Appendix 2.
Character—the Sum of Virtues
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Ethics & Character Bibliography Set
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God's Will,
Ethics, Theology, Prayer & Hermeneutics Great Masters of Theology, Ethics, Foreknowledge Free-Will, Foreknowledge, Predestination Theology |
Greek Stuff Bearing on Ethics & Free-Will Challenging Social & Theological Mediocrity Crime, Criminology, Mens Rea, Prison
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Character Set Character
Counts book Character
– Super List - Web Sites Character &
Idealism Bibliography Character
Quotes by Famous Persons |
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Would You Lie to Save a Life? Ethics Book Home Page Heart of Living God Foreknowledge Book Home Page An Empathic Helping Skills Program ~ 1997 Dissertation |
See Home Page for Links Sets,
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This is Appendix 2 and 3 of
Character
Counts—Freemasonry in Christianity and in Our Founding Fathers’ Original Intent
Slays the Anti-Mason Frankenstein.
Appendix
2 – Character, the Sum of Virtues & 30 Lists
Appendix
3 – President Bush Proclamation on Character Counts
Freemasonry is all about
Character Counting, to God and to each other. Freemasonry is less about
Religious Righteousness and more about helping, more about growth than
judgment, more about truth than about finding fault, more about tolerance than
difference, and more about agreement than finding points of disagreement. And
so I add this piece, which was developed for my ethics book, Would You Lie
to Save a Life: the Quest for God’s Will This Side of Heaven: a Theology on the
Ethics of Love.[1]
Today, character can
mean a lot of things, but for the most part it means the total collection of
virtues or vices that make up a person.[2] We intuitively know the difference between the person
with the bad or good character, between the good citizen and the
criminal (even the sane and insane, mature and immature, moral and immoral).
Likewise we know that birds of a feather flock together: people with like character
tend to associate together. And with that, we know that unique personalities
and even unique temperaments are found among those with similar character
where such is a near synonym for reputation.
Character building is
not new, but has a long history. As seen in the bibliography, there was a great
interest before and after WWI, and character building has taken off in the last
twenty years. Character building has been important to every culture we know
anything about. In the U.S., the Josephson Institute of Ethics has led the way,
and its Character Counts programs have been started in many schools across the
country.[3]
In these mostly secular
venues, often mirroring the religious, the meaning of character building
always refers to the building of a good character, and without exception the
building of a good character includes the development of each a
selection of various virtues.
These character building
enterprises and initiatives strengthened and refined the definition of character.
A person who has a strong character has mastered several virtues and good
habits and noble social skills. We shall look at a few of these collections of
virtues after we distinguish between character and temperament.
Outside the religious
worlds, even preceding the secular work on character building, a large amount
of work has been done in psychology on distinguishing temperaments. One the
most popular and well-developed is Isabel Briggs Myers’s Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI). Every
one should take the Myers-Briggs, if even just for fun. There are many, and
these help us understand each other, respect differences, and help us to
communicate with each other. The Myers-Briggs asks several hundred questions,
and places the person in one of four quadrants, with each quadrant having four
sub-groups. There is hardly a person who has taken that survey who has not been
amazed at their own description after the survey results.[4]
Based upon the MBTI,
David Keirsey has brought
this to life in his Please Understand Me II: Temperament, Character,
Intelligence.[5] He has take the classical four dimensions of
character, meshed them with the MBTI, and interpreted them into our
contemporary settings.
