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Work Hard Quotes

    “We need to redefine ‘hard work’ to include ‘hard thinking.’ The person who outsmarts you is out working you. The person who finds shortcuts is out working you. The person with a better strategy is out working you. Usually, the hardest work is thinking of a better way to do it.”

    James Clear

      “Work hard. If results depend on effort, then you will carry yourself far. If results depend on effort and luck, then you will have done what you can to influence the outcome. And if results depend on luck alone, then the outcome is random, but you will have won the battle with yourself.”

      James Clear

        “Don’t be distracted by anything. The work is what counts. There are a lot of things that can get in your way, that take up your time and your emotional and intellectual energy; none of them account for anything. They mean nothing. The only thing, in the final analysis, at this stage of the game, that really counts, is the work. The work is everything. The years that I spent in advertising I saw an awful lot of people who had the potential to be good lose a lot of their ability to distraction, to politics, to fear, and to who has the bigger office. You’ll get the bigger office; you’ll make the money. Anything you want will happen, but sometimes it’s hard for people to see that when they’re in the middle of it. It looks like it’s incredibly complicated. Well, it’s not complicated at all. In fact, it’s so uncomplicated it’s amazing. All it is about is the work. Finally, if you do the work people will notice and you will get what you want. That’s it. It’s as simple as that.”

        Tom McElligott

          “The ability to do hard things is perhaps the most useful ability you can foster in yourself or your children. And proof that you are someone who can do them is one of the most useful assets you can have on your life resume. Our self-image is composed of historical evidence of our abilities. The more hard things you push yourself to do, the more competent you will see yourself to be. If you can run marathons or throw double your body weight over your head, the sleep deprivation from a newborn is only a mild irritant. If you can excel at organic chemistry or econometrics, onboarding for a new finance job will be a breeze. But if we avoid hard things, anything mildly challenging will seem insurmountable. We’ll cry into TikTok over an errant period at the end of a text message. We’ll see ourselves as incapable of learning new skills, taking on new careers, and escaping bad situations. The proof you can do hard things is one of the most powerful gifts you can give yourself.”

          Nat Eliason

            “If quitting is a possibility, everyone will pick that—it’s the easiest one. Who wouldn’t pick not running at 5:00 a.m. over running at 5:00 a.m.? If quitting is an option, you’ll never finish anything hard. The only way an imperfect mind can be forced to achieve is by removing all of its other options. To me, the heart of all successful human interactions is we look at each other and we know we’re about to attempt something that is difficult/impossible, and we both vow to die before we quit.”

            Will Smith, Will (Page 237)

              “For my entire career, I have been absolutely relentless. I’ve been committed to a work ethic of uncompromising intensity. And the secret to my success is as boring as it is unsurprising: You show up and you lay another brick. Pissed off? Lay another brick. Bad opening weekend? Lay another brick. Album sales dropping? Get up and lay another brick. Marriage failing? Lay another brick.”

              Will Smith, Will (Page ix)

                “Work is life. Not having something to do with one’s life, something important or unique to your talents or however you put it, is a bigger killer than cancer.”

                Ray Mungo, via Sunbeams (Page 138)

                  “If you run a marathon, you’re going to get tired. It would make no sense to hire a coach and say, ‘I want you to help me train so I don’t get tired when I run a marathon.’ The only difference between the tens of thousands of people who finish the marathon and those that don’t is that the finishers figured out where to put their tired.”

                  Seth Godin, The Practice (Page 169)

                  James Clear Quote on Hard Work and How Not All Hard Work Is Created Equally

                    “Success is never due to one thing, but failure can be.  Sleeping well won’t make you successful, but not sleeping enough will hold you back. Hard work is rarely enough without good strategy, but even the best strategy is useless without hard work.  Many things are necessary, but not sufficient for success.”

                    James Clear, Blog

                    Beyond the Quote (347/365)

                    Not all hard work is created equally. For some, specific kinds of “hard work” aligns with strengths, aptitudes, potentials, and interests. For others, that same “hard work” might call upon weaknesses. Even if the “hard work” that was tasked was the same, it wouldn’t have the same net result on the individual. It would cause a drastic difference in the amount of time, energy, and effort required. And if you want to optimize your time, energy, and effort in your life—then you should start by optimizing the type of “hard work” that you choose to do for this very reason.

                    Read More »James Clear Quote on Hard Work and How Not All Hard Work Is Created Equally