---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I do take my work seriously and the way…"
description: "\"I do take my work seriously and the way to do that is not to take yourself too seriously.\" — Alan Rickman"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e48/alan-rickman-4156_seriously_i-do-take-my-work-seriously-and-the-way_725795.jpg"
---

#  I do take my work seriously and the way to do that is not…

![“I do take my work seriously and the way to do that is not to take yourself too seriously.” quote by Alan Rickman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e48/alan-rickman-4156_seriously_i-do-take-my-work-seriously-and-the-way_725795.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e48/alan-rickman-4156_seriously_i-do-take-my-work-seriously-and-the-way_725795.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e48/alan-rickman-4156_seriously_i-do-take-my-work-seriously-and-the-way_725795.jpg)

> “I do take my work seriously and the way to do that is not to take yourself too seriously.”

[Alan Rickman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-rickman/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Taking work seriously while staying light‑hearted balances focus and humility.

**In simple terms:** Balance seriousness with humor.

Key Takeaway

Stay humble, stay focused.

Themes

humility professionalism balance

Mood

thoughtful balanced

Type

advice philosophical

When to use this quote

- career development
- team management
- creative projects
- public speaking

Key Concepts

work ethic psychology of humor leadership style

Questions to Reflect On

- When is humor appropriate?
- How do you maintain credibility?

A Different Perspective

Too much levity can undermine authority.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Seriously](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seriously/) [Seriously Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seriously-way-437469/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) [Way Seriously](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way-seriously-681227/) [Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work/) [Work Seriously](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work-seriously-484660/)

## Related quotes

> [I take my work very seriously, and that's the only way for it to be fun for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenn-howerton/i-take-my-work-very-seriously-and-that-s-the-only-way-for-it-to-be/)

[Glenn Howerton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenn-howerton/)

> [People sometimes say we take things too seriously, but it's the only way you'll get anywhere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-yorke/people-sometimes-say-we-take-things-too-seriously-but-it-s-the-only/)

[Thom Yorke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-yorke/)

> [No matter what happens, somebody will find a way to take it too seriously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-barry/no-matter-what-happens-somebody-will-find-a-way-to-take-it-too/)

[Dave Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-barry/)

> [You have to be serious about what you do but you mustn't take yourself seriously. That way you'll be happier and ultimately you'll be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-tucci/you-have-to-be-serious-about-what-you-do-but-you-mustn-t-take/)

[Stanley Tucci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-tucci/)

> [Take your work seriously but never take yourself seriously and do not take what happens either to yourself or your work seriously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/booth-tarkington/take-your-work-seriously-but-never-take-yourself-seriously-and-do-not/)

[Booth Tarkington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/booth-tarkington/)

> [I take the work seriously, just not myself in it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-rollins/i-take-the-work-seriously-just-not-myself-in-it/)

[Henry Rollins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-rollins/)

> [I like a happy atmosphere. I don't like people who are serious and grey. I don't think anyone should take life or work seriously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arshad-warsi/i-like-a-happy-atmosphere-i-don-t-like-people-who-are-serious-and/)

[Arshad Warsi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arshad-warsi/)

> [It's so important that we take auditions less seriously, take your work seriously, but take the industry a whole lot less seriously because it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sian-clifford/it-s-so-important-that-we-take-auditions-less-seriously-take-your/)

[Sian Clifford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sian-clifford/)

> [Other actors have come up and told me that I don't take my work seriously. How am I not taking it seriously? Ask the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/riya-sen/other-actors-have-come-up-and-told-me-that-i-don-t-take-my-work/)

[Riya Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/riya-sen/)

> [Take your work seriously, but don't take yourself seriously](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clint-eastwood/take-your-work-seriously-but-don-t-take-yourself-seriously/)

[Clint Eastwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clint-eastwood/)

> [My work is my work. I take my work seriously but I don't take myself too seriously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tina-fey/my-work-is-my-work-i-take-my-work-seriously-but-i-don-t-take-myself/)

[Tina Fey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tina-fey/)

> [“Surround yourself with people who take their work seriously, but not themselves.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-powell/surround-yourself-with-people-who-take-their-work-seriously-but-not/)

[Colin Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-powell/)

