I've always like Ben Franklin's 13 virtues. It's a short list.
TEMPERANCE. Eat not to dullness; drink not to elevation.
SILENCE. Speak not but what may benefit others or yourself; avoid trifling conversation.
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.
INDUSTRY. Lose no time; be always employ’d in something useful; cut off all unnecessary actions.
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.
MODERATION. Avoid extremes; forbear resenting injuries so much as you think they deserve.
CLEANLINESS. Tolerate no uncleanliness in body, cloaths, or habitation.
TRANQUILLITY. Be not disturbed at trifles, or at accidents common or unavoidable.
CHASTITY. Rarely use venery but for health or offspring, never to dulness, weakness, or the injury of your own or another’s peace or reputation.
HUMILITY. Imitate Jesus and Socrates.
stuartjohnson12 · 5h ago
That sounds like a very boring and miserable way to live. To respond with one of my own:
---
When I am an old woman I shall wear purple
With a red hat which doesn’t go, and doesn’t suit me.
And I shall spend my pension on brandy and summer gloves
And satin sandals, and say we’ve no money for butter.
I shall sit down on the pavement when I’m tired
And gobble up samples in shops and press alarm bells
And run my stick along the public railings
And make up for the sobriety of my youth.
I shall go out in my slippers in the rain
And pick the flowers in other people’s gardens
And learn to spit.
mindtricks · 4h ago
I think it's fair to have principles and still have an interesting an active life. The best example of this would have to be, well, Ben Franklin.
ericmcer · 2h ago
I was teaching my dog to bark less, and I worried a bit that it might make him sit silently when I actually want him to bark, like if a stranger was coming through the window.
After a ton of training I realized he will never stop barking, he can realize that what he is doing is not right, but the urge to bark at every noise he hears will always be something we have to work on. We will never get it "right".
I think Ben Franklins strict rules are the same way. Obviously you can't run your entire life with military discipline, but you have to set the ideal fairly high because you are going to fall short over and over.
xyzwave · 4h ago
Fair critique, we should never lose the spirit of play, but Franklin’s guidance seems very much in line with a quote from Gustave Flaubert I often see echoed:
> Be steady and well-ordered in your life so that you can be fierce and original in your work
gatlin · 52m ago
Genuine question: if you could tell Ben Franklin this, would you? I'm not even disagreeing with you, nor do I think there is a correct answer, but your answer and the reasoning behind it would genuinely interest me.
reverendsteveii · 4h ago
while I like redhatting as much as anyone the interesting wrinkle to this criticism of franklin in particular is that this is much more like the way he actually lived than the principles he listed were. in fact, I dare say the only thing he missed on this list was making up for the non-existent sobriety of his youth.
bix6 · 4h ago
Today I learned about the red hat society, thank you
(When I am an old woman, I will annotate other people's comments,
With inapposite quibbling or info they already know
...)
os2warpman · 4h ago
Having read quite a bit about Franklin, his life was defined by an extremely generous interpretation of some of those virtues.
dole · 4h ago
"Franklin did not try to work on them all at once. Instead, he worked on only one each week "leaving all others to their ordinary chance." While he did not adhere completely to the enumerated virtues, and by his own admission he fell short of them many times, he believed the attempt made him a better man, contributing greatly to his success and happiness, which is why in his autobiography, he devoted more pages to this plan than to any other single point and wrote, "I hope, therefore, that some of my descendants may follow the example and reap the benefit."
Clearly Mr Franklin has never hyperscaled a tech company
s_dev · 5h ago
Reminds me of the Core Principles from Severance.
lifefeed · 5h ago
> In more than thirty years as a writer, editor, and publisher, I have, to my best reckoning, introduced, abridged, issued or reissued, and read nearly every major work of inspirational literature produced or translated into English.
