Character Flaws – Your Subtle Imperfections

Human beings are born with both good and bad qualities that make them unique. None of us are perfect, as we are by default full of deficiencies and limitations. These fallible traits are known as character flaws. Each one of us has imperfect attributes to look into. These weaknesses and shortcomings make us the way we are, though these foible qualities are considered negative traits by the so-called perfect society we live in.

The concept of a perfect person is intriguing, as notable flaws; more or less are present in all. Flaws and strengths both make the way we appear to others in the outside world.

What is a Character flaw?

SUMMARY
Simply speaking character flaw is a problem, limitation, or an imperfection that is innate to your personality dynamics.

Character flaws are considered as a negative quality that can affect you and all others living and interacting with you. To define, character flaws are those disagreeable and undesirable factors that are socially unfit and tainted.

Simply, the degree of effect on others will depend on the type of character flaw that you might possess. Our everyday interactions with others bring out many character flaws that we possess. A simple example of being a ‘chatter-box’; that means too talkative. This is a minor character flaw because it is irritating, annoying, and unpleasant for others.

Character flaws are considered as subtle imperfections or a downside of your personality. Your imperfections can become your greatest foe; especially in relationships and professional aspects. As these flaws are undesirable traits, it may affect your life and living in detrimental ways.

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Personality flaws

SUMMARY
Personality flaws are core weaknesses that can affect your particular ways of thinking, feeling, and behaving. Personality flaws are a type of character deficiencies or qualitative imperfections that gets manifested or portrayed to the outside world.

Personality flaws are caused both by genetic factors and environmental factors. Both character weakness and personality flaws consider the finer deficiencies that affect behavior. Flaws and ethical failings are not that uncommon. It is an important part of your personality makeup because it makes the kind of person you are. Without these, you will face little conflicts and disagreements, success, and growth that are essential elements towards self-improvement.

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Examples of personality flaws

Personality flaws can greatly affect your attitudes, behavior, and actions. When your ethical code of conduct gets flawed and imperfect and makes you unfit for social recognition, you may face several problems in adjustment and adaptation with others around you. Let’s see a few examples of personality traits that got flawed and affected your mental well being and social competency.

1. Arrogance – this can make you rigid and inflexible. You never admit mistakes and never like to be proved wrong.
2. Obsession with looks – if you are overly concerned about how you look and prefer to be admired.
3. Too much inclined towards material possessions – acquiring expensive materials more than what is needed.
4. Workaholics – too busy with professional endeavors and hardly gets time to spend with family and friends.
5. Hypocrisy – you hardly practice what you preach to others.
6. Break promises – for you, promises are meant to be broken.
7. Jokes and criticizes others – considering one as highly intellectual and belittle others as inferior.
8. Gullible – Always ready to trust, believe, and follow others without adequate understanding of the situation.
9. Always late for events – poor time management skills and can let others feel down by being delayed in public gatherings.
10. Jealous and controlling– cannot accept the goodness in others. Overly controlling on partners and even children.
11. Poor professional ethics – inadequate workplace etiquette that makes you unpopular.
12. Suspicious – always skeptical and mistrustful of others often without a reason or proof.
13. Less forgiving of others – refuses to forgive others even for very minor mistakes.
14. Complaining- excessive complaints made even for minor mistakes and inconveniences.
15. Disrespectful and abusive – do not show enough regard for others. More prone towards judging and criticizing others.
16. Rude and angry – displays rude behavior towards service providers and makes others feel inferior.
17. Excessive talking – too much talking may annoy and irritate others.
18. Frequent lying– prone to tell lies to meet the vested interest of one by hurting others.
19. Quick to criticism – always criticizes others but never likes to be judged.
20. Always pretend to be perfect – ‘I am the best’ attitude and feels that they can never go wrong.
21. Lack of generosity and compassion – socially unkind, tight-fisted despite being financially well fit.
22. Passive aggressive – picks up people to criticize and abuses them verbally; mostly who appear weak and vulnerable.
23. Lack of morality – poor ethics and righteousness.
24. Resentful and hold grudges – always annoyed and shows displeasure; never happy with anything around.
25. Pride – consider oneself to be the best in all respects.

Types of character flaws

Your types of flaws are nothing but some shortcomings that can create problems in your social life. It can hinder your process of self improvement and finding a purpose in life. The character imperfections can be broadly classified into four types of flaws 

1. Minor flaws
2. Major flaws
3. Emotional flaws 
4. Social flaws

Minor character flaws

Minor flaws are the negligible faults, imperfections, weakness or undesirable features that a person might have. It has minimal impact on your life and living. The minor flaws are simple traits or behavior patterns that usually do not affect adaptation and adjustment with others around you. Some typical examples of minor flaws are:

1. Being silly, foolish, or childish at times.
2. Lacks good decision making skills
3. Gossiping and talking about people behind their backs.
4. Lazy and unwillingness to do things.
5. Pride and having a high opinion about oneself.
6. Self-centered and overindulgent on ones’ ideas and aspirations.
7. Preoccupation about the physical features of oneself.
8. Physical flaws such as terrible hygiene sense, poor eyesight, shabby, and unkempt looks.
9. Short-tempered and behavioral irritation.
10. Unfriendly and secretive about oneself.

