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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.

In talking to founder after founder; I've heard almost visceral reactions to working for companies, even very cool ones with great things to work on and lots of opportunity, like Facebook, Google, or consulting firms.

Quotes by Maynard Webb

You know how hard it's been to write material? Because to do stand-up comedy, it takes time for the material to develop. So you'll come up with a joke, you'll tweak it, you'll work it for six months, you really...

Quotes by Maz Jobrani

When you're a stand-up comic, you live and die by what you say on stage. There's no director or writer or producer who can tell you what to say and not to say. Once in a while, a club owner...

Quotes by Maz Jobrani

It's worth remembering that immigrants come to this country to work, they don't come to get handouts.

Quotes by Mazie Hirono

I will work hard to ensure Hawaii's strategic position in our national security remains strong.

Quotes by Mazie Hirono

That used to be one of my greatest fears growing up: my mom would get sick and then she wouldn't be able to go to work and then there is no food or money for rent.

Quotes by Mazie Hirono

My friend Patsy Mink was a champion for social and economic justice, equality and civil rights for women and marginalized communities. She was a trailblazer who never backed down from a challenge and whose work in Hawaii and Congress brought...

Quotes by Mazie Hirono

We work really hard to get elected.

Quotes by Mazie Hirono

There are people getting screwed in our country every single second, minute, hour of the day. And if by our work, we can decrease that number, we'll make a difference; we'll be doing our jobs.

Quotes by Mazie Hirono

Women are problem solvers, and often we don't get much credit for that because the typical image of a leader is someone who's loud, obnoxious, chest-pounding. That's not my vision of what true leadership is; true leaders are the ones...

Quotes by Mazie Hirono

You can work and scratch out a living in the theatre, but, if you want to make money, you've got to hit the road. You've got to play big houses of 2, 3 thousand seaters with your name above the...

Quotes by Maxwell Caulfield

In a total work, the failures have their not unimportant place.

Quotes by May Sarton

My great hope is to laugh as much as I cry; to get my work done and try to love somebody and have the courage to accept the love in return.

Maya Angelou

All my work is much more peaceful than I am.

Quotes by Maya Lin

I'm a teacher, so much of what I'm doing remains in the abstract. But I also support a lot of educational initiatives that support kids to really get out there and work hard in their communities. But I also think...

Quotes by Maya Soetoro-Ng

You really need to love something or someone in order to work hard enough to be very successful. You have to believe in something and have a certain optimism. Faith and optimism come from love.

Quotes by Maya Soetoro-Ng

I don't know what people find or like in me, I'm hopelessly commonplace! Current appreciation of my work is a bit highbrow, I've always considered myself a popular artist.

Quotes by Maxfield Parrish

When work is a pleasure, life is a joy! When work is a duty, life is slavery.

Quotes by Maxim Gorky

I really love voice over work, because it lets you go crazy and have fun. You literally can go anywhere with it!

Quotes by Maxim Knight

The sweat of hard work is not to be displayed. It is much more graceful to appear favored by the gods.

Quotes by Maxine Hong Kingston

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.