char_1. Keirsey’s Four Major Personality Types
|
Rationals: engineers (architects like Albert Einstein and
Marie Curie, and inventors like Walt Disney and Camille Paglia) and
coordinators (masterminds like Dwight Eisenhower and Ayn Rand, and field
marshals like Bill Gates and Margaret Thatcher) |
|
Idealists:
advocates (healers like Albert Schweitzer and Anne Lingbergh, and champions
like Bill Moyers and Molly Brown) and mentors (counselors like Mohandas
Gandhi and Eleanor Roosevelt, and teachers like Mikhael Gorbachev and
Margaret Mead) |
|
Artisans:
entertainers (composers like Johnny Carson and Barbra Streisand, and
performers like Elvis Presley and Elisabeth Taylor), and operators (crafters
like Clint Eastwood and Amelia Earhart, and promoters like Franklin Roosevelt
and Madonna) |
|
Guardians: administrators (inspectors like Harry Truman and
Elizabeth II, and supervisors like Colin Powell and Elizabeth I) and
conservators (protectors like Jimmy Stewart and Mother
Teresa, and providers like George Washington and Martha
Stewart) |
Along with the insightful contributions of the MBTI, Keirsey and others
helped us accept the natural differences between temperament: you could say
Keirsey has helped us understand the application of unconditional Love. Under a
sensitive section in Please Understand Me called “Different Drummers”
Keirsey dramatizes:
If I do not want what
you want, please try not to tell me that my want is wrong.
Or if I believe other
than you, at least pause before you correct my view.
Or if my emotion is
less than yours, or more, given the same circumstances, try not to ask me to
feel more strongly or weakly.
Or yet if I act, or
fail to act, in the manner of your design for action, let me be.
I do not, for the
moment at least, ask you to understand me. That will come only when you are
willing to give up changing me into a copy of you.
I may be your spouse,
your parent, your offspring, your friend, or your colleague. If you will allow
me any of my own wants, or emotions, or beliefs, or actions, then you open
yourself, so that some day these ways of mine might not seem so wrong, and
might finally appear to you as right—for me. To put up with me is the first
step to understanding me. Not that you embrace my ways as right for you, but
that you are no longer irritated or disappointed with me for my seeming
waywardness. And in understanding me you might come to prize my differences
from you, and, far from seeking to change me, preserve and even nurture those
differences.[6]
Hear the courageous
plea for caring empathy resident in these statements. One does not need to
agree with the ethics or actions of the person in order to respect their
differences, and in Christian ethics there is certainly a difference between
ethically neutral temperaments and unethical behavior. Truly, it is a
no-brainer that we find all kinds of temperaments in all levels of morality and
immorality. As true—certainly—Jesus found a way to relate and Love all in a way
that the loved person felt loved, no matter their temperament or morals.
Personality is another
way of looking at temperament (or vice versa). Douglas Jackson developed the
Six-Factor Personality Questionnaire (SFPQ) that measures personality
dimensions with each three-facet scales.
char_2. Jackson’s Six Dimensions of Personality
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Agreeableness—Abasement, Even-Tempered, Good-Natured |
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Extraversion—Affiliation, Dominance, Exhibition |
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Independence—Autonomy, Individualism, Self-Reliance |
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Industriousness—Achievement, Seriousness, Endurance |
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Methodicalness—Cognitive Structure, Deliberateness, Order |
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Openness
to Experience—Change,
Understanding, Breadth of Interest[7] |
The Taylor-Johnson
Temperament Analysis (T-JTA) has
been used widely in marriage counseling. It graphs the person’s temperament
through a series of about 9 continuums, and between each of these 9 continuums
is a normal range for most of the population. Many good Christian counselors,
colleges, and seminaries use the T-JTA. Most persons spike outside of the
normal range in a few of the temperament continuums. This survey is usual done
by both spouses, then each spouse does one survey as they think and see
their spouse: revelations abound between how one spouse views the
other as opposed to how the spouse views his- or herself.[8]
The main difference
between temperament and character revolves around ethics: temperament has
little-to-nothing to do with ethics (unless one is out of control), and
character is all about ethics. Temperament is about our individual and unique
collection of social and mental and emotional traits running the gamut between
carrying our feelings on our shoulder to the more cold-shouldered, from the
introvert to the extrovert, from the painter to the rock-climber. Character is
about growing in a collection of virtues—though unique—yet have common goals in
Love, Truth, justice, sacrifice, and service.
