September 25

Work is not a virtue, but it is the necessary condition of a virtuous life.

 

Hurried work done in irritation attracts the unfavorable attention of the others. Real work is always quiet, constant, and inconspicuous.

 

It is not enough to be a hardworking person. Think: what do you work at?

— Henry David Thoreau

 

For every idle person, there is another person who works too much. For every person who eats to excess, there is another person somewhere who is hungry.

 

Much of the activity of idle people who pretend that they are busy with work is merely entertaining; it just adds a burden to other people. This can be said of all luxuriant entertainments.