> [I'm not fun to bowl with. I take it way too seriously. I have high expectations for myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-hardwick/i-m-not-fun-to-bowl-with-i-take-it-way-too-seriously-i-have-high/)

[Chris Hardwick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-hardwick/)

> [There was too much going on here -- too much that strayed from odd all the way over into seriously weird.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-de-lint/there-was-too-much-going-on-here-too-much-that-strayed-from-odd-all/)

[Charles de Lint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-de-lint/)

> [The Baron, unfortunately, turns it all the way up to eleven." "Seriously? Because, you know, that's one more evil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-landy/the-baron-unfortunately-turns-it-all-the-way-up-to-eleven-seriously/)

[Derek Landy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-landy/)

## More by Alan Rickman

> [Every so often you read a play and a character just speaks to you - almost seems to speak through you, in fact.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-rickman/every-so-often-you-read-a-play-and-a-character-just-speaks-to-you/)

[Alan Rickman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-rickman/)

> [My definition of palatable might be slightly different from yours.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-rickman/my-definition-of-palatable-might-be-slightly-different-from-yours/)

[Alan Rickman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-rickman/)

> [Three children have become adults since a phone call with Jo Rowling, containing one small clue, persuaded me that there was more to Snape…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-rickman/three-children-have-become-adults-since-a-phone-call-with-jo-rowling/)

[Alan Rickman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-rickman/)

> [I do feel more myself in America. I can regress there, and they have roller-coaster parks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-rickman/i-do-feel-more-myself-in-america-i-can-regress-there-and-they-have/)

[Alan Rickman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-rickman/)

> [I have a love-hate relationship with white silk.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-rickman/i-have-a-love-hate-relationship-with-white-silk/)

[Alan Rickman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-rickman/)

> [Unless we tell stories about ourselves, which is all that theater is, we're in deep trouble.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-rickman/unless-we-tell-stories-about-ourselves-which-is-all-that-theater-is/)

[Alan Rickman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-rickman/)

> [I was 7, and I remember being given a part in a play and thinking, This is exciting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-rickman/i-was-7-and-i-remember-being-given-a-part-in-a-play-and-thinking-this/)

[Alan Rickman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-rickman/)

> [The difference between being an actor and a director is simple. The director has to hide his panic; the actor doesn't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-rickman/the-difference-between-being-an-actor-and-a-director-is-simple-the/)

[Alan Rickman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-rickman/)

> [Do you know that moment when you paint a landscape as a child and, when you’re maybe under seven or something, the sky is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-rickman/do-you-know-that-moment-when-you-paint-a-landscape-as-a-child-and/)

[Alan Rickman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-rickman/)

> [Who I am gets in the way of people looking innocently at the parts I play.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-rickman/who-i-am-gets-in-the-way-of-people-looking-innocently-at-the-parts-i/)

[Alan Rickman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-rickman/)

> [I don't think it's right that everybody knows everything about me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-rickman/i-don-t-think-it-s-right-that-everybody-knows-everything-about-me/)

[Alan Rickman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-rickman/)

> [One thing I will say - my job gets harder and harder. The more you understand about what you are capable of, the less…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-rickman/one-thing-i-will-say-my-job-gets-harder-and-harder-the-more-you/)

[Alan Rickman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-rickman/)

> [On the screen were some flashback shots of Daniel, Emma and Rupert from ten years ago. They were 12. I have also recently returned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-rickman/on-the-screen-were-some-flashback-shots-of-daniel-emma-and-rupert/)

[Alan Rickman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-rickman/)

> [I was coming from a very cerebral, dark, difficult, layered play by Christopher Hampton and doing an action movie in Hollywood (Die Hard) with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-rickman/i-was-coming-from-a-very-cerebral-dark-difficult-layered-play-by/)

[Alan Rickman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-rickman/)

> [I don't play villains, I play very interesting people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-rickman/i-don-t-play-villains-i-play-very-interesting-people/)

[Alan Rickman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-rickman/)

[Explore all 115 Alan Rickman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-rickman/)

## More Seriously quotes

> [I take the responsibility of playing another ethnicity very, very seriously, and I promise myself and those people that I will represent them with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cliff-curtis/i-take-the-responsibility-of-playing-another-ethnicity-very-very/)

[Cliff Curtis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cliff-curtis/)