The following indicate
the many ways of categorizing the virtues, and we begin with some biblical
lists.
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1 Corinthians 12 and Roman 12 Combined |
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1. Wisdom |
7. Discerning of Spirits |
13. Administration |
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2. Knowledge |
8. Tongues |
14. Leadership/Ruleth |
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3. Faith |
9. Interpretation Tongues |
15. Exhortation |
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4. Healing |
10. Apostleship |
16. Giving |
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5. Miracles |
11. Teaching |
17. Mercy |
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6. Prophecy |
12. Helping |
18. Love w/out Dissimulation[9] |
char_4. St. Paul’s 20 Virtues
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1. Love |
8. Forgiveness |
15. Hope |
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2. Compassion |
9. Gratitutude |
16. Goodness |
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3. Kindness |
10. Wisdom |
17. Faithfulness |
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4. Humility |
11. Peace |
18. Self-Control |
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5. Gentleness |
12. Righteousness |
19. Purity |
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6. Patience |
13. Joy |
20. Understanding[10] |
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7. Tolerance |
14. Endurance |
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char_5. Jesus’ Beatitudes
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Humility |
Purity of Heart |
Blessed – happy[11] |
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Meekness |
Peacemaking |
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Mercy |
Suffering Persecution |
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char_6. Aquinas’ 7 Heavenly Virtues
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Four
Cardinal Virtues following Plato |
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Wisdom (or prudence: docility, conscientiousness,
impartiality, tact) |
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Courage (or fortitude: triumph in trials, glory in
affliction, moral courage, righteous indignation, industry, thoroughness) |
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Temperance (or self-restraint: purity, humility, patience,
meekness, thrift) |
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Justice (impartiality, devotion, obedience, gratitude to
God) |
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Three
Theological Virtues from St. Paul |
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Faith ~ Hope ~ Love[12] |
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char_7. Freemasonry’s 4 Cardinal Virtues, 3 Tenets,
& 3 Values
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Four
Cardinal Virtues |
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Temperance ~ Fortitude ~
Prudence ~ Justice |
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Three Tenets |
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Brotherly Love ~ Relief ~ Truth |
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Three Values |
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Liberty ~ Equality ~ Fraternity[13] |
char_8. Bennett’s Ten Virtues
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1. Self-Discipline |
6. Courage |
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2. Compassion |
7. Perseverance |
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3. Responsibility |
8. Honesty |
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4. Friendship |
9. Loyalty |
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5. Work |
10. Faith[14] |
char_9. Bill Gothard’s 49 Virtues
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1. Humility 2. Meekness 3. Joyfulness 4. Generosity 5. Love 6. Responsibility 7. Self-Control 8. Truthfulness 9. Deference 10. Creativity 11. Sincerity 12. Faith 13. Thriftiness |
14. Initiative 15. Discernment 16. Discretion 17. Resourcefulness 18. Sensitivity 19. Decisiveness 20. Alertness 21. Compassion 22. Wisdom 23. Boldness 24. Attentiveness 25. Obedience |
26. Honor/Reverence 27. Virtue 28. Determination 29. Tolerance 30. Justice 31. Contentment 32. Forgiveness 33. Loyalty 34. Availability 35. Persuasiveness 36. Patience 37. Hospitality |
38. Gratefulness 39. Enthusiasm 40. Gentleness 41. Punctuality 42. Thoroughness 43. Security 44. Diligence 45. Endurance 46. Dependability 47. Cautiousness 48. Orderliness 49. Flexibility[15] |
char_10. Bill Bright’s 8 Virtues of Love
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1. Joy—Love’s
Strength |
5. Goodness—Love’s Character |
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2. Peace—Love’s Security |
6. Faithfulness—Love’s Confidence |
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3. Patience—Love’s Endurance |
7. Gentleness—Love’s Humility |
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4. Kindness—Love’s Conduct |
8. Self-Control—Love’s Victory[16] |
char_11. U.S. Navy Core Values
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Honor ~
Courage ~ Commitment[17] |
char_12. Farley’s 5-D Model of Heroism & Greatness
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Determinants: traits: 1. Courage & Strength, face
life-threatening or emotional strain; 2. Honesty, Honest Abe; 3. Kindness,
Loving, Generous; 4. Skill, Expertise, Intelligence; 5. Risk-taking; 6.
