What I Learned About Character From 35 Years in Corporate America

Character is revealed when pressure is applied.

“We know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out His Love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.” Romans 5:3-5 

After 35+ years in Corporate America, perseverance was something I began to understand as I worked many hours at very challenging times, especially when we went through several reorganizations that entailed layoffs. With increasing leadership responsibilities, I learned how important character was in motivating and supporting people especially in the hard times. I also learned my biggest lessons from the mistakes I made and how I experienced treatment from my boss. By observing how I felt from my bosses, the good ones and the ones that I always didn’t see eye to eye with, contributed to how I would manage people. Character is not something you can learn from a class or a video. It may influence you, but character is something that is built over time. I learned that character is revealed when pressure is applied.

When you Google how to build character an entry by David Horsager, CEO and best-selling author of The Trust Edge, lists 5 ways to build character:

Be Humble.

Humility is the beginning of wisdom. In order to build your character, you must be open to new ways.

Live out your principles and values.

Whether it’s “love others,” or “do the right thing,” living by your principles will make decisions easier and your character more steadfast.

Be intentional.

Integrity does not happen by accident. We are all products of our thoughts and habits. Be intentional about filling your mind with good thoughts. Create a habit of this that internalizes principles and breeds high character.

Practice self-discipline.

Being of high character takes the ability to do what is right over what is easy.

Be accountable.

Surround yourself with people who have high expectations. Be responsible for yourself first. Lose the pride. Open yourself up to accountability. Let others push you to high character.

To read more about building character by David Horsager please click here: https://davidhorsager.com/five-ways-to-build-your-character/

What I would add to this

Sharing the Light. 

Always give credit where it is due and not for yourself. Make your fellow co-workers and people reporting to you feel valued. Their ideas and contributions matter.

I memorized the Romans 5 verses a long time ago.

“We know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out His Love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.” Romans 5:3-5

It reminds me of a saying my mother used to tell me when I was going through something very challenging. She’d make me a cup of tea in her one Staffordshire China cup and say, “It adds metal to the alloy, dear.” I always wanted to respond, “But I have enough metal.”

These verses feel like our progression of life. We all go through trials that sometimes last longer than we would want and sometimes of our own making. Yet, these trials build our abilities to cope, which builds our character that leads to hope.

The very young Anne Frank wrote amazing thoughts. She shared, “The final forming of a person’s character lies within their own hands.” Anne Frank.

What have you learned about character? What would you add to David Horsager’s list?

I hope the Romans 5 verse give you comfort and patience.

May it be so.