This post may contain affiliate links, which means I’ll receive a commission if you purchase through my links, at no extra cost to you. Please read full disclosure for more information.
Looking for inspiring quotes about character? Here are 41 best character quotes.
Character Quotes – quotes about character
Character Quotes about What Character is
“Character is what you are in the dark.”
Dwight L. Moody
Our character is what we do when we think no one is looking. – H. Jackson Brown, Jr
“Our character is what we do when we think no one is looking.”
H. Jackson Brown, Jr.
Our character is what we do when we think no one is looking. – H. Jackson Brown, Jr
“Character is simply habit long continued.”
Plutarch
Character is simply habit long continued. – Plutarch
Building Character Quotes
“People grow through experience if they meet life honestly and courageously. This is how character is built.”
Eleanor Roosevelt
People grow through experience if they meet life honestly and courageously. This is how character is built. – Eleanor Roosevelt
“Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspired, and success achieved.”
Helen Keller
Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspired, and success achieved. – Helen Keller
“Some are blessed with physical and mental facility, but none are more prized than the one who has developed true character.”
Greg Henry Quinn
Some are blessed with physical and mental facility, but none are more prized than the one who has developed true character. – Greg Henry Quinn
“Good character is not formed in a week or a month. It is created little by little, day by day. Protracted and patient effort is needed to develop good character.”
Heraclitus
“Character builds slowly, but it can be torn down with incredible swiftness.”
Faith Baldwin
Character builds slowly, but it can be torn down with incredible swiftness. – Faith Baldwin
“Character is formed in the stormy billows of the world.”
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Character is formed in the stormy billows of the world. – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
“Parents can only give [their children] good advice or put them on the right path, but the final form of a person’s character lies in their own hands.”
Anne Frank
Parents can only give [their children] good advice or put them on the right path, but the final form of a person’s character lies in their own hands. – Anne Frank
Good Moral Character Quotes
“A man’s character is not judged after he celebrates a victory, but by what he does when his back is against the wall.”
John Cena
“Good moral character is the first essential in a man.”
George Washington
Good moral character is the first essential in a man. — George Washington
“Character, in the long run, is the decisive factor in the life of an individual and of nations alike.”
Theodore Roosevelt
“What a man’s mind can create, man’s character should control.”
Thomas Edison
What a man’s mind can create, man’s character should control. – Thomas Edison
“Intelligence plus character – that is the goal of true education.”
Martin Luther King Jr.
Intelligence plus character – that is the goal of true education. – Martin Luther King Jr
Character in Action Quotes
“Mental toughness is many things and rather difficult to explain. Its qualities are sacrifice and self-denial. Also, most importantly, it is combined with a perfectly disciplined will that refuses to give in. It’s a state of mind – you could call it character in action.”
Vince Lombardi
“Your character defines who you are by the actions you take.”
Catherine Pulsifer
Your character defines who you are by the actions you take. ― Catherine Pulsifer
“It can be said that any one person’s overall character and demeanor is but a reflection of the sum total of his or her thoughts.”
Beau Norton
“Our characters are refined and tried by fire and when we have gone through the furnace, we emerge as pure gold and silver.”
Edward Dunedin
Our characters are refined and tried by fire and when we have gone through the furnace, we emerge as pure gold and silver. – Edward Dunedin
“Courage is the most important of all the virtues because without courage, you can’t practice any other virtue consistently.”
Maya Angelou
Courage is the most important of all the virtues because without courage, you can’t practice any other virtue consistently. – Maya Angelou
Traits of Good Character Quotes
“The measure of a man’s real character is what he would do if he knew he would never be found out.”
Thomas Babington Macaulay
The measure of a man’s real character is what he would do if he knew he would never be found out. – Thomas Babington Macaulay
“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
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
“A person reveals his character by nothing so clearly as the joke he resents.”
Georg Christoph Lichtenberg
“Of all the properties which belong to honorable men, not one is so highly prized as that of character.”
Henry Clay
“In order to persevere, a person often needs other character attributes such as open-mindedness.”
Rohen Phoenix
“Any fool can criticize, condemn and complain – and most fools do. But it takes character and self-control to be understanding and forgiving.”
Dale Carnegie
Any fool can criticize, condemn and complain – and most fools do. But it takes character and self-control to be understanding and forgiving. – Dale Carnegie
“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 Spurgeon
“Generosity of character is important. It builds confidence by reminding you that you are a decent human being, and that you deserve any good things which might come your way.”
John Franz
Reputation and Character Quotes
“Character is like a tree and reputation like a shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing.”
Abraham Lincoln
Character is like a tree and reputation like a shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing. – Abraham Lincoln
“If you pay too much attention to your reputation, you could lose your character.”
Michael Josephson
If you pay too much attention to your reputation, you could lose your character. ― Michael Josephson
“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
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
“Many a man’s reputation would not know his character if they met on the street.”
Elbert Hubbard
Many a man’s reputation would not know his character if they met on the street. — Elbert Hubbard
Character Quotes About Power
“Power really is a test of character. In the hands of a person of integrity, it is of tremendous benefit; in the hands of a tyrant, it causes terrible destruction.”
John C. Maxwell
“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
“Knowledge will give you power, but character earns respect.”
Bruce Lee
Knowledge will give you power, but character earns respect. – Bruce Lee
“We do not need more intellectual power, we need more spiritual power. We do not need more knowledge, we need more character.”
Calvin Coolidge
We do not need more intellectual power, we need more spiritual power. We do not need more knowledge, we need more character. – Calvin Coolidge
Other Inspirational Quotes About Character
“Six essential qualities that are the key to success: Sincerity, personal integrity, humility, courtesy, wisdom, charity.”
Dr. William Menninger
Six essential qualities that are the key to success_ Sincerity, personal integrity, humility, courtesy, wisdom, charity. – Dr. William Menninger
“Never does a man portray his character more vividly than when proclaiming the character of another.”
Winston Churchill
Never does a man portray his character more vividly than when proclaiming the character of another. – Winston Churchill
“You can tell a lot about a fellow’s character by his way of eating jellybeans.”
Ronald Reagan
“When you choose your friends, don’t be short-changed by choosing personality over character.”
W. Somerset Maugham
When you choose your friends, don’t be short-changed by choosing personality over character. ― W. Somerset Maugham
“You are your most important critic and your conscience your most important judge of character.”
Denis Waitley
You are your most important critic and your conscience your most important judge of character. – Denis Waitley
Good character is an essential quality that we should all strive to cultivate.
It may take time and effort, but the end result of having a strong moral compass and integrity is worth it.
These quotes serve as reminders and inspiration for us to continuously work on improving our character and becoming the best versions of ourselves.
Gift Forward by Sharing This Post! <3