Objects of Affection, heroes win hearts & mind |
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Depth: timeless, mythical, almost otherworldly; even
diminutive seem larger than life |
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Domain: where a hero makes his or her mark, and politics
rank 1st for most heroes, (though usually need to die first), 2nd is
entertainment, 3rd is family members, 4th religious figures, rest coming from
military, science, sports, and the arts |
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Database: where we get our information: main sources are
television, radio, magazines; conspicuous by its absence is history class |
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Distance: how close we are to our heroes; for most mom &
dad are the heroes[18] |
char_13. New Zealand’s 8 Cornerstone Values
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1. Honest & Trustworthy |
5. Obedience |
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2. Kindness |
6. Responsibility |
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3. Consideration
& Concern for others |
7. Respect |
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4. Compassion |
8. Duty[19] |
char_14. Erikson’s 8 Stages of Life
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1. Trust—birth to 1 |
5. Identity—puberty to 18 |
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2. Autonomy—1 to 3 |
6. Intimacy—18 to 25 |
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3. Initiative—3 to
6 |
7. Generativity—25 to 50 |
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4. Competence—6 to puberty |
8. Ego Integrity—50 to death[20] |
char_15. Maslow’s 16 Points of Self-Actualization
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1. Accurate
perception of reality 2. Acceptance
of oneself 3. Spontaneity 4. Problem
centered 5. Need for privacy 6. Autonomous 7. Freshness of appreciation 8. Peak experiences 9. Human
kinship |
10. Humility
& respect for others 11. Deep
interpersonal relationships with a select few people 12. Strong
but not necessarily conventional ethical standards 13. Focuses on ends rather than means 14. Nonhostile sense of humor 15. Creative 16. Resistance to enculturation[21] |
char_16. Peterson & Seligman’s 6 Character Strengths &
24 Virtues
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1. Wisdom
& Knowledge—strengths to
acquire and use knowledge Creativity: Originality, Ingenuity Curiosity: Interest, Novelty-seeking, Openness to Experience Open-mindedness: Judgment, Critical Thinking: examining all sides,
not jumping Love
of Learning: ability to master new
skills Perspective: Wisdom:
ability to look at world in ways that make sense |
|
2. Courage—strengths of will to meet goals in opposition,
external or internal Bravery:
Valor: not shrinking from threat, challenge, difficulty, or pain; speaking up
for what is right even in opposition; acting on convictions Persistence: Perseverance,
Industriousness: finish what one starts even in obstacles Integrity:
Authenticity, Honesty: speaking the truth—but more, with genuineness and
ability to be sincere; responsible for one’s own feelings and actions Vitality:
Zest, Enthusiasm, Vigor, Energy: approaching life with excitement, not
halfway; living life as an adventure; feeling alive |
|
3. Humanity—interpersonal strengths involve tending &
befriending others Love: valuing close relations, especially those
reciprocated; being close to people Kindness: Generosity, Nurturance, Care, Compassion,
Altruistic Love, Niceness Social Intelligence: Emotional Intelligence, Personal Intelligence: aware
of motives, feelings of others and self; knowing how to fit in and what makes
others tick |
|
4. Justice—civic strengths that underlie healthy community
life Citizenship: Social Responsibility, Loyalty, Teamwork Fairness: treat all the same with justice, not letting
feelings bias, fair chance Leadership:
encouraging group keeping good relations |
|
5. Temperance—strengths that protect against excess Forgiveness
& Mercy Humility
& Modesty: not seeking
spotlight, no more important than others Prudence: careful with choices, not taking undue risks Self-regulation: Self-control: disciplined, controlling appetites & emotions |
|
6. Transcendence—strengths connect to larger world & provide
meaning Appreciation
of Beauty & Excellence: Awe,
Wonder, Elevation Gratitude Hope: Optimism, Future-mindedness, Future Orientation:
expecting best & working Humor: Playfulness: liking to laugh, bring smiles, seeing
light side Spirituality: Religiousness, Faith, Purpose: having coherent
world beliefs; having beliefs on meaning of life that shape conduct and
provide comfort[22] |
char_17. Leo Buscaglia’s 10 Most Essential Words
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1. Right
Knowledge,
