Character is the ability to carry out a good resolution long after the excitement of the moment has passed.

Cavett Robert (1908-1997) American orator, lawyer

“A Ticket to Anywhere,” speech (1969)

Variants:

• "Character is the ability to carry out a good resolution long after the mood in which it was made has left you."
• "Character is the ability to carry out a good resolution long after the emotion of the moment has passed."

Described in California Farmer, Volume 230 (1969)