Logo - Feel The Words

Work Quotes

Quotes on the meaning of work.

Several quotes here describe work as a solitary process, one that takes real effort to protect from distraction, while others connect a person's politics directly to the character of their work. Related reading includes Growth Quotes.

I learned really early on that I had to treat it as if it were a real job. This might be my middle class background - the Irish work ethic, which isn't quite the same as the Protestant work ethic...

Quotes by Alice McDermott

I'm writing all the time. I tend to work on at least two books simultaneously. I'll spend time with one, and then I'll spend time with the other. Finishing takes whatever time it takes.

Quotes by Alice McDermott

I had no idea if 'No Roots' was going to work or not.

Quotes by Alice Merton

A lot of labels always feel the need to tell you how they think the music should be marketed and what songs work best where. I say make music you love doing, come up with a strategy, and put it...

Quotes by Alice Merton

In my own work, I tend to cover a lot of time and to jump back and forward in time, and sometimes the way I do this is not very straightforward.

Quotes by Alice Munro

I've often made revisions at that stage that turned out to be mistakes because I wasn't really in the rhythm of the story anymore. I see a little bit of writing that doesn't seem to be doing as much work...

Quotes by Alice Munro

Some of the stories I admire seem to zero in on one particular time and place. There isn't a rule about this. But there's a tidy sense about many stories I read. In my own work, I tend to cover...

Quotes by Alice Munro

I can have people around a lot more because I'm not always chasing them away so I can work on my novel. My non-novel, I mean.

Quotes by Alice Munro

For a long time, I had the idea that I would do a certain amount of work the best I could, and then I would reach a comfort zone, and I wouldn't be pushed to write more. I would become...

Quotes by Alice Munro

I think it is the easiest mentality for a human being to be either colonized or to colonize. The structure of either the slave or the master seems to be the simplest and the most relaxing one to slip into....

Quotes by Alice Oswald

I think that American women are further along than any other women in the world. But you can't have peace in a world in which some women or some men or some nations are at different stages of development. There...

Quotes by Alice Paul

I love every minute of my work.

Quotes by Alice Ripley

Don't get me wrong: I love having my own song and being the center of attention, but I also love being part of the group and making the show work in a more anonymous way.

Quotes by Alice Ripley

I would say that Cynthia Nixon is somebody I admire, and Toni Collette as well. Those women - their work inspires me, whatever they do.

Quotes by Alice Ripley

Sometimes a job comes to you, and you didn't ask for it. Your work in the past hires you, and that's nice.

Quotes by Alice Ripley

We need to stop being so profligate with fossil fuels, to rein back climate change and protect biodiversity. We need to work together, globally, and I’m optimistic that we will.

Quotes by Alice Roberts

I don’t think anyone is saying that we should be treating boys and girls exactly the same and that we should try to eliminate all differences. What the psychologists who do this work are saying is we should be aware...

Quotes by Alice Roberts

Science offers us the possibility of understanding natural rhythms and events that must have seemed like the work of angry and unpredictable gods to our ancestors.

Quotes by Alice Roberts

While planting woodlands along rivers has been shown to work in small areas, it has been unclear whether it would be effective on a larger scale. But computer modelling indicates that restoring forests on floodplains could slow floodwaters and reduce...

Quotes by Alice Roberts

Always attempting to tame and subjugate nature is not the solution. But the latest science is helping us to map out a path across this shifting landscape in uncertain times, showing us how to work with natural forces, not against...

Quotes by Alice Roberts

Frequently Asked Questions

What kind of quotes are on the "Work" page?
These lean toward the thoughtful side of work — the idea that "intellectual work is essentially a lonely process," the belief that one's politics and "the character of his particular work are inseparable," and an image of people unwinding after work all over the world talking about life's bigger questions.
Is there a spiritual angle to any of these?
While these particular quotes are secular, if you're looking for a spiritual perspective on work, see Prayers for that theme.
Do these quotes connect work to personal identity?
Yes, one of the strongest lines here argues that your politics and "the character of his particular work are inseparable" — the idea that what you do reflects who you are. If that resonates, Growth quotes explore a similar idea of work shaping the person.
Is there anything here about effort or persistence?
These specific quotes focus more on the nature and meaning of work than on effort itself, but Effort quotes cover that ground directly.
What about setting goals through work?
For that angle, Goal quotes is the better fit — the "Work" page here is more about the character and process of working itself.

There's also a lighter side - people unwinding after work to talk through life's bigger questions over drinks. See Effort Quotes and Goal Quotes for more on getting things done.