In every single one of my characters, in both the unpublished and published writings, I find that I tend to put a little something of myself into them. More often than not, it's the negative things. My reasoning is that in every story, there's a happy ending for the good guy. And if the good guy has had something awful happen to them or has any negative qualities, they can still succeed. They can still get their happy endings. And that is what gives me hope. 
In every main character I create, I create him/her to remind me what hope is and that is why I write. To give hope.