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7 Personal Growth Quotes from Francis Bacon Essays [Of Studies]
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Francis Bacon was a true Renaissance man. He was proficient in many fields of study, including business, politics, medicine, philosophy, law, science, religion, writing, and literature. He was a prolific writer, played a leading role in creating the English colonies in North America, and is called the father of the scientific method. When looking for personal growth quotes and insights, there can be no better candidate for this task.
It should not be a surprise that Francis Bacon was included in the list of the 100 most influential people of the last millennium by A&E Networks.
Francis Bacon Essays is a collection of writings filled with wisdom that still reigns true today, 500 years later. He valued the accumulation of wealth, knowledge, and power. Needless to say, he would not be a Renaissance man without undergoing some serious personal growth and development.
Francis Bacon’s essay ‘Of Studies’ is an excellent example of the relevance of his wisdom today. In this essay, he outlined personal growth challenges and mapped out a path for self-development.
The 7 personal growth quotes here will be initially written in the original language of Francis Bacon. [He was a contemporary of William Shakespeare] They will be then rewritten into modern English for ease of understanding.
The 7 personal growth quotes and challenges from Francis Bacon Essay ‘Of Studies’
- Understand your “why.”
- Plan out your time and educational journey
- Supplement your education with experience
- Keep an open mind
- Use prudence in how you approach your studies
- Diversify the methods of personal growth
- Be well versed in multiple subjects, an erudite
1 Understand Your “Why.”
“Studies serve for Delight, for Ornament, and for Ability. Their chiefe use for Delight is in privateness and retiring; for Ornament is in discourse; and for Ability, is in judgement and disposition of Businesse. “
Francis Bacon
“Studies are used for enjoyment, for embellishment, and for competence. Their main use for enjoyment is in privateness and retiring; for bragging and embellishment in conversation; and for competence, in reasoning and business. “
Francis Bacon
How to implement this personal growth challenge
The first of personal growth quotes from Francis Bacon is discernment between different types of education. Different studies serve different purposes. These include personal development, communication skills and social development, and business sense development.
Personal Development and Enjoyment
Everything you read and do adds to your level of education. However, education does not need to be grueling. You can spend an evening relaxing with a good book. Or you can take a class and develop a new hobby. Whatever you choose to do, just remember it is all part of your personal development and treat it as such. Grow and enjoy the growth.
Social and Communication Skills
The second type of personal development is the improvement of your social skills. This includes education on current events and popular culture. Getting out there and having a good discussion about the latest movie, book, and Netflix series are all essential for good communication skills. This means that the time you spent watching that latest Netflix series can add to your education and be part of your social skills. Of course, you can also discuss the latest current events, politics, religion, science, or philosophy.
Business Sense and Reasoning Skills
Finally, the last type of study is formal education. This type of education would include any formal or informal classes and books related to improving your area of expertise. Becoming a stronger negotiator, a better salesperson, or an improved musician is all part of improving your business skills.
Before taking an educational journey, understand your “why” behind it.
2 Plan out your time and educational journey
“To spend too much time in Studies is sloth; use them too much for ornament, is affectation; to make judgement wholly by their rules is the humour of a Scholler.” Francis Bacon
Francis Bacon
“To spend too much time on education is laziness; use it too much for ornament is pretentiousness; to make decisions solely by its rules is the illness of a scholar.”
Francis Bacon
How to implement this personal growth challenge
After understanding the ‘why’ behind your educational journey, differentiate the types of studies. Plan out and set a specific timeframe you plan to spend on the educational journey. Being a continuous learner is very important, but spending all of your time just on learning is not recommended.
If you spend years and years in college and have multiple degrees, you may want to ask yourself why you need these degrees. Francis Bacon pointed out that spending too much time on education is laziness. Time is finite, and if you spend all of your time studying, that means you are not spending time living and implementing your learnings.
Again, similar to the first point, be careful if you find yourself using your knowledge to show off how smart you are. To use your education for showing off is pretentiousness. Your audience may not look at you as wise but more as pretentious. Respect is not earned through pretentiousness; it typically turns people away from you.
To make decisions based wholly on what you have learned is the illness of a learned person. Typically book smarts and street smarts are not one and the same. For example, in the world of business, you may have an MBA and all of the formal education. However, unless you start running your own business, you may not fully understand all of the intricacies of the business world. Therefore, be careful not to base all of your decisions on what you studied; take real-life experiences into account.
