--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Better a long life of toil than a short…" description: "\"Better a long life of toil than a short one of ease.\" — Aesop" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d84/aesop-1073_ease_better-a-long-life-of-toil-than-a-short_41333.jpg" --- # Better a long life of toil than a short one of ease. ![“Better a long life of toil than a short one of ease.” quote by Aesop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d84/aesop-1073_ease_better-a-long-life-of-toil-than-a-short_41333.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d84/aesop-1073_ease_better-a-long-life-of-toil-than-a-short_41333.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d84/aesop-1073_ease_better-a-long-life-of-toil-than-a-short_41333.jpg) > “Better a long life of toil than a short one of ease.” [Aesop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Life's value is measured by effort and perseverance rather than fleeting comfort. **In simple terms:** Hard work outweighs ease. Key Takeaway Endurance builds meaning. Themes perseverance value of labor life philosophy hardship longevity purpose Mood determined reflective steady Type proverb maxim advice When to use this quote - career building - personal growth - overcoming adversity - long-term projects - sustaining relationships Key Concepts effort time satisfaction trade-offs Practical Applications - motivational speaking - life coaching Questions to Reflect On - What does success mean to you? - How do you balance effort and comfort? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Long life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long-life/) [Toil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/toil/) ## Related quotes > [I wish to preach not the doctrine of ignoble ease but the doctrine of the strenuous life; the life of toil and effort; of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/i-wish-to-preach-not-the-doctrine-of-ignoble-ease-but-the-doctrine-of/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) > [There are many applications for which film is going to be better, for a very long time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-perez/there-are-many-applications-for-which-film-is-going-to-be-better-for/) [Antonio Perez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-perez/) > [When you have your own business, you don't mind failing if it makes you better in the long run.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-mckelvey/when-you-have-your-own-business-you-don-t-mind-failing-if-it-makes/) [Miguel McKelvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-mckelvey/) > [“And as for writing my poetry, he claimed the toil of it was too much strain. Toil? Writing is my life. It is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-moser/and-as-for-writing-my-poetry-he-claimed-the-toil-of-it-was-too-much/) [Nancy Moser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-moser/) > [Life is full of toil, sacrifice, and pain, and from the time we stop growing, we know that we've begun dying. We watch helplessly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-butcher/life-is-full-of-toil-sacrifice-and-pain-and-from-the-time-we-stop/) [Jim Butcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-butcher/) > [Death hath a fairer fame than a life of toil.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aeschylus/death-hath-a-fairer-fame-than-a-life-of-toil/) [Aeschylus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aeschylus/) > [we are never done with thinking about our parents, I suppose, and come to know them better long after they are dead than we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/we-are-never-done-with-thinking-about-our-parents-i-suppose-and-come/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [Who wants to be a hundred? What's the point of it? A short life and a merry one is far better than a long…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/who-wants-to-be-a-hundred-what-s-the-point-of-it-a-short-life-and-a/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [“Everything is better, so long as it is not worse.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mladen-or-evi/everything-is-better-so-long-as-it-is-not-worse/) [Mladen Đorđević](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mladen-or-evi/) > [Some days are better than others ... It's been a long journey, but we're starting to see the light at the end of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-robertson/some-days-are-better-than-others-it-s-been-a-long-journey-but-we-re/) Brian Robertson > [“Is a few hours of hell-raising, or respite from life's toil worth this every morning?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-lockwood/is-a-few-hours-of-hell-raising-or-respite-from-life-s-toil-worth-this/) Catherine Lockwood > [ “9Enjoy life with the wife whom you love, all the days of your vain \[2\] life that he has given you under the sun, because… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/9enjoy-life-with-the-wife-whom-you-love-all-the-days-of-your-vain-2/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A healthy state can exist only when the men and women who make it up lead clean, vigorous, healthy lives; when the children are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/a-healthy-state-can-exist-only-when-the-men-and-women-who-make-it-up/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) > [“But young men have not only this frivolous ambition of being thought masters of execution, inciting them on the one hand, but also their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/but-young-men-have-not-only-this-frivolous-ambition-of-being-thought/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The less we show our love to a woman, Or please her less, and neglect our duty, The more we trap and ruin her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pushkin/the-less-we-show-our-love-to-a-woman-or-please-her-less-and-neglect/) [Alexander Pushkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pushkin/) ## More by Aesop > [“Lay not the blame on me, O sailor, but on the winds. By nature I am as calm and safe as the land itself,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop/lay-not-the-blame-on-me-o-sailor-but-on-the-winds-by-nature-i-am-as/) [Aesop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/) > [It is in vain to expect our prayers to be heard, if we do not strive as well as pray.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop/it-is-in-vain-to-expect-our-prayers-to-be-heard-if-we-do-not-strive/) [Aesop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/) > [Beware of a wolf in sheep's clothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop/beware-of-a-wolf-in-sheep-s-clothing/) [Aesop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/) > [Don't let your special character and values, the secret that you know and no one else does, the truth - don't let that get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop/don-t-let-your-special-character-and-values-the-secret-that-you-know/) [Aesop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/) > [Every man carries two bags about him, one in front and one behind, and both are full of faults. The bag in front contains…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop/every-man-carries-two-bags-about-him-one-in-front-and-one-behind-and/) [Aesop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/) > [It pays to be content with your lot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop/it-pays-to-be-content-with-your-lot/) [Aesop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/) > [Be content with your lot; one cannot be first in everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop/be-content-with-your-lot-one-cannot-be-first-in-everything/) [Aesop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/) > [Equals make the best friends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop/equals-make-the-best-friends/) [Aesop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/) > [once upon a time all the rivers combined to protest against the action of the sea in making their waters salt. "When we come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop/once-upon-a-time-all-the-rivers-combined-to-protest-against-the/) [Aesop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/) > [In union there is strength.