The Self Made Man: 3 Transformative Habits For Greatness in 2025

When we think about the "self made man" many of us may find that an entrepreneur or a businessman may come to mind. In America the rags to riches story of financial success has gripped our hearts and motivated our pockets since commerce first landed on the promised shores of Plymouth. Perhaps this is an opportunity to highlight one of the great errors of modern thinking, that money is the primary defining trait of a man. Don't get me wrong, financial success is very important as this world is not kind to those who are in poverty, but financial success alone oftentimes leaves one empty and yearning for something more. 

The self made man is one who has not only cultivated a business, but more especially one who has cultivated his mind and his character. Benjamin Franklin's self-education took him from servitude to status as the most famous man on earth. With a mere 2 years of formal schooling Benjamin was able to tackle and wrestle with some of the greatest philosophical and scientific problems of his day, and deliver solutions to those problems in the form of a republic and bifocals. While we should aim for making as much money as we can, we should in parallel aim for those intellectual achievements that polish our minds and adorn our souls.

Here are 3 daily practices you can take on in 2025 to transform yourself into the self made man:

1. Reading Books

The self made man builds both his internal and external worlds simultaneously. Reading is one of the most popular and time tested method of self-improvement. The printing press opened the floodgates of knowledge unto a world previously kept in darkness. As books became more available the vast knowledge of all mankind became accessible to even the humblest of humans. Previously men lived in darkness to the realities that existed even a few mere miles away from them, now the auto-mechanic and farmer can read Shakespeare and the History of the Orient on their lunch break. The self made man is a constant reader and devours books with zeal. 

2. Writing

The habit of reading sets the self made man on his path to private enlightenment but too often does one read endlessly yet never write a single one of their own thoughts down. Nietzsche said himself that we should read fewer books lest we lose our own ability to think and offload our ideas to the authors who we consume. There is great wisdom here to be reflected upon! We should read with skepticism, challenging the ideas presented before us against the grindstone of truth, and never become too dependent on the thinking of others for personal decisions and beliefs. 

One of the best ways to exercise our own minds actively is to write. You can write about anything! You can write a journal about the eggs you had for breakfast, you can write about your kids, or maybe you will stretch your mind to the highest realms of philosophy and write down your thoughts on truth and error. The writing habit is easily paired with the reading habit in the form of book reports or journal entries on what you read. Write your book reports and share them with you friends, who knows how much you may inspire them to do!

3. Physical Exercise

The self made man is nothing without his health. It was said "A healthy man has a thousand wishes, a sick man has only one." In the far-off future days of our lives, when our bodies are broken and our muscles are weak, we will surely be willing to trade all of the knowledge in the world for a sound body once again. Let us not neglect our physical specimen! Start now the habit of regular exercise and it will carry you to an energetic future! It can be as simple as a daily walk, but anything that gets the body moving and retains health is virtuous and good. 

It is well known that a health active body is conducive to a healthy and active mind. Many of the irregularities in thinking (depression, anxiety, stress, etc) are obliterated by strenuous activity. Even if you aren't concerned with having a 6 pack or being the most shredded guy at the lake this summer, don't neglect this hack to a clearer head!

All in all, the man who regularly engages these 3 habits is setting himself on a path that will distinguish him from his peers as time passes and our habits crystallize into our character.

By Warren Steury 32°

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