. You will always be changing and have to be aware of what that change is. Maybe you are asking yourself, why should I even care?

It's not up to me to answer that for you. I can help to lead you in the direction, but it must be your choice to care. I will say that character might not get everyone to like you, might not get you the grades you want, or other things you are trying to achieve. Character is how you want to define yourself. Character is making sure the small decisions are treated with care and thoughtfulness. Having this attitude toward the small decisions helps to create a more automatic reflex to make the right decision even if it is a hard decision.

The aspect of character that is most foreign to us is that all of our decisions and actions affect it. We can isolate many things in life and justify this or that, but at the end of the day the decisions you have made will impact you. We like to think that we can define ourselves as anything we want to, but we are defined by what we do. So how do you want to be defined?

by Hannah Fouks