Benjamin Franklin
1706–1790
Printer, inventor, diplomat, and relentless self-improver. Famous for experiments with electricity and for treating character as a daily craft.
Story so far
- 1706personal
Born in Boston
- 1722work
Silence Dogood letters
- 1726work
Returns to Philadelphia
- 1731work
Library Company founded
- 1732work
Poor Richard's Almanack
- 1751work
Academy and College of Philadelphia
- 1753work
Deputy postmaster-general
- 1766highlight
Stamp Act repeal
- 1776highlight
Declaration of Independence
- 1778highlight
Franco-American alliance
- 1787highlight
Constitutional Convention
- 1790legacy
Death and legacy
Life chapters will appear here once the autobiography track is generated.
Posts
Decision fatigue
A crowded mind is a poor workshop. Write the loops down. Close what you can. Schedule what you cannot. Mental clutter is just unfinished decisions wearing boots indoors.
Early to begin
Lost time is never found again. You do not need a perfect morning routine. You need a first honest action before the day negotiates you into softness.
Electricity — curiosity with care
The sky stores charge. A key, a kite, a storm — and a lesson about invisible force. Curiosity should be brave and careful. Nature does not grade on intention.
Thirteen virtues — one at a time
I tracked virtues in a little book — not to become a statue of goodness, but to practice one trait at a time. Improvement loves focus. Scatter your reforms and none take root.
Morning ledger
If the day has no question, it will accept any distraction. Ask: what good shall I do today? Then let the answer boss the calendar.