> [I'm a liberal, but I'm not biased. Seriously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-cronkite/i-m-a-liberal-but-i-m-not-biased-seriously/)

[Walter Cronkite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-cronkite/)

> [Personal shoppers in big department stores are seriously under-used.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-reardon/personal-shoppers-in-big-department-stores-are-seriously-under-used/)

[Kate Reardon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-reardon/)

> [I was a very protected and confused kid till 24. It was after then, that I started taking my life seriously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/siddharth-shukla/i-was-a-very-protected-and-confused-kid-till-24-it-was-after-then/)

[Siddharth Shukla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/siddharth-shukla/)

> [All my way through college, I worked my way as a window dresser for Lord & Taylor, so I always liked fashion. I always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-rivers/all-my-way-through-college-i-worked-my-way-as-a-window-dresser-for/)

[Joan Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-rivers/)

> [Before I got addicted to comedy, I was seriously thinking about playing tennis full time. I joined the tennis team and played with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrot-top/before-i-got-addicted-to-comedy-i-was-seriously-thinking-about/)

[Carrot Top](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrot-top/)

> [When we built Roomba, we explicitly designed it to not have a face. We didn't want to think it was cute; we wanted people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-angle/when-we-built-roomba-we-explicitly-designed-it-to-not-have-a-face-we/)

[Colin Angle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-angle/)

> [I want folks to take horror seriously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-g-tremblay/i-want-folks-to-take-horror-seriously/)

[Paul G. Tremblay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-g-tremblay/)

> [“Wait, seriously, what's a piss pot?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-shand/wait-seriously-what-s-a-piss-pot/)

[Pat Shand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-shand/)

> [If there's anything I hate more than not being taken seriously, it's being taken too seriously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-wilder/if-there-s-anything-i-hate-more-than-not-being-taken-seriously-it-s/)

[Billy Wilder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-wilder/)

> [Honestly, and seriously, I know I have to do a Telugu film. It was my grandmother's dream to see me in a Telugu film…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swara-bhaskar/honestly-and-seriously-i-know-i-have-to-do-a-telugu-film-it-was-my/)

[Swara Bhaskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swara-bhaskar/)

> [Yeah, I'm the Brit who isn't Lewis Hamilton that woke up and realised he was good. I got that tag because I was young,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenson-button/yeah-i-m-the-brit-who-isn-t-lewis-hamilton-that-woke-up-and-realised/)

[Jenson Button](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenson-button/)

> [I am not a Ph.D. in economics or a doctorate in literature that I can afford to take my singing lightly. Even if I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kailash-kher/i-am-not-a-ph-d-in-economics-or-a-doctorate-in-literature-that-i-can/)

[Kailash Kher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kailash-kher/)

> [I read and write for most of the day, but I do let myself be interrupted by real life. I enjoy going out with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-t-vollmann/i-read-and-write-for-most-of-the-day-but-i-do-let-myself-be/)

[William T. Vollmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-t-vollmann/)

> [Golf is like a love affair: if you don't take it seriously, it's no fun. If you do take it seriously, it breaks your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-daly/golf-is-like-a-love-affair-if-you-don-t-take-it-seriously-it-s-no-fun/)

[Arnold Daly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-daly/)

[Browse all 1,763 Seriously quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seriously/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "I do take my work seriously and the way to do that is not to take yourself too seriously.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Alan Rickman"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-rickman/i-do-take-my-work-seriously-and-the-way-to-do-that-is-not-to-take/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Seriously"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-rickman/i-do-take-my-work-seriously-and-the-way-to-do-that-is-not-to-take/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e48/alan-rickman-4156_seriously_i-do-take-my-work-seriously-and-the-way_725795.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e48/alan-rickman-4156_seriously_i-do-take-my-work-seriously-and-the-way_725795.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e48/alan-rickman-4156_seriously_i-do-take-my-work-seriously-and-the-way_725795.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“I do take my work seriously and the way to do that is not to take yourself too seriously.” — Alan Rickman",
                "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": "Alan Rickman",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-rickman/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "I do take my work seriously...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-rickman/i-do-take-my-work-seriously-and-the-way-to-do-that-is-not-to-take/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-rickman/i-do-take-my-work-seriously-and-the-way-to-do-that-is-not-to-take/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```