While it is true that John Adams is my favorite revolutionary figure by far, I do have a great deal of respect for Benjamin Franklin (although he and Adams did not always get along…). I have a lovely little book of a selection of quotes of Benjamin Franklin and thought it would be nice to share some of my favorites.
“If you would not be forgotten as soon as you are dead and rotten, either write things worth reading or do things worth writing.”
This is something that I don’t think about too often but for a great man like Franklin it must have been at the forefront of his thoughts. Too frequently I find myself doing things that are sadly ordinary, or perhaps I should say less than extraordinary. It is important to be intentional and to at least attempt to do something noteworthy once in a while.
“Beware of little expenses; a small leak will sink a great ship.”
“Oh, I’ll get a coffee in the library. It’s no big deal.” “I can afford a new nail polish; I mean it’s only four dollars.” I am guilty of doing this more than I care to admit. Like Franklin says, the little expenses can add up and the effect can be larger than you imagined. This doesn’t mean that you should cut out all of the small treats that you enjoy, just make sure you don’t indulge too often.
“To succeed, jump as quickly at opportunities as you do at conclusions.”
I surely jump at opportunities quickly; in fact I find it incredibly difficult to say no, to a fault. However, I have not yet mastered the skill of waiting to have all information to reach a conclusion. Certainly I have improved in recent years and become more conscious of it, but this is something valuable for everyone to think about. Instead of being a reactive person, try instead to be responsive.
“If you would persuade, you must appeal to interest rather than intellect.”
This is an idea which I am doing my best to implement on a daily basis. I have come to learn that even the most level headed and rational person is more likely than not to be most strongly influenced by his wants and desires rather than by his mind. Especially with my interest in sales, this is important to realize and use to your advantage with all of your interactions.
“They who would give up an essential liberty for temporary security, deserve neither liberty or security.”
I just used this quote in a law paper for my Constitutional Law class (one of my favorite college courses to date). As a huge fan of Revolutionary history I love this especially relevant statement as understood then, but it can easily be applied to the modern state of affairs. In fact, the paper I mentioned was about the use of drones for the targeted killing of U.S. citizens abroad. As we give up and allow more and more of our liberties to be restricted, like with the right to bear arms, privacy (which is evolving with respect to technology), intrusive government regulations of business, in the name of security, we demonstrate that we are undeserving of the sacrifices of our forefathers to obtain these liberties.
This actually makes me think of a great quote of John Adams (because he can always be tied in when you’re talking to me haha): “Oh posterity! You will never know how much it cost us to preserve your freedom. I hope that you will make a good use of it. If you do not, I shall repent in heaven that I ever took half the pains to preserve it.”The founding fathers worked inconceivably hard to grant us the rights, liberties, and freedoms that we shamefully take for granted and don’t fully utilize today. Let us remember and act upon the words of these two men lest we cause Adams to “repent in heaven that [he] ever took half the pains to preserve” our liberty.
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