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop/in-union-there-is-strength/) [Aesop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/) > [“Be content with your lot; once cannot be first in everything.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop/be-content-with-your-lot-once-cannot-be-first-in-everything/) [Aesop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/) > [False friends leave you in times of trouble.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop/false-friends-leave-you-in-times-of-trouble/) [Aesop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/) > [Better beans and bacon in peace than cakes and ale in fear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop/better-beans-and-bacon-in-peace-than-cakes-and-ale-in-fear/) [Aesop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/) > [“The Sun is bad enough even while he is single, drying up our marshes with his heat as he does. But what will become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop/the-sun-is-bad-enough-even-while-he-is-single-drying-up-our-marshes/) [Aesop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/) > [Contentment with our lot is an element of happiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop/contentment-with-our-lot-is-an-element-of-happiness/) [Aesop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/) [Explore all 297 Aesop quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/) ## More Ease quotes > [This is no time for ease and comfort. It is time to dare and endure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/this-is-no-time-for-ease-and-comfort-it-is-time-to-dare-and-endure/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [I take the seashell from my jeans pocket and rub my fingers across its silken, indented surface, shallow as my own open hand. This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katrina-kenison/i-take-the-seashell-from-my-jeans-pocket-and-rub-my-fingers-across/) [Katrina Kenison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katrina-kenison/) > [To be at ease is better than to be at business. Nothing really belongs to us but time, which even he has who has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/baltasar-gracian/to-be-at-ease-is-better-than-to-be-at-business-nothing-really-belongs/) [Baltasar Gracian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/baltasar-gracian/) > [Grace is the power of the Holy Spirit coming to us free of charge to enable you to do with ease what you could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-meyer/grace-is-the-power-of-the-holy-spirit-coming-to-us-free-of-charge-to/) [Joyce Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-meyer/) > [Men who have lived significant lives are men who never waited: not for money, security, ease, or women.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-deida/men-who-have-lived-significant-lives-are-men-who-never-waited-not-for/) [David Deida](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-deida/) > [Whenever I'm asked about Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi, I always answer: 'Neymar is the best,' not just because of his goals but because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roberto-carlos/whenever-i-m-asked-about-cristiano-ronaldo-or-lionel-messi-i-always/) [Roberto Carlos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roberto-carlos/) > [Anyone who thinks science is trying to make human life easier or more pleasant is utterly mistaken.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/anyone-who-thinks-science-is-trying-to-make-human-life-easier-or-more/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [The only way to ease our fear and be truly happy is to acknowledge our fear and look deeply at its source. Instead of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-way-to-ease-our-fear-and-be-truly-happy-is-to-acknowledge/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Efforts to ease regulations and reform the nation's tax system have helped put this self-sustaining recovery on track, The numbers prove our policies have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shinzo-abe/efforts-to-ease-regulations-and-reform-the-nation-s-tax-system-have/) [Shinzo Abe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shinzo-abe/) > [If I replace the word God with the word nature, I am far more at ease with the whole religious enterprise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-s-kesselheim/if-i-replace-the-word-god-with-the-word-nature-i-am-far-more-at-ease/) [Alan S. Kesselheim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-s-kesselheim/) > [This kind of horror has become all too familiar to us. As parents, Cindy and I offer our prayers to the memory of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mccain/this-kind-of-horror-has-become-all-too-familiar-to-us-as-parents/) [John McCain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mccain/) > [“In quixotically trying to conquer death doctors all too frequently do no good for their patients’ “ease” but at the same time they do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kevorkian/in-quixotically-trying-to-conquer-death-doctors-all-too-frequently-do/) [Jack Kevorkian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kevorkian/) > [Although I'm perceived as very optimistic and upbeat, it comes out of being the opposite of that - feeling isolated or lonely, looking for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-mcgonigal/although-i-m-perceived-as-very-optimistic-and-upbeat-it-comes-out-of/) [Jane McGonigal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-mcgonigal/) > [Good-breeding is not confined to externals, much less to any particular dress or attitude of the body; it is the art of pleasing, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-fielding/good-breeding-is-not-confined-to-externals-much-less-to-any/) [Henry Fielding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-fielding/) > [When his highness sends a ship to Egypt, does he trouble his head whether the mice on board are at their ease or not?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/when-his-highness-sends-a-ship-to-egypt-does-he-trouble-his-head/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) Browse all 1,502 Ease quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Better a long life of toil than a short one of ease.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Aesop" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop/better-a-long-life-of-toil-than-a-short-one-of-ease/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Ease" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop/better-a-long-life-of-toil-than-a-short-one-of-ease/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d84/aesop-1073_ease_better-a-long-life-of-toil-than-a-short_41333.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d84/aesop-1073_ease_better-a-long-life-of-toil-than-a-short_41333.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d84/aesop-1073_ease_better-a-long-life-of-toil-than-a-short_41333.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Better a long life of toil than a short one of ease.” — Aesop", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Aesop", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Better a long life of toil...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop/better-a-long-life-of-toil-than-a-short-one-of-ease/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop/better-a-long-life-of-toil-than-a-short-one-of-ease/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```