Benjamin Franklin Quotes

A wise man watches his faults more closely than his virtues; fools reverse the order.

By three things the wise person may be known. What three? He sees a shortcoming as it is. When he sees it, he tries to correct it. And when another acknowledges a shortcoming, the wise one forgives it as he should.

It is a most mortifying reflection for a man to consider what he has done, compared to what he might have done.

To accuse others for one's own misfortunes is a sign of want of education. To accuse oneself shows that one's education has begun. To accuse neither oneself nor others shows that one's education is complete.

Our ideals are our better selves.

To make no mistakes is not in the power of man; but from their errors and mistakes the wise and good learn wisdom for the future.

What you dislike in another take care to correct in yourself.

He that never changes his opinion never corrects mistakes and will never be wiser on the morrow than he is today.

A man must be big enough to admit his mistakes, smart enough to profit from them, and strong enough to correct them.

Man should be ever better than he seems.

I'm my worst critic, and I like the fact that I can listen to myself now and make fun of myself, listen, make changes - 'Oh, man, that's messed up. Okay, I need to work on that; I need to work on this.'

A man should never be ashamed to own that he has been in the wrong, which is but saying... that he is wiser today than yesterday.

I don't want to be interesting. I want to be good.

Though ambition in itself is a vice, it often is also the parent of virtue.

I take it to be from the greatest extremes, both in virtue and in vice, that the uniformly virtuous and reformed in life can derive the greatest and most salutary truths and impressions.

What, pray, does it profit a man to teach others, and to be prating always about virtue, in high-sounding words, if he fails to give heed to his own instructions?

Looking inward and understanding where you made mistakes in the past helps you set up for change.

I always see what I did wrong, what I could do better.

Something good happens or something bad, I think, 'What can I do better? What didn't I do this year?'

There's no doubt that probably at least once a week, maybe once a day, I said, "Ah, I should have done that better."

If you would be good, first believe that you are bad.

Men become old, but they never become good.

The wise and the brave dares own that he was wrong.

We can be wise from goodness and good from wisdom.

Watch your character for your character is your destiny.