--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: To be idle is a short road to death and…" description: "\"To be idle is a short road to death and to be diligent is a way of life; foolish people are idle, wise people are diligent.\" — Anonymous" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ea/anonymous-1_death_to-be-idle-is-a-short-road-to-death-and_1513439.jpg" --- # To be idle is a short road to death and to be diligent is… ![“To be idle is a short road to death and to be diligent is a way of life; foolish people are idle, wise people are diligent.” quote by Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ea/anonymous-1_death_to-be-idle-is-a-short-road-to-death-and_1513439.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ea/anonymous-1_death_to-be-idle-is-a-short-road-to-death-and_1513439.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ea/anonymous-1_death_to-be-idle-is-a-short-road-to-death-and_1513439.jpg) > “To be idle is a short road to death and to be diligent is a way of life; foolish people are idle, wise people are diligent.” [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Idle leads to stagnation and eventual decline, while diligence sustains life and purpose. **In simple terms:** Idleness harms; diligence helps. Key Takeaway Choose diligence over idleness. Themes productivity life philosophy discipline Mood reflective motivational Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - career development - personal health - education - daily routines Key Concepts self‑discipline purpose longevity Questions to Reflect On - What habits can you build to stay diligent? - How does idleness affect your goals? A Different Perspective Diligence alone doesn't guarantee success; external factors matter. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Foolish people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/foolish-people/) [Idleness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/idleness/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Way of life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way-of-life/) [Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wise/) [Wise people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wise-people/) ## Related quotes > [Wise people speak because they have something to say;Foolish people speak because they have to say something.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/wise-people-speak-because-they-have-something-to-say-foolish-people/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [No one knows if theyll be happy by getting married to someone. Dont looks for answers. Right and wrong answers coexist in every decision.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/no-one-knows-if-theyll-be-happy-by-getting-married-to-someone-dont/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“When you meet young people, inspire them. When you meet old people, honor them. When you meet wise people, study them. When you meet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matshona-dhliwayo/when-you-meet-young-people-inspire-them-when-you-meet-old-people/) [Matshona Dhliwayo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matshona-dhliwayo/) > [Sometimes one likes foolish people for their folly, better than wise people for their wisdom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gaskell/sometimes-one-likes-foolish-people-for-their-folly-better-than-wise/) [Elizabeth Gaskell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gaskell/) > [Social opinion is like a sharp knife. There are foolish people who regard it only with terror, and dare not touch or meddle with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-brownell-jameson/social-opinion-is-like-a-sharp-knife-there-are-foolish-people-who/) [Anna Brownell Jameson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-brownell-jameson/) > [Foolish people waste their time searching for greener pastures... Wise people cultivate their land and grow their own.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-friend/foolish-people-waste-their-time-searching-for-greener-pastures-wise/) Charles Friend > [“Wise people problems, becomes everyone's solution. Foolish people solutions becomes everyone's problem.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/de-philosopher-dj-kyos/wise-people-problems-becomes-everyone-s-solution-foolish-people/) De philosopher DJ Kyos > [Wise people are foolish if they cannot adapt to foolish people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/wise-people-are-foolish-if-they-cannot-adapt-to-foolish-people/) [Michel de Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/) > [“We conditioned souls have taken shelter of the material body, which is full of troubles and miseries. Foolish people cannot understand the situation, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-conditioned-souls-have-taken-shelter-of-the-material-body-which-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Some of the most foolish people are some of the most vocal people because they have no filter for their thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/some-of-the-most-foolish-people-are-some-of-the-most-vocal-people/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Foolish people have fool's luck.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/foolish-people-have-fool-s-luck/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It's strange what desire will make foolish people do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-s-strange-what-desire-will-make-foolish-people-do/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“In my whole life, I have known no wise people (over a broad subject matter area) who didn't read all the time -- none,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/in-my-whole-life-i-have-known-no-wise-people-over-a-broad-subject/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Wise people learn when they can; fools learn when they must.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/wise-people-learn-when-they-can-fools-learn-when-they-must/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Falling in love. Who can explain it? Who can tell you why? Some may give you reasons, but wise people never try.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/falling-in-love-who-can-explain-it-who-can-tell-you-why-some-may-give/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Anonymous > [And a tear rolled down her cheek, as she said goodbye; because she's walking away, and she's never looking back](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/and-a-tear-rolled-down-her-cheek-as-she-said-goodbye-because-she-s/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You'll seldom experience regret for anything that you've done. It is what you haven't done that will torment you. The message, therefore, is clear.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-ll-seldom-experience-regret-for-anything-that-you-ve-done-it-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Scrabble - The game is available in Braille. That’s a nice fact. This makes me feel better about humanity for some reason. I can’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/scrabble-the-game-is-available-in-braille-that-s-a-nice-fact-this/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Everyone needs someone to love, and I choose you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyone-needs-someone-to-love-and-i-choose-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Put on my J's and dance the whole night away Im naughty by nature like Im hip-hop hooray With my hands in the sky,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/put-on-my-j-s-and-dance-the-whole-night-away-im-naughty-by-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Me.. I have been through a lot, but I still manage to have a smile on my face. Im not worried about the past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/me-i-have-been-through-a-lot-but-i-still-manage-to-have-a-smile-on-my/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Distance is a test of love. many will fail for those who can't withstand it, but for those who can, theres only one answer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/distance-is-a-test-of-love-many-will-fail-for-those-who-can-t/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Im sorry I ever tried...