Lydia Johnson Consulting

WEEK 15 Awareness is the Beginning of Change

Us dollar 100 front

Quite often when we think of Benjamin Franklin, we think of Benjamins…those being hundred dollar bills. We think of him also of course as a US President and some may know he was talented in a variety of different ways from an author, postmaster, musician, a printer and even a scientist, and more….very interesting.

What is quite fascinating however is what Franklin created to improve himself….the Franklin Makeover. No, it wasn’t about fashion or cosmetics or anything at all about his appearance. What Franklin created for himself was a mental makeover. Yes, a makeover that focused on key attributes to make him even more successful in life and in business.

This week I learned about Franklin and how he created this makeover for himself. I was fascinated that he was a self improvement focused leader. Hundreds of years later my Master Key Master Mind (MKMMA) class is studying what he created and how he improved his own key attributes. It was interesting to learn that he was way ahead of so many others of his time. Awareness is the beginning of change . It intrigues me that Franklin took this to heart and began his MAKEOVER.

Franklin’s Thirteen Virtues

Franklin’s goal was to improve his own character by focusing on 13 virtues or attributes, which he developed at age 20! He practiced these his whole life. He chose these virtues he wanted to improve:

  1. “Temperance. Eat not to dullness; drink not to elevation.”
  2. “Silence. Speak not but what may benefit others or yourself; avoid trifling conversation.”
  3. “Order. Let all your things have their places; let each part of your business have its time.”
  4. “Resolution. Resolve to perform what you ought; perform without fail what you resolve.”
  5. “Frugality. Make no expense but to do good to others or yourself; i.e., waste nothing.”
  6. “Industry. Lose no time; be always employed in something useful; cut off all unnecessary actions.”
  7. “Sincerity. Use no hurtful deceit; think innocently and justly, and, if you speak, speak accordingly.”
  8. “Justice. Wrong none by doing injuries, or omitting the benefits that are your duty.”
  9. “Moderation. Avoid extremes; forbear resenting injuries so much as you think they deserve.”
  10. “Cleanliness. Tolerate no uncleanliness in body, cloaths, or habitation.”
  11. “Tranquility. Be not disturbed at trifles, or at accidents common or unavoidable.”
  12. “Chastity. Rarely use venery but for health or offspring, never to dullness, weakness, or the injury of your own or another’s peace or reputation.”
  13. “Humility. Imitate Jesus and Socrates.”

Ben FranklinFranklin did not try to work on them all at once. Instead, he would work on one each week “leaving all others to their ordinary chance”. By his own admission, he fell short of them many times, yet believed the attempt made him a better man contributing greatly to his success and happiness.

Following the Franklin Makeover as our guide, this week our MKMMA class launched a 13 Week Makeover Plan! Very exciting and like Franklin we are all taking one virtue or attribute for each week. We each prioritized the following virtues by which ones we each felt will benefit us the most. Notice the “newer” list we are working with:

Self-control, Kindness, Discipline, Decisiveness, Persistence, Courage, Specialized Knowledge, Taking Initiative, Well Organized, Pleasing Personality, Enthusiasm, Imagination and Seeing God in Others.

Week by week we will be watching for and noting when we see or experience the attribute in focus, recording each on our simple spreadsheets.

So no makeup, no new clothes, no TV shows….just powerful self improvement focus for a what we expect will be a huge return!

Stay tuned for the weeks ahead….thank you for the inspiration Benjamin!

16 thoughts on “WEEK 15 Awareness is the Beginning of Change”

  1. Hi Lydia! Finally started following your blog so I don’t miss any of your goodies! The make over is massive. I really believe we are transformed yet again by the process. God bless you!

    1. lydjohnson says:

      Thanks Valeska! Yes, what a powerhouse makeover. WOW…12 more weeks and we will be new peeps! So grateful to be on this journey with you.

  2. Great blog as usual, Lydia!

  3. I agree with you….it is amazing Franklin pick those 13 virtues at such an early age, to work on each week. He obviously understood how to get how to get the good stuff deep down into the subby. Thanks for sharing!

    1. lydjohnson says:

      Appreciate the message John.

  4. Nicole W says:

    Hi Lydia,
    Thanks so much for sharing the Franklin story! An amazingly accomplished man works weekly to continue to improve himself with these virtues, and has the foresight to start at age 20 – wow, I can’t wait to see the positive results we will all receive by applying this method in our lives. Great post!

  5. Heather says:

    I have always been a huge fan of Ben… I read his autobiography and for some reason never applied what I read. So grateful for the application and learning beyond any shadow of a doubt that knowledge doesn’t apply itself!!

    1. lydjohnson says:

      Heather this whole 13 week challenge is so cool! It’s gonna be a blast!

  6. David says:

    He was a remarkable person, but he wasn’t a president.

    1. lydjohnson says:

      OOPs….thanks for that.

  7. Lydia, I really enjoyed your post about Ben Franklin. Imagine a 20-year old putting together a character building list such as this and then becoming president. That is a great example for what is possible when a person sets their mind on a definite major purpose.

    1. lydjohnson says:

      Thanks Cyndria….apparently he was never a President though…my mistake…maybe he should’ve been!

  8. Liked your blog so much I copied the 13 original virtues or attributes and printed a copy. Putting both together. Have a GREAT DAY.

    1. lydjohnson says:

      Hey, that’s a cool idea…26 attributes!

Leave a Reply to masterkeyslpostich Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *


CommentLuv badge