Bachelor Grant Ellis Says Any Woman 'Starting Drama' or 'Gossiping' Lacks Wife Potential (Exclusive)

No Bachelor season would be complete without drama, but Grant Ellis tried to manage it as best as he could.

“In a situation like that, where any move you make is really pivotal, I think that me waiting until I had all the evidence and then making a decision was the best move on the chessboard,” Ellis, 31, tells PEOPLE. “Get the facts and don't jump the gun.”   

The day trader, who appeared on Jenn Tran’s season of The Bachelorette, felt like any woman engaging in drama probably didn’t come on the show to find their forever person like he did.

“It's really easy for somebody to tell you what they want, but I think that actions speak louder than words,” Ellis says. “I think that there's a certain maturity level that comes with wanting a family and wanting a long-lasting relationship, so I think that maturity was something that I looked for in these women. And if they're starting drama, or if they're gossiping, or if they're doing certain things, that just indicates a lack of maturity.”

Ellis also notes a couple of other turnoffs.

“For me, a red flag is somebody who's too self-absorbed,” he says. “I like when somebody's compassionate and somebody has a heart for other people because that's the way I am, so I feel like it has to mesh with how I feel. And then hygiene is a big thing for me, too!"

The former basketball pro left Tran’s season before hometowns, so he hopes viewers can “get to know me more” on his season, which kicks off Monday, Jan. 27.

“On Jenn's season I didn't really get to show who I was: my personality, my sense of humor and just the way I am on an everyday basis,” Ellis says. “I think that that'll come across in the season. Hopefully people get to know my story, and hopefully it inspires some people.”

Tran, 27, sent Ellis home after he told her he was falling for her, but he says focusing on work, family and fitness helped him heal. “That's really what I do anytime that I need to heal from something,” the reality star says. “I was in a really good place coming into my season of The Bachelor. I was ready. Really intentional, that's the word I would use. Being intentional and me healing from Jen's season was getting back to normal life.”

However, being the one to hand out the roses came with some challenges, too.

“Any rose ceremony was difficult for me,” Ellis says. “And then as time progresses, you get to know these women better, and they're so great, they put their hearts out there. So that was the hard part, just letting somebody down that their heart was in it. That was really tough for me, but it's something that was a step forward in me finding my person, so that's something that I'm happy about.”