to supply you with the tools necessary
for your voyage. |
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2. Wisdom,
to assure you that you are using
the accumulated knowledge of the past in a manner that will best serve the
discovery of your presence, your “now.” |
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3. Compassion,
to help you accept others whose
ways may be different from yours, with gentleness & understanding, as you
move with, through, or around them on your own way. |
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4. Harmony,
to be able to accept the natural
flow of life. |
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5. Creativity,
to help you realize new
alternatives & unchartered paths along the way. |
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6. Strength,
to stand up against fear and move
forward in spite of uncertainty, without guarantee or payment. |
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7. Peace,
to keep you centered. |
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8. Joy,
to keep you songful, and laughing
and dancing all along the way. |
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9. Love,
to be your continual guide towards
the highest level of consciousness. |
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10. Unity,
which brings us back to where we
started—the place where we are at one with ourselves and with all things. |
|
“To
live in Love is to live in life…. To me, life is God’s gift to you. They you
live your life is your gift to God. Make it a fantastic one.”[23] |
char_18. Plato’s and Aristotle’s List of Virtues
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Plato’s List from the Republic
(427-347 BC) |
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Wisdom |
Self-Restraint or Temperance |
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Courage |
Justice |
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Aristotle
Added to Plato these in his Nicomachean Ethics (384-322 BC) |
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Generosity |
Truthfulness |
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Wit |
Magnificence |
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Friendliness |
Greatness of soul[24] |
char_19. Norman’s Big Five Tradition
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Neuroticism—Worried, Nervous, Emotional |
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Extroversion—Sociable, Fun-Loving, Active |
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Openness—Imaginative, Creative, Artistic |
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Agreeableness—Good-natured, Softhearted, Sympathetic |
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Conscientiousness—Reliable, Hardworking, Punctual[25] |
char_20. Mark Rutland’s 9 Traits Needed to Succeed
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Courage—character in crisis |
Honesty—character and truth |
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Loyalty—character in community |
Meekness—character and power |
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Diligence—character in action |
Reverence—character and the sacred |
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Modesty—character as simplicity |
Gratitude—character in celebration[26] |
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Frugality—character and prosperity |
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char_21. Character Education Network’s 9 Character
Virtues
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Responsibility—being accountable in word and deed. Having a sense
of duty to fulfill tasks with reliability, dependability and commitment. |
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Perseverance—pursuing worthy objectives with determination and
patience while exhibiting fortitude when confronted with failure. |
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Caring—showing understanding of others by treating them
with kindness, compassion, generosity and a forgiving spirit. |
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Self-discipline—demonstrating hard work controlling your emotions,
words, actions, impulses and desires. Giving your best in all situations. |
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Citizenship—being law abiding and involved in service to school,
community and country. |
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Honesty—telling the truth, admitting wrongdoing. Being
trustworthy & acting with integrity. |
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Courage—doing the right thing in face of difficulty,
following conscience instead of crowd. |
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Fairness—practicing justice, equity and equality.