3 Supplement your education with experience
“They perfect Nature, and are perfected by Experience: for naturall abilities are like natural plants, that need proyning by study: and Studies themselves doe give forth directions too much at large, except they be bounded by in experience. Crafty man contemne Studies; simple men admire them: and wise men use them.”
Francis Bacon
“Learning perfects nature, and is perfected by experience: natural abilities are like plants, they need pruning by learning: and studies themselves give too many directions and need to be bounded by experience. Deceitful people scorn Studies; simple men admire them: and wise men use them. “
Francis Bacon
How to implement this personal growth challenge
“Learning perfects nature.” To live without learning new things would mean not living up to your full potential. Learning makes you a better person and helps you grow as a human being. When a plant is pruned, it grows healthier, better, and stronger. Francis Bacon correlates this by using education as means to pruning yourself to become the best person you can be. Stronger, smarter, better.
Education is perfected by experience. Francis Bacon elaborated that education in itself is extensive and can lead you in many directions.
A great example of having information without experience is opening a new business. You can do all of the research to evaluate the risks and opportunities, but you still may have difficulties making decisions and taking the steps to actually open the business. In addition, you may be stuck in what MBA school calls’ paralysis analysis.’ You will continue to gather information but will be unable to take the leap into action. The reason for this would be the lack of experience, and therefore making the first step is like taking a step into the unknown.
If by any chance you are stuck in paralysis analysis, take the leap, make the mistakes, gain the experience, and in the end, you will grow into a better and a stronger being. “Education is perfected by experience.”
4 Keep an Open Mind
“Reade not to contradict and confute, nor to believe and take for granted; nor to find talke and discourse; but to weigh and consider.”
Francis Bacon
“Read not to contradict and invalidate; nor to believe and take for granted; nor to find talk and discourse; but to weigh and consider.”
Francis Bacon
How to implement this personal growth challenge
The fourth of personal growth quotes, is to stay open to learning new ideas and weigh each one accordingly.
“Do not read to contradict and invalidate.”
This typically happens when someone is certain about a subject or an issue and considers themselves an expert. It is irrelevant whether or not they are actually experts; it’s what they believe themselves to be. It is a dangerous path; at this point, the mind is closed to new ideas and, therefore, growth. Whenever you are learning and studying, keep an open mind and accept an take care to consider the ideas presented.
“Do not believe and take for granted.”
This is the opposite of the prior warning and is just as dangerous. Here, the idea is accepted without consideration. This is dangerous because it can lead you astray from the truth and make you easily susceptible to the influence of other people.
“Nor to find talk and discourse.”
This ties into the ‘ornamental studies,’ or reading something not to develop your understanding but to show how smart you are. If you boast about reading Proust and Dostoyevsky, but have little knowledge of these men’s philosophy and teachings, then what good did reading these great artists do you?
“But to weigh and consider.”
Finally, Francis Bacon tells us that the point of reading and studying is for weighing the idea and considering whether or not to accept it.
Therefore, do not outright reject it, do not blindly believe it, do not superficially scan it, but weigh it out and decide whether you are willing to accept it.
5 Use prudence in how you approach studies
“Some Books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested: that is, some Books are to be read only in parts; others to read but not curiously; and some few to be read wholly, and with Diligence and Attention.”
Francis Bacon
“Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested: that is, some books are to be read in parts; others to be read but not with much thought, and some few to be read completely and with diligence and attention.”
Francis Bacon
How to implement this personal growth challenge
In addition to keeping an open mind, take care to select the books you are willing to spend time on carefully. Not every book deserves the same amount of time and attention.
“Some books are to be tasted …that is, some books are to be read in parts.”
There are some exceptional books out there that are meant to be read in parts. Think of encyclopedias and reference books. No one is expected to sit down and read cover to cover of an encyclopedia. The great series of books “For Dummies” is another excellent example of this. This may be applied to business, industry-specific, school textbooks and self-development books.
“Others to be swallowed… to be read but not with much thought.”
These books are no less important and are typically perfect for summer or vacation reading. They let you escape into a different reality and entertain you. They absolutely have a place in personal development and growth, just as long as you don’t stop there.
“Some few to be chewed and digested… some few to be read completely and with diligence and attention.”
These are the books that will take you longer to get through, but they will change and shape you. These books will have the most significant impact on your personal growth. They will challenge you, make you think, and most importantly, help you push the boundaries of yourself.
