How do you know if a person has good character? Look for when they do something opposite to what would have been their normal bias based on ethnicity, their bias in where they lived, culture etc and instead based on wisdom The ability to stand outside themselves Il give a few examples -A jewish man who is pro Israel but against whats happening in Palestine -A person who trained to win a race but stops to help a fellow athlete who is suffering from body breakdown -Someone who accumulates wealth but then spends it on deliberate philanthropy without fuss without status Good character means ability to act outside of pure self interest and act in a manner that if replicated would solve societies issues Hence the idea - Be the change you seek In opposite if knowing where they grew up, what their religion is, what their ethnicity is you can basically just draw up a general image and they act in that manner - even if they are nice - that doesnt mean they have good character - they just have not been tested Whether you realise it or not the way people try to raise kids is to try keep good character by avoiding being tested ie location/schools/etc which I can understand but it needs balance Hence for kids id recommend they do activities that test character - ie tennis where they need to learn to lose well, when an opponent hits a shot that hits the line that they acknowledge it rather than cheat to call it out etc