What was Benjamin Franklin’s Greatest Invention?

Benjamin Franklin was one of the most important inventors in American History. When a student recently asked me: “What was Franklin’s greatest invention, the obvious answer might be the lightning rod, which has saved countless lives, bifocal glasses, which have improved the quality of life for so many, or the Franklin stove, which both saved lives AND improved their quality. My answer is somewhat different. I believe that Franklin’s greatest “invention” was the concept of

PAY IT FORWARD

Franklin did not invent this concept. Over the millennia, great thinkers and ordinary people alike realized the power to do good simply because it is right and make life better for future generations. What Franklin did was to put a uniquely American spin on the concept and do so consistently and effectively. With such a significant impact, our lives today still feel the incredible effect.

Benjamin Franklin was a highly industrious and extremely successful businessman. He believed in thrift, efficiency, and investment. He was so financially successful that he could retire when he was 42 years old! Due to his business acumen, he never wanted for money.

Even before he accumulated a great fortune, Franklin recognized the responsibility to pay it forward. He loved books, and books were luxury items to many people. Solution? He founded the first lending library in the United States.

Every time you walk into a library, you owe a debt of gratitude to Benjamin Franklin. He was generous in donating both time and money to causes important to the social good on an individual level.

Franklin also saw the importance of communities working together for their mutual improvement. He was forever forming organizations for civic improvement. Philadelphia owes its first fire department, police department, hospital,

psychiatric facility, and so much more to Franklin and his fellow citizens. This was not just a great benefit to Philadelphia; Franklin actively and purposefully was setting an example, hoping that other communities would follow.

He barely had formal education, yet he loved learning and had an amazingly inventive and flexible mind. His scientific investigations and inventions tended to focus on practical applications. He almost certainly never flew a kite in a lightning storm, but his experiments on electricity led to the lightning rod’s development.

That focus on practical applications is one of the greatest examples of Franklin paying it forward.

Once wealthy and secure, Benjamin Franklin refused to patent or profit from inventions that would improve the lives of hard-working, money-strapped, average Americans. The Franklin stove

was at one time omnipresent in homes throughout the colonies and the early USA. Had Franklin patented, produced, and sold the invention, it would’ve vastly added to his tremendous wealth. But Franklin gave it away, hoping it would make the lives of others better. He wrote that he wanted his discoveries to be used to improve efficiency, the spread of commerce, and, most importantly, improve the quality of life of average Americans.

Today, we see the Franklin model of paying it forward reflected in others’ philanthropic activities who have been financially successful. Prominent examples, such as the Rockefeller, MacArthur, and Gates family foundations, have hugely impacted America. But perhaps the most important part of Franklin’s example of paying it forward is that he did so before becoming wealthy and influential. All of us have something we can give to our community. We have time or skill, surplus goods, or expertise. All of these can be donated to make our communities better.