Honesty
“I am honest to myself and to others, I try to present myself and my reactions accurately to each person, and I take responsibility for my actions.”
Become Aware Of Your Strength
What is Honesty?
When you are honest, you speak the truth. More broadly, you present yourself in an authentic and sincere way, without pretense, and taking responsibility for your feelings and actions. You are a person of integrity — you are who you say you are — and you act consistently across the domains of your life rather than being one way in the community and a completely different way in your family. As a result, you believe you are being consistently true to yourself.
This character trait involves accurately representing your internal states, intentions, and commitments, both publicly and privately. The strength of honesty is often linked to self-concordance- the extent to which your goals accurately represent your implicit interests and values. Honesty allows people to take responsibility for their feelings and behaviors, owning them, and reaping benefits by doing so.
Honesty also supports moral decision-making and aligns closely with other personality traits like kindness, fairness, and integrity. It helps individuals live with intention, lead with clarity, and respond to situations with consistent values.
Honesty is a strength within the virtue category of courage, one of six virtues that subcategorize the 24 character strengths. Courage describes strengths that help you exercise your will and face adversity. The other strengths in Courage are bravery, honesty, perseverance, and zest.
Explore and Apply Your Strength
Where does honesty appear in your character strengths profile?
Research findings on the benefits of the strength of honesty found that honest people are typically viewed as trustworthy, which contributes to healthy, positive relationships. Honesty is also linked to improved accuracy of your goals, reflecting your true values and interests. Learn how to activate this strength and all of your other strengths with your personalized Total 24 Report.
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Can honesty be developed if it’s not one of my top strengths?
Yes. Like all of the 24 character strengths, honesty can be intentionally practiced and strengthened. You can build it by reflecting on your values, aligning your actions with your words, and being more mindful in situations that require transparency and integrity. If honesty doesn’t appear in your signature strengths, your personality report can still offer insights into how it supports or complements your top strengths—and how to activate it more intentionally in daily life.
- What makes honesty a character strength?
Honesty is considered a character strength because it reflects a consistent alignment between internal values and external behavior. It involves telling the truth, owning your actions, and staying true to your word, both privately and publicly. This trait supports moral reasoning, improves emotional awareness, and strengthens how individuals lead, work, and relate to others.