Major character flaws

A major character flaw is a noticeable weakness or inadequacy that affects the individual mentally and ethically. These are important aspects that can restrict self growth. Others shall easily notice these flaws and you can be judged and criticized in an endless number of ways. Few examples of major character flaws are:

1. Addiction – engaging in compulsive acts of drinking, gambling addiction, smoking, sex, and serial killer.
2. Audacious – disobedience and reckless in nature.
3. Being cruel and unkind to others.
4. Dishonest, cheats others, crooked and deceptive by nature.
5. Envy – being jealous towards the achievements of others. Cannot see others grow and evolve. Envy can result from extreme resentments and discontent.
6. Greedy – this may manifest through desiring for more food, money, wealth, and success.
7. Lust for power and sex – manifested through overwhelming sexual desires often by denying social ethics.
8. Aggressive and revengeful by nature.

Emotional flaws

Emotions are an integral part of your character and personality dynamics. Thus, imperfections related to controlling and balancing emotional responses in daily life can be considered as a type of character flaw. Few examples can be:

1. Extreme neediness – strong desire to be with others and depend on them, emotional dependency. This flaw can bring lack of much needed space in the relationship; the relationship feels suffocated, clingy, and imbalanced.
2. Narcissism – too much of self focus that leads to arrogant and abusive behavior. Lack of compassion and empathy is seen.
3. Shyness – when a person appears passive and sensitive, emotionally weak and vulnerable to get pain from others.
4. Controlling and dominating – tries to take charge of every situation. There is an excessive need to control others.
5. Aggressive – from control and domination comes anger and abuse being done to others. This is a major character flaw that is easily noticeable and considered unacceptable in society.
6. Overemotional – lack of emotional control, extremely sensitive, and cannot handle emotional pressures.
7. Anxious – mental uneasiness, irrational fears, worries that affects the mental health of the person.
8. Intolerance – unwilling to tolerate and accept changes easily, narrow-minded and cherishes the opinions held by one.

Social flaws

Social flaws are a type of flaw that can blemish your social ties, relationships in the personal and professional arena. These flaws make you imperfect and socially unfit. Some examples of such flaws are:

1. Sarcasm – this is a character flaw that appears quite commonly in social settings. It includes belittling others, making comments to insult others. Sarcasm makes you arrogant, bitter, and hostile.
2. Inflexible – not open to things, close-minded and rigid in terms of thinking and decision making.
3. Impatience – lack of patience shown in public situations. It can lead to hasty decision making.
4. Lack of empathy – being unaware and remaining aloof towards the needs and problems of others. If you lack empathy, you may lose your popularity and worth. Empathy helps others connect with you easily.
5. Haughty – pride of self, disdainful, and arrogant with others. Sometimes, it is a fatal flaw that can bring failure and downfall in life.

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Good character flaws

Not all character flaws are equally bad and unacceptable. There are a few imperfections that are liked, and appreciated by others as well. Good flaws are not harmful for others around you. Though at times, it may appear annoying but is not dangerous or harmful in any way. Some good character flaws list is:

1. Pokes nose in other people’s matter without any bad intention; may be out of habit or fun.
2. Tactless in nature. It means to have a lack of direction and wit needed to share criticisms and judgements.
3. Shows social etiquette and takes out credit cards to buy drinks, dinner for family and friends.
4. Indulges in unhealthy eating practices and lifestyle choices.
5. Having a bad sense of direction.
6. You may try to become ‘perfect’ and expect the same from all.
7. Tries hard to quit bad habits like smoking but fails a lot due to lack of commitment.
8. Social anxiety and fear of embarrassment.
9. You go out of your way all the time to help others, often at the cost of your abilities. 
10. Poor decision skills displayed even for petty things in life.

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100 examples of character flaws

The character flaw list will help you understand the various imperfections that you would love to change for personal growth and self improvement.