Cooperating with one another. Recognizing the uniqueness and value of each
individual within our diverse society. |
|
Respect—show high regard for authority, other people, self
& country. Treating others as you would want to be treated. Understanding
that all people have value as human beings.[27] |
char_22. Character Counts’ 6 Pillars for Ethical
Decisions
|
Trustworthiness: Be honest • Be reliable — do what you say you’ll do
• Have the courage to do the right thing • Be loyal — stand by your family,
friends and country |
|
Respect: Treat others with respect; follow the Golden Rule •
Be tolerant of differences • Use good manners, not bad language • Be
considerate of the feelings of others • Don’t threaten, hit or hurt anyone •
Deal peacefully with anger, insults and disagreements |
|
Responsibility: Do what you are supposed to do • Persevere: keep on
trying! • Always do your best • Use self-control • Be self-disciplined •
Think before you act — consider the consequences • Be accountable for your
choices |
|
Fairness: Play by the rules • Take turns and share • Be
open-minded; listen to others |
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Caring: Be kind, compassionate, show you care, gratitude •
Forgive others • Help needy |
|
Citizenship:
Cooperate, Get in community affairs
• Stay informed; vote • Be a good neighbor • Obey laws and rules • Respect authority
• Protect the environment[28] |
char_23. Ben Franklin’s 13 Virtues
|
1. Temperance: Eat not to dullness; drink not to elevation. |
|
2. Silence: Speak not but what may benefit others or yourself;
avoid trifling conversation. |
|
3. Order: Let all your things have their places; let each
part of your business have its time. |
|
4. Resolution: Resolve to perform what you ought; perform without
fail what you resolve. |
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5. Frugality: Make no expense but to do good to others or
yourself; i.e., waste nothing. |
|
6. Industry: Lose no time; be employed in something useful; cut
off unnecessary actions. |
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7. Sincerity: Use no hurtful deceit; think innocently and justly. |
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8. Justice: Wrong none by doing injuries, or omitting the
benefits that are your duty. |
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9. Moderation: Avoid extremes; forbear resenting injuries so much
as you think they deserve. |
|
10. Cleanliness: Tolerate no uncleanliness in body, cloths, or
habitation. |
|
11. Tranquility: Be not disturbed at trifles, or at accidents common
or unavoidable. |
|
12. Chastity: Rarely use venery but for health or offspring,
never to dullness, weakness, or the injury of your own or another’s peace or
reputation. |
|
13. Humility: Imitate Jesus and Socrates.[29] |
char_24. Boy Scouts of America 12 Character Traits
|
Trustworthy: tells the truth, keeps promises, honesty; can depend
on him. |
|
Loyal: true to his family, Scout leaders, friends, school,
and nation. |
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Helpful: is concerned about people & does things
willingly for others without pay or reward. |
|
Friendly: is a friend to all and a brother to other Scouts,
seeks to understand others, and respects those with ideas and customs other
than his own. |
|
Courteous: is polite to everyone regardless of age or position
and knows good manners. |
|
Kind: understands there is strength in being gentle,
treats others as he wants to be treated, and does not hurt or kill harmless
things without reason. |
|
Obedient: follows the rules of his family, school, and troop,
obeys the laws of his community and country; if he thinks these rules are
unfair, he tries to have them changed in an orderly manner rather than
disobey them. |
|
Cheerful: looks for the bright side of things and cheerfully
does tasks that come his way; he tries to make others happy. |
|
Thrifty: works to pay his way and to help others, saves for
unforeseen needs, protects and conserves natural resources, and carefully
uses time and property. |
|
Brave: can face danger even if he is afraid, has the
courage to stand for what he thinks is right even if others laugh at or
threaten him. |
|
Clean: keeps his body and mind fit and clean, goes around
with those who believe in living by these same ideals, and helps keep his
home and community clean. |
|
Reverent: is reverent to God, faithful in religious duties,
& respects beliefs of others.[30] |
char_25. Character Building.com 12 Virtues
|
Contentment |
Respect |
Dependability |
|
Attentiveness |
Kindness |
Self-Control |
|
Truthfulness |
Patience |
Perseverance |
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Thankfulness |
Obedience |
Goodness[31] |
char_26. Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly Effective People
|
1. Be Proactive is the endowment of self-knowledge or self-awareness
an ability to choose your response (response-ability). |
|
2. Begin With the End In Mind is the endowment of imagination and
conscience. |
|
3. Put First Things First is the endowment of willpower. |
|
4. Think Win-Win is the endowment of an abundance mentality. |
|
5. Seek First to Understand, Then to Be Understood is the endowment of courage
balanced with consideration. |
|
6. Synergize is the endowment of creativity |
|
7. Sharpen the Saw the endowment of continuous improvement to overcome
entropy.[32] |
There are no limits to the ways one looks as virtues and personality
and the general ability to communicate. As the following indicates, sometimes
we must stress our English language to look at the purpose itself of the
communication or the personal abilities in order draw up some meaningful
characteristics for those special abilities. Two more areas of huge
significance to our personal lives come into play (to toss a pun) in the areas
of match-making and general leadership. All of the above will be great, but when
I am searching for a spouse—oh my!—there are characteristics that defy all of
the above and that extremely important and uniquely important. See e-harmony’s
info below.
