According to new happiness research reported in the Daily Mail newspaper, the biggest lows of our lives are experienced in middle age, according to new research that concludes that Britons are at their most depressed at age 44.
Do you Know your Virtues?
Who amongst us can remember the four virtues that Plato identified:
wisdom, moderation (temperance), justice and courage?
Or the three holy virtues: hope, charity and unselfish love.
Did you know that Benjamin Franklin lived his entire life according to 13 virtues he used to assess his life and progress towards genuine happiness.
Franklin’s virtues can be broken down into seven personal virtues and six social virtues.
The seven personal virtues relate to your attitudes toward activities and their challenges. Good personal character traits will better your chances of success in achieving your goals.
Temperance: Eat not to dullness; drink not to elevation.
Order: Let all your things have their places; let each part of your business have its time.
Resolution: Resolve to perform what you ought; perform without fail what you resolve.
Frugality: Make no expense but to do good to others or yourself; i.e., waste nothing.
Moderation: Avoid extremes; forbear resenting injuries so much as you think they deserve.
Industry: Lose no time; be always employed in something useful; cut off all unnecessary actions.
Cleanliness: Tolerate no uncleanliness in body, clothes, or habitation.
Tranquility: Be not disturbed at trifles, or at accidents common or unavoidable.
Franklin’s six social virtues stated concern your attitudes toward people with whom you have dealings. Good social character traits result in other people wanting to do business with you or to have relationships with you.
Silence: Speak not but what may benefit others or yourself; avoid trifling conversation.
Sincerity: Use no hurtful deceit; think innocently and justly, and, if you speak, speak accordingly.
Justice: Wrong none by doing injuries, or omitting the benefits that are your duty.
Chastity: Rarely use venery but for health or offspring, never to dullness, weakness, or the injury of your own or another’s peace or reputation.
Humility: Imitate Jesus and Socrates.
Ben Franklin tried to lead his life following these virtues. He placed each one of the virtues on a separate page in a small book that he kept with him for most of his life. He would evaluate his performance with regard to each of them on a daily basis. He would also select one of the virtues to focus on for full week.
Imagine you developing a similar set of virtues to guide your life. Imagine the US President, the Canadian Prime Minister or the CEO of Nike using such a list to guide their decisions. The world would certainly be a happier if not wiser place to live and have our being.
