How to Write a 5-Star Personal Manifesto like Benjamin Franklin

How do you write a five-star personal manifesto? That’s an easy question compared to this one…

How do you become your best self? That might be the most important question you could ever ask yourself.

I’ve been studying these questions for over 13 years. During this time, I’ve collected and created hundreds of manifestos to find out what works and what doesn’t.

The good news is Benjamin Franklin gave us the answer to BOTH questions way back in 1726. Yep, that’s 300 years ago. And he wrote it when he was just 20 years old.

Today I’ll show you how he did this. Best of all, I’ll show you in three simple steps.

Benjamin Franklin’s Personal Manifesto

Previously, I rated Benjamin Franklin’s personal manifesto five stars.

But it wasn’t that I loved all of his words. And some of them are a bit old-fashioned. (well, of course, it’s 300 years old!)

But it’s not the words that matter. It’s how he went about it that mattered most and you can copy his method to become your best self.

This post was inspired by the student leaders at Friona Independent School District in Texas who have been sending me their personal manifestos.

What’s the best way to write a personal manifesto?

Defining your values or virtues is the easiest way to create a personal manifesto. They’re powerful in their own right but they also become a great launchpad to create any of the other types of personal manifestos. That’s why they’re the best choice and scored five stars.

How did Franklin write his personal manifesto?

When Benjamin Franklin was 20 years old he felt that he was not getting the best out of himself. He drank too much, ate too much, talked about himself too much, spent too much time on social media, spent too much money and didn’t finish all his goals.

I can relate to that!

To overcome these flaws he identified 13 virtues – 13 values, behaviours or qualities that he could practise to improve himself. He picked 13 so he could practice each one for a week at a time. Then he could repeat the process four times in a single year.

Three Simple Steps to Write a Personal Manifesto

To write your personal manifesto like Benjamin Franklin, there are three easy steps to take to define your values or virtues.

1 Write a list

There are two ways to create your list of values.

You can do what Ben did and look for qualities that you want to have. Ask yourself, what’s missing? For instance, I tend to hide in my social circle and don’t put myself out there. In response, I could take on the value of ‘Bravery’, ‘Authenticity’ or ‘Leadership’.

You can also look for qualities that define who you want to become. One way to do this is to look at the people you admire and identify the qualities that inspire you. For instance, I admire the simplicity of Cal Newport’s approach to productivity. I adopt ‘simplicity’ as an aspirational value.

To spark some ideas, here’s a list of possible values. Scan the list and pick the ones that appeal to you. Feel free to add other words that inspire you.

2 Prune your list

Next, you want to cut your list down to a manageable size.

Franklin had 13 values. But I think that’s too many for us mere mortals. Having too many values is like having too many clothes in your cupboard. It makes it hard to know what to focus on.

I’d aim for 3-5. Go ahead and trim your list down to size.

One way to prune your values list is to compare values directly. If you have ‘creativity’ and ‘inspiration’ on your list you might ask, ‘Which is more important – creativity or inspiration?’ A quick decision often helps.

The good news is that you don’t have to write THE perfect list. Pick the ones that appeal today. If they’re not working in a few days or weeks time, then change them.

3 Define your values

This final step is vital to personalize your values.

Lots of people like music but we all have different tastes. And lots of people may have the same values but they can mean something different to each of us.

Write down what they mean to you. This could be a definition. Or how you would practice this value.

For example, Franklin’s 13 Virtues include ‘Frugality’. And his definition was: Make no expense but to do good to others or yourself; i.e., waste nothing.

He also had a value around ‘Cleanliness’. This sets up actions or practices to keep yourself clean, your house clean and your clothes washed.

One more thing…

That’s it! That was easy, wasn’t it? Now you have a five-star personal manifesto like Benjamin Franklin.

Next, there is a fourth step. It’s not about writing your personal manifesto but living true to it every day. This is how you become your best self.

Simply pick one value to focus on for the day. Think of this as setting an intention for the day.

For instance, today I am going to be ‘Friendly’. This means being polite, and generous and showing interest in the people I meet today.

And remember to review how your day went. How did you live according to your chosen value today?

More on How to Write a Personal Manifesto

To help you write your personal manifesto, read these posts next:

• Write a Personal Manifesto – Seven Ways to be Inspired
• Four Simple Ways to Craft a Personal Mission Statement for Your Life
• Why you should write a Personal Mission Statement in 2024