I'm always wary of people who spend too much time in the world of inspirational books. It's healthy to read a little, and to "sharpen the ax" every so often, but reading too much of this stuff is mind-numbing outside of historiography reasons.
hnthrow90348765 · 5h ago
>1) Do your work—do it on time and fully, if not early and overabundantly.
I cannot overstate how absolutely hollow it must be that work is your #1 rule of living
The next saddest thing is that the only mention of love is a fucking Machiavelli quote
reverendsteveii · 3h ago
Work != job
One of my greatest pleasures has been orienting my life toward projects and away from pleasures. I now find myself doing a lot of what other people consider work, but self-directed and self-paced in a way that brings me incredible, deep satisfaction. No one, including me, forces me to do these things. I do them because I like doing them. Bodybuilding, maintaining my home, lawn and garden, cooking/brewing/fermenting, building software. I'm not an extraordinarily wealthy man but if I woke up tomorrow with "comfortably live the rest of your life based on interest alone" money I don't suspect my life would change all that much.
Once you're doing that sort of work, the meaning of this rule will become clear as will its meaninglessness.
PaulRobinson · 3h ago
If these are in priority order, sure. If not, it's 0.9909% of the rules of living.
That Machiavelli quote is a poor take on love as part of life, I agree.
In defense of TFA though, it is titled rules of effective living, not necessarily happy living.
The rules on avoiding cruel people and who treat others badly are kind of like an anti-rule that works here though: if you're judicious and conscientious about that, I think you just end up with loving people around you, in every type of relationship: acquaintance, familial, friendship, intimate...
pricees · 6h ago
“35) Give no second chances to anyone who shows disrespect“
This is one of the worst rules I have ever read. Taken literally it can squander a life otherwise well lived.
turnsout · 5h ago
Yeah, might as well make the rule "35) Be inflexible and cruel when it suits you."
xivzgrev · 4h ago
I like how these kind of lists get us talking and thinking about our own experiences. What do you agree with, not agree with?
“Those who bill by the hour work not for you but for the hour.” Strikes me as cynical. Yes some people can run up the clock, but paying by the hour is also fundamentally the most fair work arrangement. You are asking for someone’s time, you pay for that time.
Flat rate work gets into their own issues. For example, suppose you want your home deep cleaned and someone charges you $x to do so. A great deal!
Except you find after the fact they missed a lot of stuff. Technically they followed through on the letter of what you agreed to but they did the bare minimum. There’s no pride in the work. If you had paid by the hour, you could’ve asked them to stay and focus on some areas that matter more to you.
Or conversely, there’s lots of horror stories here about devs accepting flat rate work and getting endlessly dragged thru change requests
reverendsteveii · 4h ago
>I like how these kind of lists get us talking and thinking about our own experiences. What do you agree with, not agree with?
I panned this list in a different comment but I like it a lot better from this perspective. It's not necessarily there to be right. Sometimes it's there to say things to which your immediate response is "That's bullshit" but in a way that forces you to articulate why, or (and this is even better) to admit that you can't. Like when I read Heinlein.
edoceo · 3h ago
I bill by the hour, but in chunks (20, 40, etc). I do discovery, define scope and that I determine scope, then work on narrow scoped thing. (Hard part) document each ECR, set scope and communicate price. Likely to next billed-task. Kinda combines fixed&hourly; not perfect.
ngangaga · 6h ago
If point 2 is something so subjective as "deal plainly", point 0 should probably be "be honest with yourself". More to the point—why would anyone want to do otherwise? The hard part is satisfying your own evaluation.
> 4) There exists uncanny congruity between thought and experience.
Charitably, there must be a more effective way to articulate this sentiment.
I could go on, but that seems sufficient to address the overall tone of the writing.
