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Work

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Quotations

Theodore RooseveltWhen you play, play hard; when you work, don't play at all.

—  Theodore Roosevelt, 1858-1919, American President [1901-1909]

17 likes
George CarlinMost people work just hard enough not to get fired and get paid just enough money not to quit.

—  George Carlin, 1936-2008, American comedian

11 likes
Oscar WildeWork is the curse of the drinking classes.

—  Oscar Wilde, 1854-1900, Irish writer

7 likes
James BarrieNothing is really work unless you would rather be doing something else.

—  James Barrie, 1860-1937, English writer

6 likes
Peter DruckerProduction is not the application of tools to materials, but logic to work.

—  Peter Drucker, 1909–2005, Austrian management guru

5 likes
Elbert HubbardOne machine can do the work of fifty ordinary men. No machine can do the work of one extraordinary man.

—  Elbert Hubbard, 1856-1915, American writer

5 likes
Frank TygerWhen you like your work every day is a holiday.

—  Frank Tyger, 1929-2011, American cartoonist

4 likes
Sigmund FreudThree of life's most important areas: work, love, and taking responsibility.

—  Sigmund Freud, 1856-1939, Austrian psychologist, founder of psychoanalysis

4 likes
Noel CowardWork is much more fun than fun.

—  Noel Coward, 1899-1973, British playwright

4 likes
Ayn RandThe quickest way to kill the human spirit is to ask someone to do mediocre work.

—  Ayn Rand, 1905-1982, American writer & philosopher

3 likes
Aristotle OnassisAt your work you must be serious but at life you must be crazy.

—  Aristotle Onassis, 1900-1975, Greek tycoon

3 likes
VoltaireOur labor preserves us from three great evils -- weariness, vice, and want.

—  Voltaire, 1694-1778, French philosopher & writer

3 likes
Thomas EdisonI owe my success to the fact that I never had a clock in my workroom. Seventy-five of us worked twenty hours every day and slept only four hours — and thrived on it.

—  Thomas Edison, 1847-1934, American inventor

3 likes
H. Jackson Brown, Jr.Work at something you enjoy and that's worthy of your time and talent.

—  H. Jackson Brown, Jr., 1940-2021, American self-help writer

3 likes
Elbert HubbardTrue life lies in laughter, love and work.

—  Elbert Hubbard, 1856-1915, American writer

3 likes
Karl KrausDemocracy divides people into workers and loafers. It makes no provision for those who have no time to work.

—  Karl Kraus, 1874-1936, Austrian writer

3 likes
Robert FrostThe reason why worry kills more people than work is that more people worry than work.

—  Robert Frost, 1874-1963, American poet

3 likes
Lou HoltzWinners embrace hard work. They love the discipline of it, the trade-off they're making to win. Losers, on the other hand, see it as punishment. And that's the difference.

—  Lou Holtz, 1937-, American football coach

3 likes
Anatole FranceMan is so made that he can only find relaxation from one kind of labor by taking up another.

—  Anatole France, 1844-1924, French writer, Nobel 1921

3 likes
Wallace StevensI certainly do not exist from nine to six, when I am at the office.

—  Wallace Stevens, 1879-1955, American poet

3 likes
Vincent Van GoghOne must work and dare if one really wants to live.

—  Vincent Van Gogh, 1853-1890, Dutch painter

3 likes
John WoodenNothing will work unless you do.

—  John Wooden, 1910-2010, American basketball coach

2 likes
John WoodenDon’t let making a living prevent you from making a life.

—  John Wooden, 1910-2010, American basketball coach

2 likes
Ralph Waldo EmersonAs a cure for worrying, work is better than whiskey.

—  Ralph Waldo Emerson, 1803-1884, American philosopher

2 likes
Samuel JohnsonLabor, if it were not necessary for existence, would be indispensable for the happiness of man.

—  Samuel Johnson, 1709-1784, English writer

2 likes
Philip SidneyIf you neglect your work, you will dislike it; if you do it well, you will enjoy it.

—  Philip Sidney, 1554-1586, English poet & courtier

2 likes
Thomas EdisonWe often miss opportunity because it's dressed in overalls and looks like work.

—  Thomas Edison, 1847-1934, American inventor

2 likes
Thomas EdisonThe First 40 hours of work per week are for survival. Everything after that is for success.

