Franklin suggests that hardship can feel more bearable when a person expects some worthwhile benefit from enduring it. The prospect of gain gives present discomfort a purpose, making effort, sacrifice or delay easier to tolerate. In this sense, hope changes how a burden is experienced even when it does not remove the burden itself.

The word “gain” can refer to money, but the principle is broader. It may include improvement, achievement, security or any valued future outcome. Franklin’s saying does not imply that hoped-for rewards are certain, nor that all suffering is justified by possible benefit. Its central point is psychological and practical: people are often better able to persist through difficulty when they can see a credible reason for doing so. Anticipated reward can therefore provide motivation and make temporary hardship seem less severe.