Step 6: List of Character Weaknesses

This list is to act as a Step Help/Guide when inventorying your character weaknesses in Step 6.

As a cautionary note:  If your first thought is of someone else when you read any of the below weaknesses, that in itself is a character weakness (see: Inventory Taking).

• Abrasiveness, hostility, belligerence, being generally bad-humored.
• Ambition – An earnest desire for some type of achievement or distinction, as power, honor, fame, or wealth.  Seeking these things rather than to be a worker among workers, or to be as useful as possible to God and my fellow human beings.
• Anger, hatred, aggression, being argumentative.
• Antagonism – Acting in hostility or opposition.
• Anxiety – Not as a clinical diagnosis, but as a general way of viewing things with an eye toward what is wrong, what might be wrong, what has been wrong or what is going to be wrong. Excessive worry, especially about things that cannot be changed.
• Apathy, indifference – Not caring about others, selfish behavior.
• Arrogance, conceit- Offensive display of superiority or self-importance; overbearing pride.  An excessively favorable opinion of one’s own ability, importance, wit, etc.
• Closed mindedness – Contempt prior to investigation. Disregarding things and ideas just because they are new and unknown. Being unwilling to try things or follow suggestions. Failing to remain teachable.  Having a mind firmly unreceptive to new ideas or arguments.
• Controlling attitude toward people, places and things; self will – Trying to control others by manipulation, bribery, punishment, withholding things or tricking them into acting as we wish, even when we believe it is in their best interest to do so. Failing to be equal partners with others and to consider their knowledge and opinions.
• Dependency, over dependency, co-dependency – Relying on others to provide for us what we ought to provide for ourselves. Feeling we must be in a relationship, or must hold on to others who want to move on. Letting others control us to an extreme due to our fear of being alone, abandoned, or independent.
• Depression, pessimism, complaining – Not as a clinical condition, but as a way to generally see the dark side of things.
• Dishonesty – Sins of omission and commission. Telling lies, hiding things, telling half truths or pretending something is so that isn’t. Withholding important information. Adding untrue details to stories and situations.  Telling lies about another person.  Hurting someone’s reputation.  Stealing, cheating, taking things that aren’t ours and that we aren’t entitled to.
• Fear – an emotion that halts progression and is one of Satan’s most powerful tools.
• Gluttony, greed – Wanting and taking too much: food, sex, time, money, comfort, leisure, material possessions, attention, security.  Acquiring things (material things, relationships, attention) at the expense of others.  Feeling entitled to (like I have done something to deserve) things like money, time off, privileges, material things, praise, inclusion, benefits.
• Gossiping – Speaking or writing about others in a negative manner, especially to get them in trouble or to feel superior to them and bond with someone else against the target of the gossip.  During these times it is good to take pause and question what trait in that person you see in yourself that is causing you to want to lash out at them.
• Guilt, self pity, whining (pride in reverse) – Spending too much time thinking about how bad you are, how you screwed up, whining about how your life sucks.
• Humility, lack of – Feeling better than and worse than others, and being self centered.
• Impatience – Being frustrated by waiting, wanting often to be some time in the future, wanting something to change or improve rather than accepting it as it is.
• Intolerance – Not accepting people or things for whom or what they are.
• Inventory taking, being judgmental, criticizing – Noticing and listing, out loud or to ourselves, the faults of others.
• Jealousy and envy – Wanting what others have, feeling we don’t have enough or deserve more, wishing we had what others do instead of them. This applies to material possessions like houses, cars, money and such. It also applies to nonmaterial things like relationships, a nice family, children, parents, friends and partners, and fulfilling work relationships. We can envy others their looks and physical appearance; their talents and physical abilities or attributes such as thinness, tallness, sports ability or musical talent.
• Laziness, procrastination, sloth – Not doing as much as is reasonable for us to do. Putting things off repeatedly. Not carrying our own load as much as we are able. Letting others provide things for us that we ought to get for ourselves.
• People-pleasing, being a “yes” person – Being false by saying yes when we actually mean no, and feeling resentful about it.  Trying to trick others into liking us by saying what I think they want to hear, rather than what is true.
• Perfectionism, compulsiveness, being a workaholic – Expecting or demanding too much from yourself or others. Treating things that aren’t perfect as not good enough. Not recognizing a good try or progress.  Concentrating too much on what is wrong.
• Prejudice – Pre-judging people based on a group they belong to. Negative feelings about someone based on their religion, race, nationality, age, disability, sexual orientation, accent, politics, economic status, physical characteristics like height, weight, hair style, clothing style, physical fitness, age.
• Pride – a high or inordinate opinion of one’s own dignity, importance, merit, or superiority, whether as cherished in the mind or as displayed in bearing, conduct, etc.
• Rationalization, minimizing and justifying, self-justification – Saying and/or believing you had good motives for bad behavior.  Saying that you did bad things for good reasons, or that what you did really wasn’t that bad.
• Resentment – The feeling of displeasure or indignation at some act, remark, person, etc., regarded as causing injury or insult.
• Rigidity, shyness, aloofness and fear of change – Being closed down and not open for change or progression.
• Sarcasm, cruelty, meanness – defense mechanism which gives permission to judge others but not look at yourself.
• Sex: misuse of  – promiscuity, pornography, masturbation, using people, adultery, inappropriate conversations, excessive and inappropriate use of chat rooms and webcams, reading sexual related material.
• Self-centeredness, selfishness, self-seeking, attention-seeking – Spending excessive time thinking about yourself. Considering yourself first in situations instead of others. Not having enough regard for others or thinking about how circumstances hurt or help others. Thinking about what you can get out of      situations and people, i.e. ‘what’s in it for me?’ Spending too much time considering your appearance, acquiring things for myself, pampering myself, indulging myself.
• Undependability – Not keeping your word, being late, not being where you should be, not doing what is yours to do, letting others down, not doing my part.