Inspiration and meaningful work
Do not hire a man who does your work for money, but him who does it for love of it.
— Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862), Life Without Principle (1863), p. 486

Inspiration and meaningful work

What it means

Work done for love tends to be better than work done only for pay. Thoreau suggests looking for people who care about the work itself.

About the author

Henry David Thoreau — American philosopher (1817–1862).

Source and verification

Source
Life Without Principle (1863), p. 486
Reference
Henry David Thoreau on Wikiquote
Checked
Wording and source taken from the sourced section of the author’s Wikiquote page, which cites the work given here (accessed 2026-10-11).
Copyright
Public domain: the author died in 1862.

The explanation above is ToDoMatriX’s own reading of the quote, not the author’s words.

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