Window or Mirror?

“Lose no time; be always employed in something useful; cut off all unnecessary actions.”

(one of three definitions)
1. Diligent hard work (formal or literary)

In the ordinary business of life, industry can do anything which genius can do, and very many things that it cannot.- Henry Ward Beecher

If you have genius, industry will improve it; if you have none, industry will supply its place.- Sir Joshua Reynolds

A man who gives his children habits of industry provides for them better than by giving them a fortune.- Richard Whatley

Franklin’s words are direct, and sound to the untrained as a recipe for certain burnout and boredom. Mr. Franklin, while very industrious, did not disdain to share his belief that relaxation and “fun” were necessary. “Something useful” does not mean boring. Family life, play with children, walking with your spouse, these are all “useful.” The concept of industry adds to the approach of frugality by suggesting that we should always be employed with something that will teach or benefit us. (What does this virtue mean to television?) Read the rest of this entry »

“Make no expense but to do good to others or to yourself; waste nothing.”

(three of several definitions)
1. Characterized by thriftiness and avoidance of waste
2. Involving very little expense
3. A sparing, controlled, or efficient use of something

Economy does not consist in saving the coal, but in using the time while it burns. - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Mere parsimony is not economy… Expense, and great expense, may be an essential part in true economy… Economy is a distributive virtue, and consists, not in saving, but in selection. - Thomas Nixon Carver

Economy is the art of making the most of life. The love of economy is the root of all virtue. - George Bernard Shaw.

I envy Franklin’s mastery of the language as he is able to say – in a short sentence – that which I cannot explain even in a paragraph. The statement made here clearly outlines the concept that every outlay should be non-trivial. Read the rest of this entry »

“Resolve to perform what you ought; perform without fail what you resolve.”

(two of thirteen definitions)
1. A firm decision to do something
2. Firmness of mind or purpose

Irresolution on the schemes of life which offer themselves to our choice, and inconstancy in pursuing them, are the greatest causes of all our unhappiness. - Joseph Addison

No one would have crossed the ocean if he could have gotten off the ship in a storm. - Charles Kettering

When nothing seems to help, I go and look at a stonecutter hammering away at this rock, perhaps a hundred times without as much as a crack showing in it. Yet, at the hundred and first blow it will split in two, and I know it was not the last blow that did it, but all that had gone before. - Jacob A. Riis

It is trivial to say that success comes from perseverance because it is so obvious. Franklin’s text shows an added depth however, as he implies that each of us should work at finding out what it is that we should be doing, as well as doing it without fail. This concept brings together the best of Order, Resolution, and Integrity. Read the rest of this entry »

“Let all your things have their places; let each part of your business have its place.”

many definitions removed – over twenty exist)
1. An organized state, with elements arranged properly, neatly, or harmoniously
2. The way in which several items are arranged, as an indication of when each will be dealt with
3. The arrangement of society into groups or classes and the relationships between them Read the rest of this entry »

“Speak not but what may benefit others or yourself; avoid trifling conversation.”

1. The absence or lack of noise
2. A refusal, failure, or inability to speak
3. An absence of notice or acknowledgment of something

• A man who lives right, and is right, has more power in his silence than another has by his words. - Phillips Brooks
• One nice thing about silence is that it cannot be repeated. - Gary Cooper
• It is difficult to keep quiet if you have nothing to do. - Arthur Schopenhauer

In his admonishment, Mr. Franklin seems to concentrate on the “value content” of the words spoken and on the time that can be wasted by idle talk. These are good points, but they are certainly not all the benefits of silence. The refusal to speak when another is probing for gossip, and the avoidance of complaining are two further benefits gained from this virtue. Read the rest of this entry »