char_27. E-Harmony Match-Making’s 29 Dimensions
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Character
& Constitution |
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Good Character |
Dominance vs.
Submissiveness |
Curiosity |
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Industry |
Vitality & Security |
Intellect |
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Appearance |
Sexual Passion |
Artistic Passion |
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Adaptability |
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|
|
Personality |
||
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Obstreperousness |
Sense of Humor |
Sociability |
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Energy |
Ambition |
|
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Emotional
Makeup & Skills |
||
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Emotional Health |
Quality of Self
Conception |
Anger Management |
|
Mood Management |
Communication |
Conflict Resolution |
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Kindness |
Autonomy vs. Closeness |
|
|
Family
Values |
||
|
Family Background |
Feelings about Children |
Education |
|
Spirituality |
Traditionalism |
Values Orientation[33] |
Neil Clark Warren developed and wrote a very popular work, Finding
the Love of Your Life, and since then it has blossomed into a full-fledged
match-making service broadcast nationally as www.eharmony.com.[34] The above are only a portion of one section of survey’s
inventory to help with match-making; clearly, there are elements of “character”
here we would desire or want to know about in a mate but that as clearly do not
fit into any of the traditional categories. One starts the survey by answering
over 500 questions designed to profile the 29 dimensions that scientific
research has shown are crucial to long-term success in relationships. The
resulting profile and matching claims to eliminate 99.7% of the people who are
not right for you. At the start, you grade yourself on each of 87 different
points of self-acceptance.[35] E-harmony’s extensive personality inventory is
certainly a key to its and Warren’s success, and this is probably the most
successful match-making service to date.
char_28. Kounzes & Posner’s 10 Leader
Commitments
|
5 Leadership
Practices in 10 Leader Commitments |
|
Challenging
the Process |
|
1. Search for Opportunities: Confronting & Changing the Status Quo |
|
2. Experiment
and Take Risks: Learning from
Mistakes & Success |
|
Inspiring
a Shared Vision |
|
3. Envision the Future: Imagining Ideal Scenarios |
|
4. Enlist
Others: Attracting People to Common
Purposes |
|
Enabling
Others to Act |
|
5. Foster Collaboration: Getting People to Work Together |
|
6. Strengthen
Others: Sharing Power &
Information |
|
Modeling
the Way |
|
7. Set the Example: Leading by Doing |
|
8. Plan
Small Wins: Building Commitment to
Action |
|
Encouraging
the Heart |
|
9. Recognize Individual
Contribution: Linking Rewards with
Performance |
|
10. Celebrate
Accomplishments: Valuing the
Victories[36] |
Kounzes and Posner’s contribution here seem to be as significant to
leadership study as Peterson and Seligman’s character study ought to become. I
had taken the Covey leadership program and read several of his pithy books.
