Life gives nothing to man without labor.
—Horace (Quintus Horatius Flaccus) (65–8 BCE) Roman Poet
It is only by labor that thought can be made healthy, and only by thought that labor can be made happy; and the two cannot be separated with impunity.
—John Ruskin (1819–1900) English Writer, Art Critic
Love labor and hate to be a professional minister.
—The Talmud Sacred Text of the Jewish Faith
There is a perennial nobleness and even sacredness in work.—Were he ever so benighted and forgetful of his high calling, there is always hope in a man who actually and earnestly works.
—Thomas Carlyle (1795–1881) Scottish Historian, Essayist
Labor is life; from the inmost heart of the worker rises his God-given force, the sacred celestial life-essence breathed into him by Almighty God!
—Thomas Carlyle (1795–1881) Scottish Historian, Essayist
The labor of the body relieves us from the fatigues of the mind; and this it is which forms the happiness of the poor.
—Francois de La Rochefoucauld (1613–80) French Writer
Labor is a pleasure in itself.
—Marcus Manilius (c.48 BCE–20 CE) Roman Poet, Astrologer
No way has been found for making heroism easy, even for the scholar. Labor, iron labor, is for him. The world was created as an audience for him; the atoms of which it is made are opportunities.
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–82) American Philosopher
Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.
—The Holy Bible Scripture in the Christian Faith
The true epic of our times is not “arms and the man,” but “tools and the man,” an infinitely wider kind of epic.
—Thomas Carlyle (1795–1881) Scottish Historian, Essayist
Happy the child who sees its parents engage in an honest trade; woe to the child who must blush on account of their dishonest trade.
—The Talmud Sacred Text of the Jewish Faith
Men give me credit for some genius. All the genius I have lies in this: When I have a subject in hand, I study it profoundly. Day and night it is before me. I explore it in all its bearings. My mind becomes pervaded with it. Then the effort which I have made is what people are pleased to call the fruit of genius. It is the fruit of labor and thought.
—Alexander Hamilton (c.1757–1804) American Federalist Politician, Statesman
Ah, why should life all labor be?
—Alfred, Lord Tennyson (1809–92) British Poet
Blessed is he who has found his work; let him ask no other blessedness. He has a work, a life-purpose… Get your happiness out of your work or you will never know what real happiness is… Even in the meanest sorts of labor, the whole soul of a man is composed into a kind of real harmony the instant he sets himself to work.
—Thomas Carlyle (1795–1881) Scottish Historian, Essayist
God sells us all things at the price of labor.
—Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519) Italian Polymath, Painter, Sculptor, Inventor, Architect
The laborer is allowed to shorten his prayers.
—The Talmud Sacred Text of the Jewish Faith
The laborer at his work needs not rise before the greatest doctor.
—The Talmud Sacred Text of the Jewish Faith
We are coming to see that there should be no stifling of labor by capital, or of capital by labor; and also that there should be no stifling of labor by labor, or of capital by capital.
—John D. Rockefeller, Jr. (1874–1960) American Philanthropist, Businessperson
Labor is the great producer of wealth; it moves all other causes.
—Daniel Webster (1782–1852) American Statesman, Lawyer
Good to sell knowledge for labor, honor for risk.
—Arabic Proverb
He who teaches his son no trade is as if he taught him to steal.
—The Talmud Sacred Text of the Jewish Faith
He who lives by the work of his hands is greater than he who indulges in idle piety.
—The Talmud Sacred Text of the Jewish Faith
Large fortunes are all founded either on the occupation of land, or lending or the taxation of labor.
—John Ruskin (1819–1900) English Writer, Art Critic
He who helps himself will be helped by God.
—The Talmud Sacred Text of the Jewish Faith
I believe in the supreme worth of the individual and in his right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. I believe that every right implies a responsibility; every opportunity, an obligation; every possession, a duty. I believe that the law was made for man and not man for the law; that government is the servant of the people and not their master. I believe in the dignity of labor, whether with head or hand; that the world owes no man a living but that it owes every man an opportunity to make a living. I believe that thrift is essential to well-ordered living and that economy is a prime requisite of a sound financial structure, whether in government, business or personal affairs. I believe that truth and justice are fundamental to an enduring social order. I believe in the sacredness of a promise, that a man’s word should be as good as his bond; that character-not wealth or power or position-is of supreme worth. I believe that the rendering of useful service is the common duty of mankind and that only in the purifying fire of sacrifice is the dross of selfishness consumed and the greatness of the human soul set free. I believe in an all-wise and all-loving God, named by whatever name, and that the individual’s highest fulfillment, greatest happiness and widest usefulness are to be found in living in harmony with His will. I believe that love is the greatest thing in the world; that it alone can overcome hate; that right can and will triumph over might.