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/im-sorry-i-ever-tried/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Being betrayed by the one you love is the worst feeling in the world...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-betrayed-by-the-one-you-love-is-the-worst-feeling-in-the-world/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Let children support their parents or be imprisoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-children-support-their-parents-or-be-imprisoned/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The only person I've ever purposely caused pain here is myself...By simply sharing, caring too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-person-i-ve-ever-purposely-caused-pain-here-is-myself-by/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Start a business, not a startup”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/start-a-business-not-a-startup/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The truth is, of course, that the curtness of the Ten Commandments is an evidence, not of the gloom and narrowness of a religion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-truth-is-of-course-that-the-curtness-of-the-ten-commandments-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Explore all 162,899 Anonymous quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More Death quotes > [“He wondered how it was fair that your dying should depend so much on when you were born.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-albom/he-wondered-how-it-was-fair-that-your-dying-should-depend-so-much-on/) [Mitch Albom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-albom/) > [What sets worlds in motion is the interplay of differences, their attractions and repulsions. Life is plurality, death is uniformity. By suppressing differences and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/what-sets-worlds-in-motion-is-the-interplay-of-differences-their/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [Most of us are convinced that we are our egos, which is who we think we are. The ego is part of our incarnation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ram-dass/most-of-us-are-convinced-that-we-are-our-egos-which-is-who-we-think/) [Ram Dass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ram-dass/) > [I do not want to live at the cost of the life even of a snake. I should let him bite me to death…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/i-do-not-want-to-live-at-the-cost-of-the-life-even-of-a-snake-i/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [“It was beautiful. He thought he had never seen anything so beautiful in all his life; that, having seen it, he could die content,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mira-grant/it-was-beautiful-he-thought-he-had-never-seen-anything-so-beautiful/) [Mira Grant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mira-grant/) > [Retirement? You're talking about death, right?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-altman/retirement-you-re-talking-about-death-right/) [Robert Altman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-altman/) > [With multiplayer, permanent death, and an ever-changing world to explore and conquer, 'A Valley Without Wind' might be the place you're looking for if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-manuel/with-multiplayer-permanent-death-and-an-ever-changing-world-to/) [Rob Manuel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-manuel/) > [“What did you see?” she asked gently. His brow furrowed, as if he could not understand the question. Then his eyes turned to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-anthony-torino/what-did-you-see-she-asked-gently-his-brow-furrowed-as-if-he-could/) J. Anthony Torino > [Those whose life is long still strive for gain, and for all mortals all things take second place to money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/those-whose-life-is-long-still-strive-for-gain-and-for-all-mortals/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [“I practice Dying--every night-- But have not learned to, still-- Though Talented--by Mortal bones-- For such a common Skill.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-w-powers/i-practice-dying-every-night-but-have-not-learned-to-still-though/) Alan W. Powers > [“You must understand the pain and grief of losing someone is nothing more than a function of survival.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-cooper/you-must-understand-the-pain-and-grief-of-losing-someone-is-nothing/) [Steven Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-cooper/) > [I am not a depressive person at all, but I reflect a lot on my life, and life in general, from the perspective of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/i-am-not-a-depressive-person-at-all-but-i-reflect-a-lot-on-my-life/) [Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/) > [“Death is a reality that calls the rest of life and all of our assorted strivings into sharp relief.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/death-is-a-reality-that-calls-the-rest-of-life-and-all-of-our/) [Craig D. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/) > [I love life. I love life to death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmanuelle-riva/i-love-life-i-love-life-to-death/) [Emmanuelle Riva](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmanuelle-riva/) > [I think when you’re dying you start looking for important things in the corners. You can’t let anything that seems even semi-important pass, because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-crutcher/i-think-when-you-re-dying-you-start-looking-for-important-things-in/) [Chris Crutcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-crutcher/) [Browse all 39,127 Death quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "To be idle is a short road to death and to be diligent is a way of life; foolish people are idle, wise people are diligent.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Anonymous" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-be-idle-is-a-short-road-to-death-and-to-be-diligent-is-a-way-of/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Death" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-be-idle-is-a-short-road-to-death-and-to-be-diligent-is-a-way-of/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ea/anonymous-1_death_to-be-idle-is-a-short-road-to-death-and_1513439.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ea/anonymous-1_death_to-be-idle-is-a-short-road-to-death-and_1513439.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ea/anonymous-1_death_to-be-idle-is-a-short-road-to-death-and_1513439.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“To be idle is a short road to death and to be diligent is a way of life; foolish people are idle, wise…” — Anonymous", "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": "Anonymous", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "To be idle is a short...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-be-idle-is-a-short-road-to-death-and-to-be-diligent-is-a-way-of/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-be-idle-is-a-short-road-to-death-and-to-be-diligent-is-a-way-of/#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 } } ] } ```