How to Be More Productive: Benjamin Franklin's Industry Method

Benjamin Franklin was a printer, scientist, diplomat, inventor, author, and Founding Father—often simultaneously. He discovered electricity, invented bifocals, founded universities and libraries, negotiated treaties, and still found time for chess, music, and friends. His secret? A productivity system built on his Industry virtue.

Franklin's approach to productivity wasn't about working more hours. It was about working smarter—focused blocks, clear intentions, and ruthless elimination of waste. Here's how to apply his methods today.

Key Takeaways

• Franklin's Industry virtue: "Lose no time. Cut off all unnecessary actions."
• He worked in 4-hour focused blocks (8-12 AM, 2-6 PM)
• Each day began with: "What good shall I do this day?"
• Each day ended with: "What good have I done today?"
• He defined "useful" broadly: work, learning, and meaningful leisure

Franklin's Industry Virtue

Franklin's sixth virtue was Industry, defined precisely:

"Lose no time. Be always employed in something useful. Cut off all unnecessary actions."

Notice the three components:

1. Lose no time — Awareness of time as finite resource
2. Always employed in something useful — Not busy, but useful
3. Cut off all unnecessary actions — Active elimination of waste

This isn't workaholism. Franklin enjoyed leisure, music, and conversation—these were "useful" for health and relationships. What he cut were time-wasters that produced nothing: idle gossip, excessive drinking, aimless activity.

Method 1: 4-Hour Work Blocks

Franklin's daily schedule reveals his secret: two focused 4-hour work blocks.

• Morning block (8 AM - 12 PM): "Work"
• Afternoon block (2 PM - 6 PM): "Work"

That's 8 hours of focused work, but notice what's betweenthem: a 2-hour midday break for reading, reviewing accounts, and lunch. Franklin didn't work 8 hours straight—he worked in focused bursts with recovery time.

How to Apply This

• Identify your 2-3 most important tasks each day
• Block 3-4 hours in the morning for deep work (no email, no meetings)
• Take a genuine break—lunch, walk, reading
• Block another 3-4 hours for focused afternoon work
• Protect these blocks like appointments with your most important client

Method 2: The Morning Question

Before anything else, Franklin asked:

"What good shall I do this day?"

This single question transforms productivity from "getting things done" to "getting the right things done." It's not about your inbox or someone else's priorities—it's aboutyour definition of good.

How to Apply This

• Before checking phone or email, ask the question
• Write down 1-3 meaningful outcomes for the day
• Define "good" by your values, not just urgent tasks
• Let this intention guide decisions throughout the day

Method 3: Cut Unnecessary Actions

Franklin didn't just add productive habits—he actively eliminated unproductive ones. This is the overlooked half of his Industry virtue.

Franklin's "Unnecessary Actions" (Then)

• Excessive time in taverns
• Idle gossip and socializing without purpose
• Sleeping late
• Dwelling on things he couldn't control

Modern "Unnecessary Actions" (Now)

• Reflexive social media checking
• Endless email loops without processing
• Meetings that could be messages
• News cycles that produce anxiety but no action
• Multitasking (which is really task-switching)

How to Apply This

1. Track your time for one week—honestly record where it goes
2. Identify activities that consume time without producing value
3. Eliminate, automate, or batch these activities
4. Replace them with time blocks for focused work

Method 4: Single-Tasking

Franklin's schedule shows one thing at a time. His work blocks say simply "Work"—not "Work while checking mail while in meetings while messaging."

"Little strokes fell great oaks."

Modern research confirms what Franklin practiced: multitasking is a myth. What we call multitasking is actually rapid task-switching, which reduces both quality and speed. Deep work requires sustained attention.

How to Apply This

• Work on one task until it's complete or you hit a natural break
• Close tabs, silence notifications, hide your phone
• Batch similar tasks (all emails at once, all calls at once)
• Schedule "open" time for interruptions—protect the rest

Method 5: Evening Review

Franklin's day ended with a question paired to his morning one:

"What good have I done today?"

This created accountability. You can't answer the evening question honestly without actually doing the morning intentions. The daily review also surfaces patterns—where you succeed, where you struggle, what needs adjustment.

How to Apply This

• Before bed, review your morning intentions
• Note what you accomplished and what you didn't
• Ask what interfered with your intentions
• Plan tomorrow based on today's lessons

Franklin's Productivity Schedule

For reference, here's Franklin's complete daily schedule:

• 5-8 AM: Rise, wash, plan day, study, breakfast
• 8-12 PM: Work (first focused block)
• 12-2 PM: Read, review accounts, lunch
• 2-6 PM: Work (second focused block)
• 6-10 PM: Dinner, music/conversation, review day
• 10 PM-5 AM: Sleep (7 hours)

Notice: 8 hours of focused work, 2 hours of midday break, 4 hours of evening leisure, 7 hours of sleep. This is sustainable productivity, not burnout culture.

Franklin's Productivity Quotes

• "Well done is better than well said."
• "Diligence is the mother of good luck."
• "Sloth makes all things difficult, but industry all things easy."
• "Little strokes fell great oaks."
• "Never leave that till tomorrow which you can do today."
• "Energy and persistence conquer all things."

Track Your Industry Virtue

Use our Ben Franklin Virtues app to practice the Industry virtue weekly. Track each day you successfully "lose no time" and "cut unnecessary actions."