General list of character flaws

1. Absent minded – inattentive and easily forgets things.
2. Abusive – treats others with insult and hostility.
3. Aimless – lack of proper life purpose.
4. Arrogant – snob and aggressive
5. Audacious – reckless and shows lack of obedience
6. Bad tempered – to easily get annoyed and irritable.
7. Bigmouth – a person who does a lot of gossip.
8. Bigot – intolerant of people having different religion, race, language, culture etc.
9. Callous – not careful, cold
10. Cruel – unkind
11. Dependent – unable to take care and sustain for one’s needs.
12. Disloyal – unfaithful
13. Dubious – undecided, doubtful
14. Envious – jealous
15. Fickle – erratic
16. Greedy – intense desire to possess wealth and power.
17. Impatient – reckless and cannot tolerate delay.
18. Impish – naughty and annoys others to derive a joy out of it.
19. Indecisive – poor decision maker
20. Jealous – envious and resentful
21. Liar – tells false truths
22. Manipulative – scheming and calculative
23. Meek – no courage, submissive and compliant always.
24. Naïve – no realistic experience
25. Obsessive – remains compulsively preoccupied with something or someone
26. Overly Emotional – sensitive and emotional even with minor issues.
27. Overprotective – gives too much protection to loved ones
28. Peevish – ill tempered
29. Perfectionist – always expects the highest standards from everything, doesn’t settle for less.
30. Phobic – irrational fears that distort thinking.
31. Prejudiced – an unjust behavior done towards others based on preconceived ideas and opinions that may not be true.
32. Pride – conscious of one’s honor and dignity to the extent of hurting others.
33. Rebellious – disobedient
34. Reckless – careless
35. Remorseless – ruthless, cruel, and non-understanding.
36. Rigorous – extremely meticulous and thoughtful to the point of being perfect.
37. Sadist – pleasure derived by giving pain and punishment to others
38. Sarcastic – mocking and making fun of others; scornful
39. Seducer – someone who exploits others sexually.
40. Self loathing – hatred for oneself
41. Selfish – excessively concerned with oneself.
42. Senile – feeble and unsteady.
43. Shallow – lack of intellect or in depth knowledge.
44. Skeptic – pessimist
45. Spiteful – vengeful
46. Spoiled – a destroyed or ruined nature of oneself
47. Stubborn – obstinate and headstrong
48. Superstitious – possess irrational beliefs
49. Tactless – inconsiderate 
50. Temperamental – moody and emotional
51. Tongue-tied – shyness, always remain confused while speaking.
52. Troublemaker – creates trouble for others.
53. Unpredictable – difficult to understand the person’s next move.
54. Untrustworthy – not worthy of belief.
55. Vain – having a high opinion of oneself.
56. Violent – aggressive
57. Weak-willed – a person who easily gets influenced by others

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Examples of character flaws that affects self esteem

58. Arrogance – conceited, haughty, and immodest.
59. Avoiding confrontation – withdrawn and avoids conflict with others, though they may be angry underneath.
60. Blaming oneself – makes a judgment about oneself for minor mistakes.
61. Close mindedness – not open to new ideas and learning
62. Co-dependence – excessive emotional and psychological dependence on a partner.
63. Defensiveness – safeguarding and protecting oneself from harm.
64. Failing to take action – only speaks but never develops an action plan to achieve goals.
65. Irresponsibility – not enough responsibility.
66. Overly apologetic – apologizes too often
67. Overly critical – blaming self and others and making judgments too often.
68. Preoccupation with physical appearance – too concerned about “how I look?”
69. Self-pity – a person who loves to dwell in sorrows and misfortunes and aims to get sympathy from others.
70. Too much pride – insensitive and thinks one to be the best.

Examples of character flaws affecting your daily living

71. Defiant – non-compliant and resists the opinions of others.
72. Excessively competitive – too competitive, usually an unhealthy one.
73. Immoral thinking – unwise and corrupt in thoughts and actions.
74. Impulsive purchaser – one who buys under the impulse and not for need satisfaction.
75. Lying and cheating – dishonest in speech and action.
76. Messy – unorganized
77. Not respecting others’ opinions – too haughty to listen to others.
78. Playing favorites – giving preferential treatment to someone you like, more than others.
79. Quick-tempered – easily gets angry and irritable.
80. Refusing help to others – non-friendly, not helpful.
81. Sneaky – sly and cunning
82. Undependable – you are not the one to be trusted with important things.
83. Undisciplined – mannerless
84. Ungrateful – lack of gratitude
85. Wimp – weak, coward, and timid.

Examples of character flaws that affects life and living

86. Evasive –someone who avoids responsibility and commitment
87. Extravagant – spendthrift
88. Fanatical – dogmatic and sectarian
89. Flaky – unreliable and fickle-minded
90. Forgetful – easily forgets things to be done
91. Fussy – complaining and hard to be happy and satisfied
92. Grumpy – short-tempered and in a bad mood
93. Inhibited –  too reserved and self-conscious
94. Insecure – self-doubting and unsure
95. Morbid – horrible and unpleasant 
96. Nagging – complaining and fault finding
97. Rowdy – unruly and wild
98. Sleazy – corrupt and immoral
99. Stingy – miser and lack of generosity
100. Uncouth – lack of good manners, polish, and grace

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Character flaws that impact career and profession

Character flaws are defects that have piled up and made you the way you think, feel, behave, and act now. You have not done anything to remove it and it slowly started affecting your career, relationships, goal accomplishment and overall mental well being. You have allowed these shortcomings to cause distress and undue tension in your life.