—  Thomas Edison, 1847-1934, American inventor

2 likes
Jim RohnThe worst days of those who enjoy what they do are better than the best days of those who don’t.

—  Jim Rohn, 1930-2009, American self-help speker

2 likes
Peter DruckerThe society of organizations is new; only seventy years ago employees were a small minority in every society.

—  Peter Drucker, 1909–2005, Austrian management guru

2 likes
Elbert HubbardWe work to become, not to acquire.

—  Elbert Hubbard, 1856-1915, American writer

2 likes
Elbert HubbardThe best preparation for good work tomorrow is to do good work today.

—  Elbert Hubbard, 1856-1915, American writer

2 likes
Vince LombardiThere is no substitute for work.

—  Vince Lombardi, 1913-1970, American football coach

2 likes
Michel TournierWork is against human nature. The proof is that it makes us tired.

—  Michel Tournier, 1924-2016, French writer

2 likes
Bill VaughanWork is the means of living, but it is not living.

—  Bill Vaughan, 1915-1977, American journalist

Baltasar GracianThe right kind of leisure is better than the wrong kind of work.

—  Baltasar Gracian, 1601-1658, Spanish writer

Bertrand RussellOne of the symptoms of an approaching nervous breakdown is the belief that one's work is terribly important.

—  Bertrand Russell, 1872-1970, British philosopher

Leonardo da VinciGod sells us all things at the price of labor.

—  Leonardo da Vinci, 1452-1519, Italian polymath & painter

Mother TeresaWork without love is slavery.

—  Mother Teresa, 1910-1997, Albanian-Indian nun & missionary

Honoré de BalzacHappiness depends on courage and work.

—  Honoré de Balzac, 1799-1850, French writer

Honoré de BalzacJobs are like marriages; we end by feeling only their inconveniences.

—  Honoré de Balzac, 1799-1850, French writer

Barbara WaltersWork harder than everybody. You're not going to get it by whining, and you're not going to get it by shouting, and you're not going to get it by quitting. You're going to get it by being there.

—  Barbara Walters, 1929-2022, American TV journalist

André MalrauxThere is no dignity and there is no real life for the man who works twelve hours a day without knowing why he works.

—  André Malraux, 1901-1976, French writer & statesman

Marcel AchardI have too much energy to work.

—  Marcel Achard, 1899-1974, French playwright

Marshall McLuhanMan works when he is partially involved. When he is totally involved he is at play or leisure.

—  Marshall McLuhan, 1911-1980, Canadian academic & media theorist

Erica JongWe're programmed for suffering, not joy. The masochism is built in at a very early age. You're supposed to work and suffer – and the trouble is: you believe it.

—  Erica Jong, 1942-, American writer

D. H. LawrenceYou'll never succeed in idealizing hard work. Before you can dig mother earth you've got to take off your ideal jacket. The harder a man works, at brute labor, the thinner becomes his idealism, the darker his mind.

—  D. H. Lawrence, 1885-1930, British writer

Henri JeansonAny profession that does not make you forget about work is slavery.

—  Henri Jeanson, 1900-1970, French critic & columnist

Henri JeansonWork! It’s good for those who have nothing to do.

—  Henri Jeanson, 1900-1970, French critic & columnist

Alexandre Dumas, filsThere is only one legitimate way, which is work, to make money, and since a lot of people don't want to use it, a lot of misunderstanding results.

—  Alexandre Dumas, fils, 1824-1895, French writer

Marty RubinThere should be a law against doing work one doesn’t like or believe in.

—  Marty Rubin, 1930-1994, Canadian gay activist, author & journalist

George HerbertGood workemen are seldome rich.

—  George Herbert, 1593-1633, Welsh poet

François RabelaisMan was born to work, like birds to fly.

—  François Rabelais, 1484-1553, French writer

Joseph ConradA man is a worker. If he is not that he is nothing.

—  Joseph Conrad, 1857-1924, British-Polish writer

Joseph ConradI don't like work... but I like what is in work – the chance to find yourself. Your own reality – for yourself, not for others – which no other man can ever know.

—  Joseph Conrad, 1857-1924, British-Polish writer

Leonardo da VinciIt vexes me greatly that having to earn my living has forced me to interrupt the work and to attend to small matters.

—  Leonardo da Vinci, 1452-1519, Italian polymath & painter

Bertrand RussellWork is of two kinds: first, altering the position of matter at or near the earth's surface relatively to other such matter; second, telling other people to do so. The first kind is unpleasant and ill paid; the second is pleasant and highly paid.

