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Benjamin Franklin
Alex Brogan
February 08, 2026 • Read Time: 11 minutes
This edition is brought to you by The Last Invention
Good morning to all new and old readers! Here is your Saturday edition of Faster Than Normal, exploring the stories, ideas, and frameworks of the world’s most prolific people and companies—and how you can apply them to build businesses, wealth, and the most important asset of all: yourself.
Today, we’re covering Benjamin Franklin and his journey to Founding Father fame.
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What you’ll learn:
How Benjamin Franklin rose from nothing to Founding Father
Lessons on building a broad set of relationships, cultivate a public image and be a lifelong learner.
Quotes on self-improvement, personal evolution and perseverance
Cheers,
Alex
P.S. Send me feedback on how we can improve. We want to be worthy of your time. I respond to every email.
Benjamin Franklin
Benjamin Franklin started with nothing. Born in 1706 as the 15th of 17 children, he grew up poor in Boston. His father made soap and candles. Franklin had only two years of formal schooling before being forced to work at age 10.
"I was employed in cutting wick for the candles, filling the dipping mold and the molds for cast candles, attending the shop, going of errands, etc."
But Franklin was different. He loved to read and learn. He borrowed books and taught himself. At 12, he became an apprentice to his brother James, a printer. James was cruel and beat him often. Franklin endured it, honing his skills.
The opportunity came when Franklin was 17. He ran away to Philadelphia with almost no money. He arrived hungry and bedraggled, famously walking down the street eating a loaf of bread.
"I have been the more particular in this description of my journey, and shall be so of my first entry into that city, that you may in your mind compare such unlikely beginnings with the figure I have since made there."
In Philadelphia, Franklin worked hard as a printer. He saved money and built connections. At 24, he opened his own print shop. It wasn't easy. He faced fierce competition and financial struggles. But Franklin persevered.
His big break came when he bought a failing newspaper, the Pennsylvania Gazette. Franklin transformed it into the most widely-read paper in the colonies. He worked tirelessly, often writing articles himself under pseudonyms.
"I grew convinced that truth, sincerity and integrity in dealings between man and man were of the utmost importance to the felicity of life."
Franklin didn't stop there. He launched Poor Richard's Almanack, which became a bestseller. He invented the lightning rod and bifocals. He founded America's first subscription library.
By his 40s, Franklin was wealthy enough to retire from active business. But he was just getting started. He turned to science, politics, and diplomacy. He helped draft the Declaration of Independence and negotiated the treaty with France that won the Revolutionary War.
"Tell me and I forget, teach me and I may remember, involve me and I learn."
Franklin's rags-to-riches story is remarkable. But what's most impressive is how he used his success. He devoted himself to public service and the betterment of society. He founded schools, hospitals, and fire departments. He worked to abolish slavery.
"Well done is better than well said."
Franklin died in 1790, revered as a Founding Father. His journey from poor candle-maker's son to international celebrity and statesman is a quintessential American story. It shows what's possible with hard work, curiosity, and perseverance.
But Franklin's legacy goes beyond personal success. He embodied the ideals of the Enlightenment: reason, science, and civic virtue. He believed in constantly improving oneself and one's community.
"Without continual growth and progress, such words as improvement, achievement, and success have no meaning."
Lessons
Lesson 1: Build a broad set of relationships. Franklin created a Junto, a group of tradesmen and artisans who met weekly. They asked, "How may we be serviceable to mankind? To our country, to our friends, or to ourselves?" This wasn't just philosophical. They sent business to each other. At 30, Franklin became clerk of the Pennsylvania Assembly. Boring job. But great connections.
Lesson 2: Cultivate a public image. Franklin was savvy about his reputation. He dressed plainly, avoided idle places, and sometimes wheeled paper through the streets himself. Why? To show he wasn't above his business. It worked. His competitor went broke. Franklin explained, "I took care not only to be in reality industrious and frugal, but to avoid all appearances of the contrary." Your image matters. Craft it carefully.
Lesson 3: Be a lifelong learner. Franklin had two years of formal schooling. Two. But he never stopped learning. He taught himself languages, science, philosophy. He was curious about everything. "An investment in knowledge always pays the best interest," he said. Never stop learning. Ever.
Lesson 4: Work on yourself systematically. At 20, Franklin created a list of 13 virtues. He worked on one each week. He wasn't perfect at it. But he kept trying. "I hope, therefore, that some of my descendants may follow the example and reap the benefit," he wrote. Have a system for self-improvement. Use it.
Lesson 5: Diversify your interests. Franklin was a writer, scientist, inventor, statesman, diplomat, printer, publisher, philosopher. He didn't stick to one thing. He explored. He experimented. This breadth made him more creative, more adaptable. It's why he could invent bifocals and help draft the Declaration of Independence. Don't be a one-trick pony. Diversify.
When Machines Begin to Think
For years, I’ve studied AI up close—its breakthroughs, its blind spots, and the ways it’s steadily reshaping how we live and work.
I wrote The Last Invention to connect the dots between today’s progress and tomorrow’s possibilities. It’s an exploration of how artificial intelligence might change work, economics, and our understanding of intelligence itself.
If you’re curious about where this all leads, I wrote it to give a clear, human view of the world that’s taking shape.
If you’ve found value in my writing, please consider supporting my work by ordering the ebook on Gumroad or Amazon. I think you’ll genuinely enjoy it.
Benjamin Franklin’s Quotes
On self-improvement: "There are three things extremely hard: steel, a diamond, and to know one's self."
On personal evolution: "When you're finished changing, you're finished."
On perseverance: "Energy and persistence conquer all things."
On time management: "Lost time is never found again."
On habits: "Your net worth to the world is usually determined by what remains after your bad habits are subtracted from your good ones."
On decision-making: "By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail."
On outputs: "Well done is better than well said."
On frugality: "Beware of little expenses; a small leak will sink a great ship."
On knowledge: "An investment in knowledge pays the best interest."
On reputation: "It takes many good deeds to build a good reputation, and only one bad one to lose it."
Speeches
Book Recommendations
Further Readings
That’s all for today, folks. As always, please give me your feedback. Which section is your favourite? What do you want to see more or less of? Other suggestions? Please let me know.
Have a wonderful rest of week, all.
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