The question today from the daily writing prompt is – Are you a good judge of character?

That is a tough one. I’ve certainly made some misjudgments over history. But I’d also add I’ve made better evaluations than bad ones.

Being a good judge of character is very important in life. Picking the right friends, the right people to work for.

Sometimes though you are thrust into situations where others lacking character are either around you or even maybe a boss.

I’ve been in situations where co-workers have lied and I’ve challenged them and won. I’ve had bosses ask me to lie and refused and been taken to task on it, all the way to a VP for refusing to support my bosses boss lie. It really pissed him off, but I refused to do it and was not punished.

I’ve had bosses try to physically intimidate and it hasn’t worked. As a matter of fact, it backfired, on them because he then knew one or more of us would kick his ass. Because he heard us say it out loud and walked away.

Once a boss came in drunk on my night shift and started to physically push me around when I was very young. That didn’t work out too well for him either. That was the closest I’ve come to being that mad and hurting someone seriously. Pressman and editorial folk separated us and took him out of the building. He didn’t even remember it the next morning when he came in. Being an alki has the effect on some. He was also my boss’s boss at that time. Good guy when sober but a mean drunk.

Character isn’t what people just say, it’s a lot of their actions.

Don’t always judge people by their looks to judge character. I rode a motorcycle for a long time. I’ve come across some big burly intimidating looking bikes from time to time. Most of them have been good people.