Few of the flawed character traits that can impact your career and professional life are:

Narcissism

Narcissists cannot make a good team player because they are less adaptive to changing circumstances. They are self absorbed and selfish by nature. Co-workers consider them non-approachable as they demonstrate pride and excessive self love.

Dishonesty

Issues like lying, trying to cover mistakes, blaming others for the mistakes done are few character flaws that can affect professional life. These actions are detrimental for personal growth and success.

Apathy

A no care attitude for everything can end your career growth forever. This includes laziness, disinterest, no eye for detail, trust issues with others etc.

Pessimism

If you see only the negative side of everything, you can never grow in your career pathway.

Envy

Being jealous and envious means you continuously strive to belittle and begrudge others. You get bitter and resentful. This makes your progress difficult. You end up being unpopular amongst teammates and co-workers.

Arrogance

You are rude, diplomatic, and boastful. It is a kind of personal insecurity that can make you unpopular at the workplace.

Inflexible

You are not eager to change with time and circumstances. This rigid attitude makes you arrogant and you fail to embrace new ideas and technological progress. If you do so, you may become an obsolete employee with a lack of trendy skills.

Combativeness

You have a tendency to pick up unnecessary verbal fights with others. This takes away your peace of mind. You are not gracious and courteous and as such your teammates do not like you.

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Character flaws that hampers relationships

No matter how good, lovable, and trustworthy your partner is, they will have character flaws that you cannot deny. Everybody has their own set of flaws and shortcomings that may affect relationships and adaptation to changing situations in life. Few character flaws of this type are:

Unsocial

Your partner may not deal well in crowds or social gatherings. Either they remain too quiet or talk too much that embarrasses you.

Poor handling of money

Your partner may be a spendthrift or compulsive buyer or they can be a true miser; often thinks endless times to shell out a penny from their pockets.

Moody and emotional

If they become moody, it can stay with them the whole day. Emotional partners are difficult to deal with since they are inflexible and do change their feelings for the better. They have fixed ideas that hardly change.

Affectionless

Your partner does not show enough love and affection. There are no hugs and kisses, no cuddling and no compliments. It may weigh you down in the long run.

Impatient

Your partner is irritable and annoying with slight delays. Being impatient, they cannot handle anger and frustration well.

Disorganized

Poor organization skills can make your partner move with a last minute rush. Lazy partners do it quite often. They are indecisive and forgetful too. This is detrimental for smooth running of long term relationships.

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Ways to overcome character weaknesses 

Every one of us have flawed character traits that need to be recognized on time and overcome as far as possible. Feel free to accept them as they are. The flaws serve us to move towards personal growth and self improvement. It is desirable to remove your fallibilities, correct them and find a way to turn them into strengths. Pushing your boundaries a little further can help you overcome the imperfections.

Identify and accept your undesirable qualities

You can make a list of those negative qualities that lead to a character flaw that you would love to change. In doing so, you will develop self awareness of your subtle faults. Not only have you learned to identify the problems but you have also developed a strategy to solve your problems. Just accept things easily and make changes, whenever needed. For example: if you struggle to adjust with friends and colleagues, you might be having weak communication skills.

Ask for feedback from others

While you are working on removing the character flaws, ask for feedback and suggestions from others. It can be a friend, a family member, a colleague. You should never be defensive, rather seek honest feedback from them to work on weak areas and improve you.

Use your strengths to overcome a weakness

Instead of focusing on weak areas, it is better to highlight your strengths. You should develop your positive character traits. This will build your confidence.  Others can see the brighter side of you and ignore your character deficiencies.

Develop a plan of action

Your flaws can be rectified only if you wish to. You can make an action plan and set small goals for yourself. For example: if your public speaking skills are not good, practice it in front of a mirror, or you can watch others speak in similar situations. This helps to analyze your weak areas in a better way and improve them.

Count your success

Self blaming and self pity tendencies will lower your confidence. So start counting your little achievements and feel great about it. Even if you are not at par with the desired goal; at least be happy that you tried to change things. This gives you a positive mindset and helps you overcome the weakness.

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Parting words from ‘TheMindFool’

There is no rule book that can decide whether you are ‘good enough’ or not. The character flaws are a part of you. Thus, never be ashamed of those, maybe it’s not that bad always. Your flaws have helped you become the person you are today. It helped you shape your personality and made you a worthy being. So, never mind, some brighter and few darker shades of ‘self’ will be with you forever; whether you like it or not.