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For me, the work is an absolute necessity. I cannot put it off; I don't care for anything else; that is to say, the pleasure in something else ceases at once, and I become melancholy when I cannot go on with my work. I feel then as the weaver does when he sees that his threads have got tangled, the pattern he had on the loom has gone to the deuce, and his exertion and deliberation are lost.

Vincent Van Gogh#28

WorkCreativityPurposeNecessity

About this quote

What does it mean?
Work is a fundamental need for the author, causing distress when interrupted or impossible to continue.
In plain terms
I need to work constantly or I feel terrible.
What can you take from it?
Recognize when work is essential to your well-being and plan accordingly.

Where it applies

  • creative blocks
  • work-life balance
  • purpose seeking

Putting it to work

  • structure your schedule
  • address creative blocks
  • manage expectations

Questions to consider

  • What gives your life structure?
  • How do you handle interruption?

Another view

Not everyone experiences work as an absolute necessity.

More from Vincent Van Gogh

  1. Even the knowledge of my own fallibility cannot keep me from making mistakes. Only when I fall do I get up again.

    Permalink to quote #27
  2. Great things are not done by impulse, but by a series of small things brought together.

    Permalink to quote #29
  3. Do not quench your inspiration and your imagination; do not become the slave of your model.

    Permalink to quote #26

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