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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.

If you want to see that human story unfold, if you want to understand that only the unexpected life is worth a damn, spend some time with 46 years of Lou Reed's work: music that leaped and then looked. Safety...

Quotes by Elizabeth Wurtzel

My mum is very driven and has always kept me busy... She used to say to me, 'Nobody likes a teenager. So use your teenage years to work. Then enjoy your life when you're slightly older.'

Quotes by Ella Eyre

Always keep wiping your face with towels when you work out because I find that the more I exercise, that's when I have my breakouts. You've got to keep the sweat off because the pores are open when you're hot...

Quotes by Ella Eyre

When I work onstage, I want to play roles that have real, deep theatricality, that aren't the sort you would easily see on television and in the movies.

Quotes by Elizabeth Marvel

I will happily work anywhere they need me to if they pay me well.

Quotes by Elizabeth Marvel

The first play I ever did was with Michael Langham, Brian Bedford, and Colm Feore, at Stratford Festival. That was my first professional job, and I got to work with Garland Wright and so many great artists.

Quotes by Elizabeth Marvel

I know all my tricks, and I'm pretty bored with them, so if that's all someone wants, I'd rather wait for TV money and not work so hard.

Quotes by Elizabeth Marvel

I have to say, it seems to be the older I get, the better the work gets. When has that been true?

Quotes by Elizabeth Marvel

I see artists as the first responders. And when the proverbial crap hits the fan, we are there to be of service, to tell the story, to bring a balm, to soothe, to provide catharsis. You know, not to make...

Quotes by Elizabeth Marvel

The reality of the Green party is that we are a party committed to bringing forward big ideas, new ideas and demonstrating by our conduct in parliament and through the election that we really want to work for Canadians, work...

Quotes by Elizabeth May

I used to be a writer with superstitions worthy of a professional baseball player: I needed a certain desk chair and a certain armchair and a certain desk arrangement, and I could only get really useful work done between 8...

Quotes by Elizabeth McCracken

Ordinarily, I'd claim that I'd never write directly about my children, but the opening conversation of 'Peter Elroy' is a verbatim conversation that my children had that I just loved: morbid, funny, passionate, and obsessed with the truth of things...

Quotes by Elizabeth McCracken

I work in my office on the campus of the University of Texas. It's the sort of place described as 'book-lined', but it's recently tipped over into 'fire-hazard' territory.

Quotes by Elizabeth McCracken

I still feel I'm doing the same work I've always done.

Quotes by Elizabeth McGovern

So the English approach to show business and their work is more - and this is a big generalization, I hasten to say - but it's more, they work on it as a craft job.

Quotes by Elizabeth McGovern

In today's world, we all live with the burden of feeling that anything is possible if we're only clever enough, smart enough, work hard enough.

Quotes by Elizabeth McGovern

Most people grow up dreaming of going to Hollywood and some of them work and work and work and finally end up in Hollywood.

Quotes by Elizabeth McGovern

My job now is to work hard and learn all I can.

Quotes by Elizabeth McGovern

Whenever I work on anything, there's always the fantasy that what one is doing is the next 'Citizen Kane'-slash-'Sopranos.'

Quotes by Elizabeth McGovern

Every day, I learn something new. I think one of the most exciting things for a writer is to work on a TV show. It's like a novel. You have a really long time to develop and learn about the...

Quotes by Elizabeth Meriwether

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.