While still in his youth, Benjamin Franklin became convinced that a person’s character was inextricably intertwined with one’s happiness. For that reason, Ben designed a plan to help him to become as perfect in character as he possibly could. He called the plan his “Project for Moral Perfection” and he worked at it his whole life through.

He chose 12 character traits that he deemed necessary to improve in his relation to. But he soon added one more. He wrote:

“My list of virtues contain’d at first but twelve, but a Quaker friend having kindly informed me that I was generally thought proud; that my pride show’d itself frequently in conversation; that I was not content with being in the right when discussing any point, but was overbearing and rather insolent, of which he convinc’d me by mentioning several instances; I determined endeavoring to sure myself, if I could, of this vice or folly among the rest, and I added HUMILITY to my list.”

He worked through his clever plan, with a system of dates and dots, until he added: “I cannot boast of much success in acquiring the reality of this virtue, but I had a good deal with regard to the appearance of it.”

And then Ben goes on to say: “In reality there is, perhaps, no one of our natural passions so hard to subdue as pride.” (Perhaps you had found this to be true in you own life?) ,

“Disguise it, struggle with it, beat it down, stifle it, mortify it as much as one pleases, and it will every now and then peep out and show itself; . . . even if I could conceive that I had completely overcome it, I should probably be proud of my humility!”

Well, Ben certainly had much to be proud of. Take a look sometime at all he was able to accomplish during his lifetime. When you are truly great, it’s hard to be humble!