Big Idea Daily | On Character

Choices That Define a Life

by General (Ret.) Stanley McChrystal

“Our convictions matter because they are the foundation upon which our character rests and they drive our behavior. If matched with the personal discipline to live up to them, our most admirable convictions have extraordinary power to elevate our character and thus our actions.”

GENERAL STANLEY MCCHRYSTAL

BIG IDEA
Character = Convictions x Discipline

FROM THE BOOK

“Character, the appropriate destination of our life’s journey, is not a trait inherited at birth or a gift from a learned mentor.

It does not automatically come from education, position, or experience. Character, instead, is a choice. It is built on convictions, or deeply held beliefs, that we embrace and the discipline we muster to live up to them. Despite its deeply human nature, it is curiously mathematical:

Character = Convictions x Discipline

Meaning, if we lack either substantive convictions or discipline, the resulting product—our character—lacks all value. It is as simple and as thunderously consequential as that.”

Brian's Notes

That’s an incredibly powerful equation.

I repeat: Character = Convictions x Discipline.

First, we must know what we believe. Then, we must have the discipline to live in integrity with those ideals. As General McChrystal puts it on the following page: “This book is divided into three parts, each composed of reflections on various topics in life:

Part 1 | Conviction: What we believe, and how we enforce those beliefs, form the foundation of our character.

Part 2 | Discipline: Our ability to follow through on our stated beliefs provides the sinew to connect our convictions to the character they are meant to uphold.

Part 3 | Character: The essential structure of our lives is what we are willing to tolerate—and what we are not.”

That wisdom reminds me of Nathaniel Branden’s wisdom on the subject. Substitute “character” for “integrity” and you have two brilliant minds saying basically the same thing.

In The Six Pillars of Self-Esteem, Nathaniel tells us: “Integrity is the integration of ideals, convictions, standards, beliefs—and behavior. When our behavior is congruent with our professed values, when ideals and practice match up, we have integrity.

Observe that before the issue of integrity can even be raised we need principles of behavior—moral convictions about what is and is not appropriate—judgments about right and wrong action. If we do not yet hold standards, we are on too low a developmental rung even to be accused of hypocrisy. In such a case, our problems are too severe to be described merely as lack of integrity.”

Here’s something else I think about when I think about General McChrystal’s character math: the “phi” symbol you might have noticed in our new Philosopher’s Notes logo.

Φ <- I’ve been obsessed with the “phi” symbol for many reasons for many years.

First, it’s a beautiful symbol—representing the Golden Ratio, defining aesthetic proportion found in ancient Greek art and architecture. It’s also shorthand for “philosophy.”

But... The primary reason I love it so much and sketch it my journal so often is that it represents the primary points on the virtue compass we created for Heroic.

At the cardinal points of our Heroic compass, we have the cardinal virtues of every ancient wisdom and faith tradition—placing Wisdom in the North, Discipline in the South, Love in the West, and Courage in the East.

Now... When I think of (and/or sketch) our Φ symbol, I see a perfect circle (representing me as my best) with a line through the middle—starting at the top with WISDOM and going straight down to the bottom with DISCIPLINE.

In other words... I see Character or Integrity or Virtue or ARETÉ as Wisdom x Discipline. We must have the WISDOM to know the ultimate game and how to play it well. And... We must have the DISCIPLINE to do what needs to get done whether we feel like it or not. Stated differently: Character = Convictions x Discipline.

All of which leads us back to YOU. How’s YOUR Character? Check in on the two key variables. And optimize each TODAY.

Big Ideas

01: CHARACTER

02: YOUR LIFE, TAKE TWO

03: BEING OBSESSED

04: WHAT IS A HERO?

05: CLOSING THE GAP

“Convictions are the mainsprings of action, the driving force of life. What a man lives are his convictions.”

BISHOP FRANCIS KELLEY, FORMER MILITARY CHAPLAIN

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