EDIT: I apologize for being so critical. These are clearly well-thought-out points and I'm not trying to detract from that. I'm just not sure how to process someone else's internal understanding of themselves in a generally useful manner.
jewayne · 6h ago
Yeah, I just realized there are two very different ways to parse the statement. I initially saw it as "Experiences shape thoughts in predictable ways." But the other way to interpret it is "Attitude shapes experiences in predictable ways."
tcfhgj · 4h ago
> why would anyone want to do otherwise?
lying to yourself is sometimes a easy way out of cognitive dissonance
reverendsteveii · 4h ago
this feels like another person who sits by himself thinking about things that sound wise to him. he operates on the assumption that he is wise because wise sounding things sound wise to him, and also that those things are wise because they sound wise to him and he is wise. they're great for books, blogs and other one-way forms of communication where their entire job is just satisfying fridge logic so that the audience upvotes and moves along. not so much for dialogue and discussion that will eventually sort every point into buckets labelled "meaningless" or "self-evident". it's the tobacconist's yoga: a contortionate attempt to blow smoke up one's own ass unassisted.
corry · 5h ago
101 rules? Too many. I vastly prefer not a rule but THE life challenge with thanks to Mary Oliver:
"Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?"
bwfan123 · 4h ago
these 100 rules are missing an important one. step back, and simplify. these rules are a result of overthinking which is something to avoid.
far simpler rules have been laid out numerous times in the classics.
such as: the golden rule of ethics, ie, dont do unto others what you dont want done to you, and the serenity prayer etc.
jebarker · 5h ago
I often wonder if there's any real benefit in reading things like this. Philosophising (and meditating) without putting it into practice in your life is largely worthless, but I tend to think with ideas like this you only learn them through experience.
world2vec · 4h ago
Some points contradict others:
20) Get away from cruel people—at all costs.
58) “If we must choose between them, it is far safer to be feared than loved.” (Machiavelli)
This is simply a self-help back-of-the-book quotes compilation.
awkward · 6h ago
> 7) Do not over-talk.
> 72) A positive mental attitude means evaluating circumstances based on their capacity for self-development.
aquariusDue · 5h ago
At some point a committee ought to write a manual for life and living. Though by most accounts it might be easier to write a modern standard library for C.
CompoundEyes · 4h ago
These things remind me of the book “My Year of Living Biblically” by A.J. Jacobs. In our lives if we stopped to consult a list of all the platitudes we’ve ever come across one by one each time we did or experienced anything it would be similarly as absurd full of contradiction paralyzing.
neilv · 5h ago
> 8) Speak only of what you know well.
OK, but that's going to wipe out 99%+ of Internet 'content', HN included.
keiferski · 5h ago
I’ve thought about this before and concluded that it’s because HN/other sites are somewhat hostile to the approach of beginner’s mind, admitting you know nothing but want to learn more, etc. Asking basic questions tends to get you ridiculed or downvoted, and most subreddits have onerous lists of rules you have to follow before asking anything. YouTube and TikTok also incentivize acting like someone that has no doubts and is completely certain that they’re right.
I suppose that dynamic isn’t hugely different from a typical in-person social situation (e.g., a classroom where kids are afraid to look stupid by asking questions) but it would be cool if a social platform incentivized people to ask “dumb” questions they are curious about.
At this point though, ChatGPT is basically fulfilling this function for me, and its lack of judgement is refreshing compared to the typical Ask subreddit.
gilleain · 4h ago
Agreed about questions, although I have seen people have positive results by starting their question with some humility.
However there is the opposite problem - usually known as 'the empty pot sounds loudest' - where those who respond or comment are often those with the confidence of their simplistic opinions. Those with a more nuanced or expert view are more hesitant, so are less likely to weigh in.
HN is a lot better than other places (youtube comments! reddit!) but of course falls into these traps as well.
mudiadamz · 6h ago
More like how to be mediocre boring life advice
ngangaga · 6h ago
Ach, there's no need to be a dick.
mbb70 · 5h ago
> 42) Do not be an asshole.
This list is paying dividends already!
> 41) Use sarcasm rarely.