Then when in another leadership colloquium I was tossed The Leadership
Challenge, we have to had it to these men for articulating and illustrating
these wonderful characteristics.
char_29. Kounzes & Posner’s Top Virtues Chosen
|
|
a–b |
|
a–b |
|
a–b |
|
Honest |
87–83 |
Intelligent |
38–43 |
Mature |
14–23 |
|
Forward-looking |
71–62 |
Straightforward |
34–34 |
Determined |
13–20 |
|
Inspiring |
68–58 |
Courageous |
33–27 |
Ambitious |
10–21 |
|
Competent |
58–67 |
Dependable |
32–32 |
Loyal |
10–11 |
|
Fair-minded |
49–40 |
Cooperative |
30–25 |
Self-Controlled |
5–13 |
|
Supportive |
46–32 |
Imaginative |
28–34 |
Independent |
5–10 |
|
Broad-minded |
41–37 |
Caring |
27–26 |
|
|
|
Credibility—the single most important[37] |
|||||
One can scarcely
imagine the stress on a subordinate in having to rank such a list above:
imagine your own admired leaders and then rank the virtues. For those we like
and admire, it is very difficult to choose honest over mature, or
supportive over loyal. Between the 1993 and 1987 respondents (a
and b), over 15,000 agreed by a large margin on the top four. See
how those four dovetail so well with the 24 lists above.
A good character is a
universal ethical value, and truly “leadership is a relationship.”[38] In many ways, our character is what other people see
and feel of our heart and soul. From www.GoRu.com—for Golden Rule—we read:
Good character is more to
be praised than outstanding talent. Most talents are, to some extent, a gift.
Good character, by contrast is not given to us. We have to build it piece by
piece—by thought, choice, courage and determination.
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.
Oh, so true, “Do
unto others as you would have them do to you”—as wise a saying as has every
been given, a truly Golden Rule. The person truly living that has then
mastered many of the virtues in the lists above.
There are many
character-building initiatives and no end in sight.[39] Anne Dotson and Karen Wisont have developed a
teaching curriculum to help school teachers teach character, utilizing 36
character traits.[40] Tony Salerno has written an extraordinary little
children’s book that all of us could learn from: The ABC's of Character is
a treasury of 26 character traits from Attentiveness to Zeal, from Boldness to
Yielding, from Contentment to eXemplary.[41]
Before we leave the
description of character, let us look at perhaps the most substantive
nuts and bolts of character education. Tom Lickona, Eric Schaps, and Catherine Lewis’s Character Education Partnership’s (CEP) Eleven Principles of Effective Character
Education have been instituted as standards and guidelines in many
institutions. See char_30 below.
char_30. CEP’s 11 Principles of Effective Character
Education
|
1. Promotes
core ethical values as the basis of good character. |
|
2. Defines
“character” to include thinking, feeling, and behavior. |
|
3. Uses
a comprehensive, intentional, proactive, and effective approach. |
|
4. Creates
a caring school community. |
|
5. Provides
students with opportunities for moral action. |
|
6. Meaningful
and challenging academic curriculum that respects all learners. |
|
7. Strives
to foster students’ self motivation. |
|
8. Engages
the school staff as a learning and moral community that shares responsibility
for character education and attempts to adhere to the same core values. |
|
9. Fosters
shared moral leadership and long-range support. |
|
10. Engages
families and community members as partners. |
|
11. Evaluates
the character of the school, the staff’s functioning, and the extent to which
students manifest good character.[42] |
Character education continues across the country. An extraordinary web
site at CollegeValues.com lists 80+ colleges with character programs.[43] The Catholic Encyclopedia has an excellent history of
character.[44] On October 20, 2002, President George W. Bush declared
October 19 through October 25, See the following link for the top 200 web sites
on character and other sites of note on the internet:
http://www.preciousheart.net/Main_Archives/Links_Folder/SUPER_List_Character.htm
Character has been
important in every culture of significance in human history.
