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Franklin’s
13 Virtues
Choose one behavior.
Notice it for a week.
Explore Benjamin Franklin’s experiment in self-examination, then try a modest version of your own. A short daily note can give you something concrete to review—without turning your week into a judgment of your character.
Start a seven-day reflection ↓Free to use and print. No account or streak to maintain.
The historical practice
A little book, reviewed daily.
In Part II of his autobiography, Franklin lists thirteen virtues and describes a notebook with seven daily columns and thirteen virtue rows. He marked faults during his review and gave special attention to one virtue each week, planning a thirteen-week cycle. [1]
His own account includes interruptions and particular difficulty with Order. The source describes his experience; it does not establish a guaranteed habit-building formula.
Choose one behavior you can observe. Record what happened for seven days. At the end, decide what to keep, simplify, or change.
The worksheet below is an original reflection exercise. It does not reproduce Franklin’s fault-counting grid or ask you to adopt his entire moral code.
The complete list
Thirteen names. Your own considered practice.
The left column preserves Franklin’s names and sequence. The right column contains our modern reflection prompts, not his original definitions or quotations.
| Historical virtue | A possible reflection today |
|---|---|
| 01Temperance | Where would a deliberate limit help me stay clear-headed? |
| 02Silence | Can I let someone finish before I respond? |
| 03Order | What one item or activity needs a dependable place? |
| 04Resolution | Which small promise can I keep today? |
| 05Frugality | Can I use what I already have before adding more? |
| 06Industry | What useful task deserves my attention, with room for rest? |
| 07Sincerity | Is there something I should communicate more honestly? |
| 08Justice | Whose needs or responsibilities am I overlooking? |
| 09Moderation | Where would a measured response be more useful? |
| 10Cleanliness | What small shared-space task can I take care of? |
| 11Tranquillity | What minor disruption can I acknowledge and move past? |
| 12Chastity | Am I respecting consent, boundaries, and commitments in relationships? |
| 13Humility | What could I learn by asking instead of assuming? |
Read the original precepts for their historical meaning. In particular, Franklin’s Chastity precept addresses sexual conduct, while Humility names Jesus and Socrates as models. [1] Our relationship and learning prompts are present-day interpretations. Choose a practice that fits your values and situation.
Make it observable
Turn a broad value into one small action.
Choose one focus
Start with a behavior that matters in your actual day. “Be more orderly” needs a smaller definition before you can observe it.
Name the opportunity
Decide when the behavior would happen. Write the action and its cue, such as the end of a work session.
Record what happened
Make a brief, factual note. Include what helped, what got in the way, or whether the opportunity did not occur.
Review after seven days
Look for a pattern. Keep the action, make it smaller, change the cue, or choose a different practice. No streak score is needed.
A worked example
Order, without organizing your whole life.
Sam often starts work by searching for yesterday’s project notes. Instead of trying to become “an organized person,” Sam chooses one action: put the current project notebook in the desk tray when ending a work session.
Day 1: put the notebook in the tray; leaving the tray clear helped.
Day 2: left it on the sofa after a call; the work session ended away from the desk.
Day 3: returned it after the final call; a note beside the laptop was a useful reminder.
At the end of the week, Sam sees that location changes are the problem. The next version is to return the notebook after the last call wherever the work ends. The result is a specific adjustment, not a verdict about Sam’s discipline.
What if I miss a day?
Leave it blank or note that you did not record it. Do not invent a perfect entry afterward. Resume at the next opportunity and use what you do have at the weekly review. If tracking itself becomes a burden, simplify it or stop.
Put it to work
Your seven-day reflection.
Print the sheet or copy the prompts into a notebook. Write only what helps you notice the behavior; nothing needs to be entered into this website.
Opens your browser’s print dialog. Choose Save as PDF if available.
Seven-day reflection sheet
Success Archives · successarchives.com/franklin-13-virtues/
My focus and start date
Virtue or value: ____________________ Start date: ______________
My observable action and cue
When ____________________, I will ______________________________.
| Day | What happened? | What helped or got in the way? |
|---|---|---|
| Day 1 Date: ____ | ||
| Day 2 Date: ____ | ||
| Day 3 Date: ____ | ||
| Day 4 Date: ____ | ||
| Day 5 Date: ____ | ||
| Day 6 Date: ____ | ||
| Day 7 Date: ____ |
My weekly review
What pattern did I notice? What will I keep, simplify, or change?
Keep the useful parts
Observe a behavior, not your worth.
- Keep the scope small. One visible action is easier to review than a broad label such as “good” or “bad.”
- Record context. A changed schedule or an unavailable opportunity is different from a deliberate choice not to act.
- Allow rest and competing needs. A historical call for industry need not become a rule to work every available minute.
- Use your own judgment. Franklin’s list reflects a historical moral outlook. Studying it does not require adopting every precept.
Source & editorial notes
- Benjamin Franklin, The Autobiography, Part II — Project Gutenberg — see the thirteen virtues and the following account of his notebook.
- Edition details, Project Gutenberg ebook 148 — Charles W. Eliot edition; listed as public domain in the USA.
Source reviewed September 16, 2026. Modern prompts, fictional example, and seven-day sheet are original Success Archives material. We link the historical edition without reproducing its scans or editorial apparatus. This guide contains no affiliate links.