Download the List of 25 Books That Changed The World
6 Diversify the methods of personal growth
“Reading maketh a full man; Conference a ready man; and Writing an exact man.”
Francis Bacon
“Reading makes a full man; Conversation a ready man; and Writing an exact man.”
Francis Bacon
How to implement this personal growth challenge
To be a well-rounded being, it is vital to excel in reading, conversation, and writing. Practice these skills regularly.
Reading has been well discussed to this point. Francis Bacon states that it makes a complete man. Meaning it will fill you with knowledge. Without reading, your conversations and writings will suffer.
The second part of this challenge is conversation. Whether it’s public speaking or dinner conversation, how you speak is as important as what you have to say. Francis Bacon states it makes a ready man. Meaning whatever situation you will be placed in, you will be prepared to participate in the conversation intelligently and clearly.
The third part of this challenge is writing. Francis Bacon stated that it makes an exact man. Writing refines your thoughts; it organizes them and makes you understand yourself better. If you have never done a freeform thought dumping session, I highly recommend it. Take a piece of paper and just start writing down every thought that enters your mind; it is fascinating to see how writing will organize your thoughts and give you answers that were inside you all along. If you already practice regular journaling and writing, you don’t need Francis Bacon to tell you the benefits of this great exercise.
7 Be well versed in multiple subjects, an erudite
“Histories make men wise; Poets witty; the Mathematics subtill; Natural Philosophy deepe; Morall grave; Logick and Rhetorick able to contend.”
Francis Bacon
“Histories make men wise; Poets witty; the Mathematics refined; Natural Philosophy deep; Morals grave; Logic and Rhetoric able to debate.”
Francis Bacon
How to implement this personal growth challenge
Finally, Francis Bacon made a point of emphasizing the importance of each area of study. When selecting an area of self-development, understand each subject’s impact on you.
“Histories make men wise.”
We learn from our history, either by repeating the successes of the past or avoiding the mistakes of history. You should make a point to study history to know what made people successful. Learn from these successes and use that knowledge.
“Poets witty; “
There is nothing that can teach you how to express yourself better than poetry. Not only are poets able to put words together in the most unique ways, but through their stanzas, you will feel every emotion and truly see the beauty of written words.
“The Mathematics refined;”
Today, the study of mathematics is not very popular. Most grow up disliking it. However, it is truly a science that transcends language and culture. Math permeates every fiber of our existence on earth. Through math, you can get any point across, prove theorems, and refine your own logic. The better acquainted you will get with math, the better equipped you will be at excelling in any other subject.
“Natural Philosophy deep;.”
In the time of Francis Bacon, natural philosophy was one of many branches of philosophy. It is what we now consider natural science. It’s not surprising that the ‘father of the scientific method’ would include study of science in his essays. Understanding the root of your existence and place in the universe from a scientific and philosophical perspective will make you a person to be reckoned with.
“Morals serious;”
Moral studies, or ethics, was another branch of philosophy in the 15th century. It included a study of traditions, individuals, and societies. Today we call these sociology, psychology, and philosophy. Whether you choose to study Immanuel Kant and his notions of duty and right conduct, or Confucius and his discussion on ethics and the meaning of being human, you will walk away with more knowledge on your place in this universe from a moral perspective.
“Logic and Rhetoric able to debate.”
The definition for logic and rhetoric is intellectual self-defense against persuasion. Keep an open mind it is essential. More importantly, you shoud not be swayed by every new idea. Having a solid sense of critical thinking and rhetoric will give you a robust belief system. Studying the works of Aristotle, Plato and Socrates will provide an excellent basis for reasoning, critical thinking and debate.
Abeunt studia in mores
The last of personal growth quotes is the explanation as to why you should focus on personal growth.
“Abeunt Studia in Mores – Studies change into habits”
Francis Bacon
Francis Bacon essay “Of Studies” covered the importance and challenges of personal growth and development. He summarized the essay with the Latin phrase “Abeunt studia in mores (Studies change into habits).” Habits make us who we are. Therefore, your studies will shape you into the person you want to be.
- Understand your “why.”
- Plan out your time and educational journey
- Supplement your education with experience
- Keep an open mind
- Use prudence in how you approach studies
- Diversify the methods of personal growth
- Be well versed in multiple subjects, an erudite
List of 25 Books That Changed the World
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