Character vs Competency
A few years ago, I stumbled upon a wise truth:
Character is greater than competency.
I learned this the hard way after being let down by people who were highly competent but lacked character. I realized that just because someone can do something does not always mean they should.
If we are not careful, we can even sacrifice our character in order to project competency. We exaggerate on a résumé. We tell half-truths in a meeting. We plaster on a smile as soon as we step out of the car.
We become image-conscious at the expense of our character.
Proverbs 22:1 says:
A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches,
and favor is better than silver or gold.
What does your name represent?
How would your coworkers, family, neighbors, and friends describe you?
This year, Cooper started a new school. The week before his first day, I asked him, “What do you want to be known for at this school?”
He had a chance to think about the kind of reputation he wanted to build with a whole new group of classmates.
He told me he wanted to be known as the best at math. So we started talking about what goes into becoming great at math, what works against that goal, and what really doesn’t matter.
Since then, that conversation has helped us when he gets frustrated about something unrelated. If he comes home upset because a classmate did not play by the rules in P.E., I can simply ask, “Does that really matter if you are trying to be the math whiz?”
When we know who we want to become, it helps us decide what matters along the way.
So, what kind of person do you want to be known as?
How important is character? How important is competency?
Would you rather be exceptional in character and average in competency—or exceptional in competency and average in character?
Proverbs gives us the answer:
A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches,
and favor is better than silver or gold.
Your abilities may open doors, but your character determines what your name will mean when you walk through them.
