Benjamin Franklin and the Better Man
Whatever we say about Benjamin Franklin, it will never be enough. Inventor, visionary, scientist, publisher, United States Ambassador in France and Sweden, one of the writers of the Declaration of Independence, one of the Founding Fathers of the USA.
His contribution to the development of society and democracy is enormous. But before he achieved and gave so much, he devoted himself to something else - his own personal development.
The Love of Books
From a young age, Franklin loved to read books. This love gave him invaluable ideas and helped him develop as a person. But like all of us, he had his weaknesses. Over time, Benjamin's desire to get rid of his bad habits grew. But how to do it?
It was through reading that he studied the philosophies of many religions and found that they all preached very similar messages. After a boring sermon, Ben Franklin got inspired and made himself a list of the thirteen most important virtues he wished to possess. And he started working on himself.
Habits
The system he created is both simple and ingenious. Benjamin knew from the beginning that he would be very distracted and ineffective if he tried to work on all the qualities at once. Therefore, he arranged the virtues in order of importance, so that each one could help him in learning the next one.
Franklin then recorded the habits on separate pages in a special notebook. And right here lies the key to his success. He graphed each page into seven columns, which symbolized the days of the week, and crossed them with thirteen lines, one for each desired quality. His goal was to focus on one habit each week, and to note in the table the mistakes he made for all the virtues, during the corresponding day.
This format helped Benjamin focus his energy on one quality, while regularly monitoring all others. The beginning was difficult, but over time he improved his results and gradually managed to achieve almost all his goals.
Inspiration
Ben Franklin's example is inspiring and at the same time it challenges us to ask ourselves several questions:
What do I want to achieve?
What are my weaknesses that prevent me from achieving my goal?
What new habits do I need to develop in order to be a better person?
The honest answers to these questions can be a guide in the pursuit of our goal. They will also carry us through the stormy seas of change to new and better versions of ourselves.
If Benjamin Franklin was able to create new habits over 200 years ago, so can we today by using his method. And as he once said, "Be at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let every New Year find you a better man!"