Here are questions in the spirit of Benjamin Franklin—practical, industrious, morally serious, but with a wit and self-awareness about human nature:
What did I do today that will matter in ten years? In fifty?
How many hours did I lose to amusements that brought neither profit nor genuine refreshment?
If I were to die tomorrow, would I be satisfied with how I spent this week?
Am I rising early enough to get a head start on the day, or am I surrendering my best hours to the pillow?
What is the one thing I have been putting off that, if done, would improve my circumstances most?
Am I busy, or am I productive? There is a great difference.
What useful skill have I neglected to learn that would serve me and others?
Do I finish what I start, or do I have a graveyard of half-built projects?
Where am I being lazy and calling it patience? Where am I being hasty and calling it ambition?
If I counted the hours I spent this year on trifles, would I be ashamed of the sum?
Do I spend less than I earn, or am I slowly digging a hole I will one day fall into?
What am I buying to impress others that does nothing to improve my own condition?
Have I invested in myself—in books, tools, education—or only in comforts and vanities?