Good Character More Important Than Achievements

It must be a great feeling to be a world champion at age 18. Gukesh Dommaraju, the chess phenom from India, has certainly been getting plenty of adulation — and deservedly so — since he defeated China’s Ding Liren to become the youngest undisputed classical chess world champion.

Gukesh received felicitations from all over the world, including one from the Chinese Chess Association: “Congratulations Gukesh! You’re on top of the world. It’s all downhill from here.”

Gukesh’s parents are undoubtedly proud of his many achievements in chess, but I was pleased to hear Gukesh say, during a chess federation interview, that his mother had once told him this: “I will be happy to know that you are a great chess player but I would be happier to hear that you are a greater person.”

This is similar to how I feel about my three children. They could become presidents or governors, Nobel Prize-winning scientists or Oscar-winning actors, but it would mean little to me if they lacked the good character to pay their father’s bills.

No, I just want them to possess the basic character traits that define a good person. What are these traits? Well, here are just five that are worth striving for:

Humility: I admire celebrities and other high-achievers who are truly humble, especially when they don’t complain about being left out of Time magazine’s “50 Most Humble People in the World.” Many people can’t resist bragging about their achievements and often do it through a humble brag. “I wish I knew how to speak Hindi,” they say, “but so far I’ve learned only Spanish, French, German, Mandarin and Swahili.” Being humble means that you remember where you came from — your humble beginnings — and you recognize that you didn’t achieve success merely through hard work and merit. Luck and opportunity also played a role, as did teachers, mentors and counselors, not to mention fathers who are too humble to take credit.

Kindness: This is an extremely important trait. Some people enjoy being unkind. They practice random acts of unkindness. Many others are kind only to their own kind. If you’re from their community, you receive kindness; if you’re not, you’re kind of out of luck. But there should be no “on/off” switch for kindness. If you are a truly kind person, you show kindness indiscriminately. You never treat any human like an animal, but you sometimes treat animals like humans.

Compassion: This is related to kindness, but goes even deeper. It means showing sympathy for those who are suffering from misfortune. After Russia invaded Ukraine, many Polish people showed compassion for Ukrainian refugees, giving them food, shelter and love. The great basketball player Michael Jordan showed compassion for his opponents. He didn’t just dunk on them. He also gave them a friendly butt slap and said, “Don’t give up. You’ll win a championship one day — as soon as I retire.”

Maurice Ashley interviews Gukesh for FIDE Chess.

Respect: It is important to respect your elders, but it’s also important to respect everyone, not just those whom society deems to be of high status. Anyone can show respect to the basketball star, but people of good character also show respect to the person cleaning the arena. We convey our respect through our words and our actions, showing others that we value them, regardless of whether they’re sweeping the floor or the Detroit Pistons.

Integrity: This means following moral and ethical principles. Being honest and truthful are part of this. When people of integrity lose an election, they don't automatically question or try to overturn the results. In sporting events, people of integrity do not cheat. They don’t take performance-enhancing drugs. They resist the temptation to take shortcuts, even if it’s the only way to reach the finish line before the Kenyans. It’s better to finish in last place with zero medals than in first place with zero morals.