From Temperament to Character

By Alexandre Havard

No attempt to practice Virtuous Leadership can succeed without a basic understanding of temperament and character, which, together, constitute human personality. The Virtuous Leadership approach to temperament affirms the legitimate diversity of our physiological and psychological makeup, and proposes that temperament, rightly understood, undergirds the efforts of all persons to flourish and achieve excellence. It recognizes that temperament does not determine goals (much less outcomes), but instead gives shape and color to the efforts of human beings to flourish through mastering the habits of excellence. In doing so, the habits of excellence – the virtues – become second-nature to us, part and parcel of our very selves. And thus, we ascend from temperament to character, and are no longer slaves to our natural inclinations but have achieved self-mastery in true human freedom.

Alexandre Havard is the author of the Virtuous Leadership system and the founder of the Virtuous Leadership Institute (www.hvli.org). He travels worldwide, offering seminars in Virtuous Leadership to senior business executives and university students. His previous books, Virtuous Leadership and Created for Greatness, also with Scepter Publishers, have been translated into 20 languages