...Shoot
linsomniac · 5h ago
Reluctantly admitting 41 is correct right here.
whooshnoise · 5h ago
Odd that this list made you so angry you had to post how boring the people who follow must be? I feel sorry for you. Honestly. Judgement of others tends to make people miserable.
AtlasBarfed · 5h ago
102. Exercise
WastedCucumber · 4h ago
103. Wear sunscreen.
noja · 4h ago
Everybody's Free To Wear Sunscreen
whooshnoise · 5h ago
I didn’t know Thoreau read “The Secret”.
jdalgetty · 5h ago
I always enjoy reading these.
daveguy · 5h ago
> 100) Those who bill by the hour work not for you but for the hour.
This is just not true. Some bill by the hour to be certain that full and focused work is applied for you and your project. In other words, if someone is following even a fraction of these 101 rules, then they are working for you. Maybe I am misunderstanding what this rule is trying to say. But, it seems like the mode of payment is completely orthogonal to the motive and priority of the person working.
jxjnskkzxxhx · 3h ago
> In terms of investments, virtually nothing, over time, outpaces an index fund.
Stopped reading here, waste of time.
iJohnDoe · 4h ago
A lot of these are learned through experiences in life. When you’re young it’s almost impossible to understand or recognize some of these in the moment. As you get older, you start to learn what’s important to you, and what you like and don’t like. Then you tend to respond quicker to situations.
FollowingTheDao · 5h ago
You do not need 101 rules. Just embrace the three treasures of the Dao:
Compassion, frugality, and humility.
throwaway_sage · 5h ago
honestly a very good list (is it good because I happen to follow nearly all of these rules?)
TEMPERANCE. Eat not to dullness; drink not to elevation.
SILENCE. Speak not but what may benefit others or yourself; avoid trifling conversation.
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.
INDUSTRY. Lose no time; be always employ’d in something useful; cut off all unnecessary actions.
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.
MODERATION. Avoid extremes; forbear resenting injuries so much as you think they deserve.
CLEANLINESS. Tolerate no uncleanliness in body, cloaths, or habitation.
TRANQUILLITY. Be not disturbed at trifles, or at accidents common or unavoidable.
CHASTITY. Rarely use venery but for health or offspring, never to dulness, weakness, or the injury of your own or another’s peace or reputation.
HUMILITY. Imitate Jesus and Socrates.
---
When I am an old woman I shall wear purple
With a red hat which doesn’t go, and doesn’t suit me.
And I shall spend my pension on brandy and summer gloves
And satin sandals, and say we’ve no money for butter.
I shall sit down on the pavement when I’m tired
And gobble up samples in shops and press alarm bells
And run my stick along the public railings
And make up for the sobriety of my youth.
I shall go out in my slippers in the rain
And pick the flowers in other people’s gardens
And learn to spit.
After a ton of training I realized he will never stop barking, he can realize that what he is doing is not right, but the urge to bark at every noise he hears will always be something we have to work on. We will never get it "right".
I think Ben Franklins strict rules are the same way. Obviously you can't run your entire life with military discipline, but you have to set the ideal fairly high because you are going to fall short over and over.
> Be steady and well-ordered in your life so that you can be fierce and original in your work
https://www.poetry.com/poem/141551/warning
(When I am an old woman, I will annotate other people's comments, With inapposite quibbling or info they already know ...)
[0] https://www.ushistory.org/franklin/autobiography/page38.htm
I'm always wary of people who spend too much time in the world of inspirational books. It's healthy to read a little, and to "sharpen the ax" every so often, but reading too much of this stuff is mind-numbing outside of historiography reasons.
I cannot overstate how absolutely hollow it must be that work is your #1 rule of living
The next saddest thing is that the only mention of love is a fucking Machiavelli quote
One of my greatest pleasures has been orienting my life toward projects and away from pleasures. I now find myself doing a lot of what other people consider work, but self-directed and self-paced in a way that brings me incredible, deep satisfaction. No one, including me, forces me to do these things. I do them because I like doing them. Bodybuilding, maintaining my home, lawn and garden, cooking/brewing/fermenting, building software. I'm not an extraordinarily wealthy man but if I woke up tomorrow with "comfortably live the rest of your life based on interest alone" money I don't suspect my life would change all that much.
