Wisdom-Trek Day 35 – (Part 3) Wisdom from Ben Franklin

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 35 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom.Wisdom from Ben Franklin - Part 3

Thank you for joining us for our 7 day a week, 7 minutes of wisdom podcast.  This is Day 35 of our Trek, and in honor of Independence Day in the United States, Friday we started a 5-day series of episodes in which we are consulting one of our founding fathers, Benjamin Franklin, who was known for his wisdom and practical sage advice.

Today we are recording our podcast from our studio at The Big House in Marietta, Ohio.  We have moved into our newly renovated office, and it is great.  The room turned out very nice, and Paula and I are very pleased with the results.  We invested in new windows, new hardwood floors and wainscoting on two of the walls.  Check out the journal page for Day 35 on Wisdom-Trek.com to see some pictures.  Also if you would like to be kept up-to-date on our Wisdom-Trek, please enter your name and email address at the bottom right hand of the sidebar which appears on every page.

On our Trek today, we will continue our review of the 85 practical tips written by Benjamin Franklin called The Way of Wealth. In order to keep our daily Wisdom-Trek near the 7 minute length, I have split up the remaining 40 tips into three days, so this series will be one day longer than expected.  I hope you don’t mind. I want to keep our daily wisdom nuggets short and digestible. So, let’s venture on our trail today as we examine steps 46-57.

These nuggets of truth and wisdom can dramatically impact our lives so that we all can grow in wisdom and insight.

46. A little neglect may breed great mischief. – If we do not pay attention to what is important in our business and personal lives, then we leave the door open for bad behavior, either from ourselves or others. Don’t neglect your responsibilities in all areas of life.
47. For want of a nail, the shoe was lost; for want of a shoe, the horse was lost, and for want of a horse, the rider was lost. – Pay attention to the little details of life before they become big. If we neglect the small matters, whether it is in our marriage, family, health, or work, we will soon find that we have major issues in those areas of life. Life is like a wheel that needs to be well rounded in order for a smooth journey.  If we are faithful in handling the small matters, then we will be given more responsibilities and prosper in life.  Here is a snippet of a parable that Christ told in Matthew 25:23, “The master said, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together!’"  Along our Wisdom-Trek in the future, we will look deeper into the principles of faithfulness and loyalty.
48. A man may, if he knows not how to save as he gets, keep his nose all his life to the grindstone, and die not worth a groat at last. – The "groat" is the traditional name of a long-defunct English silver coin worth four English pennies. The principle here is that if we do not learn how to save and invest during our lives, we will have to work hard until we die, and we won’t have anything to show for it.  This is not the type of legacy that we should desire.
49. If you would be wealthy, think of saving as well as of getting. – Regardless of how much money you earn in your life if you spend as much or more than you make, you will never be wealthy. You must save throughout your life to gain wealth. It is a mindset, and it is your choice.
50. What maintains one vice, would bring up two children. – Bad habits of any kind are not good, but especially if they also become a drain on you financially, which most do. Unfortunately we see all too often, how a destructive habit not only destroys the person who is inflicted by it but also destroys their family. It is much more costly than just the material outlay.
51. Beware of little expenses; a small leak will sink a great ship. – This is so true in business and personal life. Paula and I have seen so many cases when a business or person was not careful with spending on small items and then experience financial problems. We tend to be very frugal in our spending, and as a result, it has allowed us to enjoy better quality goods and even some trips. But, the tradeoff is that we [spp-tweet "Forego the immediate, for the lasting."]  You must be willing to make those types of sacrifices.
52. Who dainties love, shall beggars prove. – This saying dovetails into the previous quote. "Dainties" are non-essential items that are not really needed. If you are not willing to give up the regular and frequent spending on the "small things" today, then don’t be surprised if you are always struggling to make ends meet. Some small but practical examples may be going out for premium coffees, eating out often, and making other non-essential purchases, especially when you can’t really afford them.
53. Fools make feasts, and wise men eat them. – Unwise people spend money they don’t really have, many times to impress others because they are driven by their egos. Wise people do not needlessly spend money but instead are willing to wait for the right opportunity. Many times this opportunity comes because of the unwise decisions of the foolish.
54. Buy what thou hast no need of, and ere long thou shalt sell thy necessaries. – Old Ben is hitting home on today’s foolish spending habits of so many people. The more I analyze the difference between needs and wants in life, the more I realize that there are few true necessities. If you purchase items that are not necessities when you do not really have the money to do so (such as using credit cards without the money to pay for an item in full), then you become a slave to those companies.  The freedom that debt free living brings is so liberating.  One other point to keep in mind is that the more that you own, the more that you are owned by those items.  [spp-tweet "With all possessions comes responsibility."]
55. At a great pennyworth pause a while: he means, that perhaps the cheapness is apparent only, and not real. – This one I had to analyze a bit for the meaning to become apparent. Ben is suggesting to be careful when something looks like it is a real bargain. You get what you pay for.
56. Many have been ruined by buying good pennyworths. – Once again, if you are enticed by "bargains," you need to be very careful in what you are receiving. Only buy what is needed, regardless of the "savings." [spp-tweet "Many a family has been ruined by spending money on too many "good deals.""]
57. ‘Tis foolish to lay our money in a purchase of repentance. – Buying things for people that you have wronged for the sake of trying to make up for your actions is not wise. First, do all that you can to prevent doing harm to others. Second, heartfelt repentance is much better and more lasting than spending money to compensate for your wrongs.

Well, that will finish our podcast for today. If you missed any of our previous podcasst in this series, please check out Wisdom-Trek on iTunes, Stitcher, SoundCloud or Wisdom-Trek.com. Tomorrow we will continue on day 4 of our series of gaining  wisdom as told to us by Benjamin Franklin, one of the founding fathers of the United States.

So, please check into our "camp" tomorrow for another day on our Wisdom-Trek, Creating a Legacy.

If you enjoy our daily doses of wisdom, I encourage you to help us in the following four ways:

1. Leave us feedback about the podcast on Wisdom-Trek.com.
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Thank you!

The journal from this podcast can be found at Wisdom-Trek.com, where we also have wisdom nuggets and free resources.

As we take this Trek together let us always:

1. Live Abundantly (Fully)
2. Love Unconditionally
3. Listen Intentionally
4. Learn Continuously
5. Lend Generously
6. Lead with Integrity
7. Leave a Living Legacy Each Day

This is Guthrie Chamberlain reminding you to Keep Moving Forward, Enjoy the Journey, and Create a Great Day! See you tomorrow!