Inspirational and Insightful Quotations #47 --- Idleness

Every lazy man thinks he is tired.

—J. Benjamin Lawrence, Baptist Record, Jackson, Miss., June 8, 1916.

Idleness is only the refuge of weak minds and the holding of fools.

—Milton Bennion, Deseret News, Salt Lake City, Utah, May 2, 1931.

A lazy man is of no more use than a dead one–and takes up more room.

—Elbert Hubbard, The Philistine, East Aurora, N.Y., April 1904.

The wages of idleness is demolition.

—Burris A. Jenkins, Kansas City Post, Kansas City, Mo., April 23, 1920.

The wages of idleness is demotion.

—B.C. Forbes, Forbes Magazine, New York, N.Y., Sept. 20, 1919.

Idleness breeds idle thoughts.

—B.C. Forbes, Forbes Magazine, New York, N.Y., June 10, 1922.

Industrious people stay young. If you want to grow old quickly, become lazy.

—Phil Conley, The Clarion-Ledger, Jackson, Miss., Feb. 8, 1948.

There are very few experiences that will cause you more trouble than idleness.

—Phil Conley, The Clarion-Ledger, Jackson, Miss., Aug. 6, 1949.

Laziness is a disease, but it is not particularly contagious. It is congenital.

—Jack Haney, The Times-Picayune, New Orleans, La., Aug. 12, 1926.

There is no weariness so great as that of idleness.

—W.A. MacKenzie, The Leesburg Morning Commercial, Leesburg, Fla., Sept. 24, 1927.

Idleness is always a master excuse-maker.

—Ernest C. Wareing, Western Christian Advocate, Cincinnati, Ohio, Feb. 26, 1925.

Laziness is a poor sort of luxury; it breeds disease.

—J.J. Wicker, Religious Herald, Richmond, Va., Jan. 13, 1938.

An idle mind has a way of keeping a tongue busy.

—Carey Williams, Beaumont Enterprise, Beaumont, Texas, July 18, 1959.

One of the most agreeable forms of idleness is sitting down and planning great jobs of work which you intend to do when you can get around to it.

—Don Marquis, New York Tribune, New York, N.Y., May 23, 1925.

Inaction is cowardice. We should grudge every opportunity of action passed by, as a loss of power. Success treads in the footprints of energy. Much is expected of us; we should expect more of ourselves. In self-trust, all the virtues are comprehended.

—Edwin Miles, The Journal, Logan, Utah, June 3, 1905.

Those who wait for inspiration before beginning their work are likely to be the kind who never have any inspirations worth turning into action. Or if they do have them they are usually too lazy to go ahead. Most work of value is turned out by just plain plugging, whether you like it or not.

—Grove Patterson, Milwaukee Sentinel, Milwaukee, Wis., Nov. 14, 1930.

Many of us mistake laziness for weariness. We are not really too tired to work, we just like to think we are. The fact often is we are too lazy. It is so comfortable to do little. One of the easiest, most pleasant fallacies is to embrace is the fallacy that we are overworked.

—Grove Patterson, Milwaukee Sentinel, Milwaukee, Wis., March 21, 1931.

A lazy individual rarely accomplishes much. He gets nowhere very fast. A lazy man usually is not thrifty, for his mind becomes as lazy as his body, and he fails to grasp any opportunity to be thrifty and bestir himself to make something. He falls asleep beside the way and good things of life and its opportunities pass him when he is unaware of them. "I'll put that off till tomorrow," is the worst thing one can adopt as a habit of saying and doing. Let each day take care of its own duties and responsibilities, carrying none over till tomorrow, is the text of a successful man's business program, day after day.

—Emmett J. Lee, The Gazette, Farmerville, La., Feb. 15, 1940.

Idleness in youth gives entrance to many hurtful habits, and in age the weeds of sin bring forth a harvest of hateful seeds of sorrow. Not willing to work and to study, a young man enters upon business handicapped and he goes into the struggles of life without a well-informed character, rugged and brave against the temptations that will assail him. Bad books, bad associations follow easily. From these there come the chains of habit that blight the chances for success and for happiness, and when the times of remorse and regret come over a man he finds he is powerless to free himself.

—Lockett Adair, Dallas Morning News, Dallas, Texas, Jan. 13, 1908.

Something for nothing is hard to secure. Many citizens of the land today, in their business, relations, constantly strive to accumulate great wealth, and in turn give little or nothing. Success is not founded or built upon fraudulence. Success is a product of diligence, honesty, sincerity, and perfection, and there is no short route to that goal. The man who cries of injustice, many times, is too lazy to properly apply himself and does not want to pay the penalty of denial and hard work to get into the front ranks. Opportunity knocks at his door, and he fails to recognize its presence. One road, covered with long hours of toil, self-sacrifice, and the strict performance of life's duties, usually opens to any man. The other beset with indolence, many times seems the easiest, and in a majority of instances is the one taken. It leads to destruction. The other points to success.

—Howard D. Strother, The New Era, Eunice, La., July 24, 1936.

There seems to be an unwritten law that man never does his best except when driven to it. When something needs to be done the call comes to the busy man or woman. The idler never has time to do the world's worthwhile tasks.

—A.T. Talbert, Baptist Message, Shreveport, La., April 30, 1931.

Industry [is] the faculty for hard work. Men are hindered by sickness, general weakness or laziness. But some very weakly men, sick of their lives, have made great success, while strong, able-bodied men have failed--out of their sheer LAZINESS. The faculty of hard work is the greatest, the highest step in the long climb to success. Leaving things half done–till TOMORROW–this is the curse of success. It is hard to just keep on working--for some of us it is almost impossible--but we must do it as the FIRST STEP to Success.

—C.C. Young, The Baptist Chronicle, Alexandria, La., July 24, 1913.

Work shows what is in you, and laziness shows what isn't.

—Duncan M. Smith, Morgantown Daily Post, Morgantown, W.Va., May 10, 1906.

Laziness is a deplorable characteristic in human beings, for it puts them lower than the ants. It is not too much to expect that men with their many advantages should be as industrious as the ants.

—E.S. Wagner, The Shreveport Times, Shreveport, La., Dec. 9, 1923.

There is no such thing as an easy job for a lazy man.

—Roy E. Gibson, Nephi Times-News, Nephi, Utah, July 29, 1954.