Once you're doing that sort of work, the meaning of this rule will become clear as will its meaninglessness.
That Machiavelli quote is a poor take on love as part of life, I agree.
In defense of TFA though, it is titled rules of effective living, not necessarily happy living.
The rules on avoiding cruel people and who treat others badly are kind of like an anti-rule that works here though: if you're judicious and conscientious about that, I think you just end up with loving people around you, in every type of relationship: acquaintance, familial, friendship, intimate...
This is one of the worst rules I have ever read. Taken literally it can squander a life otherwise well lived.
“Those who bill by the hour work not for you but for the hour.” Strikes me as cynical. Yes some people can run up the clock, but paying by the hour is also fundamentally the most fair work arrangement. You are asking for someone’s time, you pay for that time.
Flat rate work gets into their own issues. For example, suppose you want your home deep cleaned and someone charges you $x to do so. A great deal!
Except you find after the fact they missed a lot of stuff. Technically they followed through on the letter of what you agreed to but they did the bare minimum. There’s no pride in the work. If you had paid by the hour, you could’ve asked them to stay and focus on some areas that matter more to you.
Or conversely, there’s lots of horror stories here about devs accepting flat rate work and getting endlessly dragged thru change requests
I panned this list in a different comment but I like it a lot better from this perspective. It's not necessarily there to be right. Sometimes it's there to say things to which your immediate response is "That's bullshit" but in a way that forces you to articulate why, or (and this is even better) to admit that you can't. Like when I read Heinlein.
> 4) There exists uncanny congruity between thought and experience.
Charitably, there must be a more effective way to articulate this sentiment.
I could go on, but that seems sufficient to address the overall tone of the writing.
EDIT: I apologize for being so critical. These are clearly well-thought-out points and I'm not trying to detract from that. I'm just not sure how to process someone else's internal understanding of themselves in a generally useful manner.
lying to yourself is sometimes a easy way out of cognitive dissonance
"Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?"
far simpler rules have been laid out numerous times in the classics.
such as: the golden rule of ethics, ie, dont do unto others what you dont want done to you, and the serenity prayer etc.
20) Get away from cruel people—at all costs.
58) “If we must choose between them, it is far safer to be feared than loved.” (Machiavelli)
This is simply a self-help back-of-the-book quotes compilation.
> 72) A positive mental attitude means evaluating circumstances based on their capacity for self-development.
OK, but that's going to wipe out 99%+ of Internet 'content', HN included.
I suppose that dynamic isn’t hugely different from a typical in-person social situation (e.g., a classroom where kids are afraid to look stupid by asking questions) but it would be cool if a social platform incentivized people to ask “dumb” questions they are curious about.
At this point though, ChatGPT is basically fulfilling this function for me, and its lack of judgement is refreshing compared to the typical Ask subreddit.
However there is the opposite problem - usually known as 'the empty pot sounds loudest' - where those who respond or comment are often those with the confidence of their simplistic opinions. Those with a more nuanced or expert view are more hesitant, so are less likely to weigh in.
HN is a lot better than other places (youtube comments! reddit!) but of course falls into these traps as well.
This list is paying dividends already!
> 41) Use sarcasm rarely.
...Shoot
This is just not true. Some bill by the hour to be certain that full and focused work is applied for you and your project. In other words, if someone is following even a fraction of these 101 rules, then they are working for you. Maybe I am misunderstanding what this rule is trying to say. But, it seems like the mode of payment is completely orthogonal to the motive and priority of the person working.
Stopped reading here, waste of time.
Compassion, frugality, and humility.
nonetheless i made an account just to support it