—John D. Rockefeller, Jr. (1874–1960) American Philanthropist, Businessperson
Hard workers are usually honest; industry lifts them above temptation.
—Christian Nestell Bovee (1820–1904) American Writer, Aphorist
Without labor there is no rest, nor without fighting can the victory be won.
—Thomas a Kempis (1379–1471) German Religious Priest, Writer
Shun no toil to make yourself remarkable by some one talent.—Yet do rot devote yourself to one branch exclusively.—Strive to get clear notions about all.—Give up no science entirely, for all science is one.
—Seneca the Younger (Lucius Annaeus Seneca) (c.4 BCE–65 CE) Roman Stoic Philosopher, Statesman, Tragedian
He who does not teach his son a handicraft trade neglects his parental duty.
—The Talmud Sacred Text of the Jewish Faith
The fruits of labor are the sweetest of all pleasures.
—Luc de Clapiers, marquis de Vauvenargues (1715–47) French Moralist, Essayist, Writer
When you put on your clothes, remember the weaver’s labor; when you take your daily food, remember the husbandman’s work.
—Chinese Proverb
He that never labors may know the pains of idleness, but not the pleasures.
—Samuel Johnson (1709–84) British Essayist
What men want is not talent, it is purpose; in other words, not the power to achieve, but will to labor. I believe that labor judiciously and continuously applied becomes genius.
—Edward Bulwer-Lytton, 1st Baron Lytton (1803–73) British Novelist, Poet, Politician
Of all pleasures the fruit of labor is the sweetest.
—Luc de Clapiers, marquis de Vauvenargues (1715–47) French Moralist, Essayist, Writer
The great piano virtuoso Paderewski was once playing before an audience of the rich and the royal. After a brilliant performance, an elegant lady waxed ecstatic over the great artist. She said, “Ah Maestro, you are a genius!” Paderewski tartly replied, “Ah yes, madam, but before I was a genius I was a clod!” What he was saying was that his present acclaim was not handed to him on a silver platter. He, too, was once a little boy laboriously practicing his scales. And even at his peak, behind every brilliant performance there were countless hours of practice and preparation.
—Eric Butterworth (1916–2003) American Spirituality Writer
Temperance and labor are the two best physicians of man; labor sharpens the appetite, and temperance prevents from indulging to excess.
—Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712–78) Swiss-born French Philosopher
Avoid idleness, and fill up all the spaces of thy time with severe and useful employment; for lust easily creeps in at those emptinesses where the soul is unemployed and the body is at ease; for no easy, healthful, idle person was ever chaste if he could be tempted; but of all employments, bodily labor is the most useful, and of the greatest benefit for driving away the Devil.
—Jeremy Taylor
The fruit derived from labor is the sweetest of all pleasures.
—Luc de Clapiers, marquis de Vauvenargues (1715–47) French Moralist, Essayist, Writer
It is not, truly speaking, the labor that is divided; but the men: divided into mere segments of men—broken into small fragments and crumbs of life, so that all the little piece of intelligence that is left in a man is not enough to make a pin, or a nail, but exhausts itself in making the point of a pin or the head of a nail.
—John Ruskin (1819–1900) English Writer, Art Critic
As labor is the common burden of our race, so the effort of some to shift their share of the burden onto the shoulders of others is the great durable curse of the race.
—Abraham Lincoln (1809–65) American Head of State
From labor, health; from health, contentment springs.
—James Beattie
It is well to add a trade to your studies; you will then be free from sin.
—The Talmud Sacred Text of the Jewish Faith
I tell you, sir, the only safeguard of order and discipline in the modern world is a standardized worker with interchangeable parts. That would solve the entire problem of management.
—Jean Giraudoux (1882–1944) French Novelist, Playwright, Essayist
Reward sweetens labor.
—Dutch Proverb
‘Tis no sin for a man to labor in his vocation.
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616) British Playwright
Work is more pleasant in the sight of the Lord than the merits of your fathers.
—The Talmud Sacred Text of the Jewish Faith
Excellence in any department can be attained only by the labor of a lifetime; it is not to be purchased at a lesser price.
—Samuel Johnson (1709–84) British Essayist
Blessed is the man that has found his work. One monster there is in the world, the idle man.
—Thomas Carlyle (1795–1881) Scottish Historian, Essayist
Your life is a kind of laboratory where you’re constantly experimenting with your own higher knowing, always increasing your capacity to design the life you choose. Human beings must create; it’s hardwired. The question is, are you consciously creating or only sleepwalking through your human life?
—David Emerald
Look for a thing until you find it and you’ll not lose your labor.
—Chinese Proverb