—  Bertrand Russell, 1872-1970, British philosopher

Personal Stories

Thomas EdisonI never did a day's work in my life, it was all fun.

—  Thomas Edison, 1847-1934, American inventor

4 likes
Vincent Van GoghFor me, the work is an absolute necessity. I cannot put it off.

—  Vincent Van Gogh, 1853-1890, Dutch painter

2 likes

Latin Quotes

Pray and Work.

Ora et Labora.

—  Motto of the Benedictine Order

86 likes

Quotes in Verse

Fernando PessoaGod wills, man dreams, the work is born.

—  Fernando Pessoa, 1888-1935, Portuguese poet & writer

3 likes
Emily DickinsonIt is easy to work when the soul is at play.

—  Emily Dickinson, 1830-1886, American poet

Funny Quotes

Fats DominoA lot of fellows nowadays have a B.A., M.D., or Ph.D. Unfortunately, they don’t have a J.O.B.

—  Fats Domino, 1928-2017, American singer & pianist

6 likes
Henry YoungmanMy brother was a lifeguard in a car wash.

—  Henry Youngman, 1906-1998, American comedian

3 likes
Mark TwainI do not like work even when someone else is doing it.

—  Mark Twain, 1835-1910, American writer

3 likes
Oscar WildeThe best way to appreciate your job is to imagine yourself without one.

—  Oscar Wilde, 1854-1900, Irish writer

3 likes

Ancient Greek

EpicurusA large fortune is accumulated by extremely hard work, but [thus] life becomes miserable.

Εξ εργασίας θηριώδους ουσίας μεν πλήθος συσσωρεύεται, βίος δε ταλαίπωρος συνίσταται.

—  Epicurus, 341-270 BC, Ancient Greek philosopher

6 likes
SophoclesVariety at work, makes the work sweet.

Πόνου μεταλλαχθέντος, πόνοι γλυκείς.

—  Sophocles, 496-406 BC, Ancient tragic poet

4 likes
HesiodWork is no disgrace: it is idleness which is a disgrace.

Έργον δ’ ουδέν όνειδος, αεργίη δε τ’ όνειδος.

—  Hesiod, 7th cent. BC, Ancient Greek poet ‐ Works and Days -311

4 likes
DemocritusMisers have the fate of the bee working as if they are going to live for ever.

Οι φειδωλοί τον της μελίσσης οίτον έχουσιν εργαζόμενοι ως αεί βιωσόμενοι.

—  Democritus, 470-370 BC, Ancient Greek philosopher

3 likes
AeschylusGod loves to assist the man who works hard.

Φιλεί δε τω κάμνοντι συσπεύδειν θεός.

—  Aeschylus, 525-456 BC, Ancient Greek tragedian

3 likes
AeschylusOh handicraft that I hate so much!

Ω πολλά μισηθείσα χειρωναξία!

—  Aeschylus, 525-456 BC, Ancient Greek tragedian ‐ Prometheus Bound

2 likes
EuripidesSeek your fortunes by hard work.

Τας τύχας εκ των πόνων εράν.

—  Euripides, 480-406 BC, Ancient Greek tragedian

2 likes

Proverbs

English proverbA woman's work is never done.

—  English proverb

2 likes

Special Quotes

Work sets you free.

Arbeit macht frei.

—  Inscription on the entrance of various Nazi concentration camps

     (from the title of a novel by Lorenz Diefenbach, 1873)

2 likes

Movie Quotes

Marry PoppinsIn every job that must be done, there is an element of fun. You find the fun, and - SNAP - the job's a game!

—  from the film Marry Poppins

4 likes



Similar categories & topics of Quotations






Similar Topics

Doing

Effort

Expertise

Business

Bureaucracy

Fatigue

Career

Diligence

Money

Skills

Slavery

Contrary Topics

Laziness

Hobbies

Holidays

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1 Friendship
2 Victory & Defeat
3 Solitude
4 Seduction
5 Self-reliance
6 Ego
7 Drinking
8 Cunning
9 Eroticism
10 Nudity
11 Vanity
12 Self-deprecation
13 Incompetence
14 Sex
15 Religion
16 Meaning of Life
17 Life
18 Death
19 Corruption
20 Democracy
 

2024: Manolis Papathanassiou