Concentration and Balance

Concentration and Balance

By Rom Antony Day

Thursday, March 05, 2009

Examples of balanced concentration is the Mr. Benjamin Franklin’s, a former estates man and one of the United States of America Founders, 13 principles applied one at a time per week over a 13 weeks period. Mr. Benjamin Franklin practiced what he called, the 13‑week program. He wrote down 13 virtues that he wanted to maintain or practice in his life --- Things such as humility, perseverance, forgiveness, friendliness and discipline. He would then assign one of these to each week and throughout that week concentrate on that one virtue; thinking about it and asking questions that brought both self-analysis and self-improvement.

In this way, by working through the 13 weeks, he was able to devote at least four weeks of concentrated self-improvement on each of these virtues per year. Later in life he declared that this practice was probably the key habit of his life that enabled him to achieve everything he did.