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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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 inflicte...