Benjamin Franklin on Time Tracking

Dost thou love life? Then do not squander time; for that's the stuff life is made of.

Lost time is never found again.

—Benjamin Franklin

Benjamin Franklin's net worth was an estimated $50 million in today's currency. He was a prolific writer, inventor, and business titan. He was also the first person of his standing to share his time tracking and time blocking system. This system wasn't just about productivity; it was a key part of his lifelong project to achieve "moral perfection" through his 13 Virtues. The schedule was his practical tool for the virtue of Order. In his autobiography (1790) he wrote:

The precept of Order requiring that every part of my business should have its allotted time, one page in my little book contained the following scheme of employment for the twenty-four hours of a natural day:

I entered upon the execution of this plan for self-examination, and continued it with occasional intermissions for some time. I was surprised to find myself so much fuller of faults than I had imagined; but I had the satisfaction of seeing them diminish.

From Franklin's "Little Book" to AI Tracking

Franklin's "little book" was his tool for self-examination. This manual tracking revealed a surprising truth: he was "so much fuller of faults than I had imagined." But by diligently tracking, he had the "satisfaction of seeing them diminish."

This is the core principle of improvement: what gets measured gets managed. Do you know how many hours you lose each week to brief distractions on X.com, Reddit, or YouTube? Franklin had to track his "faults" by hand, a laborious process. Today, you don't need to carry a little book to get the same insights. Cronus is the modern equivalent, an AI-powered time tracker that automatically shows you where your day truly goes. It pinpoints distractions and uncovers patterns, giving you the same self-awareness Franklin sought, so you too can diminish your "faults" and reclaim your time.

What we can learn from Franklin's time tracking system

In his autobiography he dedicated time each morning to "prosecute the present study" meaning he decided time to learn and follow his curiosities. How much time do you spend every day doing this? Writing blog posts, reading books, learning new skills, etc. If you want to learn how much time you spend on tasks like this you can use Cronus to track your time using AI. Our ai calendar integration and manual-tracking feature also make it effortless to track how your spend your time when you're away from your computer.