--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Ardour in well-doing is a misleading and…" description: "\"“Ardour in well-doing is a misleading and a treacherous thing. It cries out loudly for employment; you can't satisfy it at first; it wants more and mor..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5d2/arnold-bennett-3325_eager_ardour-in-well-doing-is-a-misleading-and_2064535.jpg" --- # Ardour in well-doing is a misleading and a treacherous… ![“Ardour in well-doing is a misleading and a treacherous thing. It cries out loudly for employment; you can't satisfy it at first; it wants more and more; it is eager to move mountains and divert the course of rivers. It isn't content till it perspires. And then, too often, when it feels the…” quote by Arnold Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5d2/arnold-bennett-3325_eager_ardour-in-well-doing-is-a-misleading-and_2064535.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5d2/arnold-bennett-3325_eager_ardour-in-well-doing-is-a-misleading-and_2064535.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5d2/arnold-bennett-3325_eager_ardour-in-well-doing-is-a-misleading-and_2064535.jpg) > ““Ardour in well-doing is a misleading and a treacherous thing. It cries out loudly for employment; you can't satisfy it at first; it wants more and more; it is eager to move mountains and divert the course of rivers. It isn't content till it perspires. And then, too often, when it feels the perspiration on its brow, it wearies all of a sudden and dies, without even putting itself to the trouble of saying, "I've had enough of this.”” [Arnold Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-bennett/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Excessive zeal in good work can become self‑defeating, demanding endless effort and burning out before completion. **In simple terms:** Too much enthusiasm can cause burnout. Key Takeaway Balance effort with rest. Themes motivation burnout balance Mood reflective cautious Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - project deadlines - creative pursuits - volunteer work - career advancement Key Concepts self‑discipline overcommitment sustainability Questions to Reflect On - How do you recognize when effort becomes counterproductive? - What limits do you set to sustain long‑term work? A Different Perspective Unchecked ambition may lead to premature exhaustion. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ardour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ardour-3104021/) [Ardour Doing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ardour-doing-3955292/) [Eager](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eager/) [Motivation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/motivation/) [Move mountains](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/move-mountains/) [Perspiration](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/perspiration/) [Perspires Feels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/perspires-feels-3955293/) [Saying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/saying/) [Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work/) ## Related quotes > [The ardour chills us which we do not share.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/coventry-patmore/the-ardour-chills-us-which-we-do-not-share/) [Coventry Patmore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/coventry-patmore/) > [Most, if not all, creativity is born out of perspiration rather than inspiration.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaine-hogan/most-if-not-all-creativity-is-born-out-of-perspiration-rather-than/) [Blaine Hogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaine-hogan/) > [The secret to a masterpiece is 10 percent inspiration and 90 percent perspiration.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-vargas-llosa/the-secret-to-a-masterpiece-is-10-percent-inspiration-and-90-percent/) [Mario Vargas Llosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-vargas-llosa/) > [“You have to dig a well before you can draw water from it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richie-norton/you-have-to-dig-a-well-before-you-can-draw-water-from-it/) [Richie Norton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richie-norton/) > [None of my inventions came by accident. I see a worthwhile need to be met and I make trial after trial until it comes.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-a-edison/none-of-my-inventions-came-by-accident-i-see-a-worthwhile-need-to-be/) [Thomas A. Edison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-a-edison/) > [“I guess I should thank you for totally making my morning. It’s not every day a stranger notices my perspiration level. - Dr. Jeri…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-finney/i-guess-i-should-thank-you-for-totally-making-my-morning-it-s-not/) [Richard Finney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-finney/) > [The first cup moistens my lips and throat; The second cup breaks my loneliness; The third cup searches my barren entrail but to find…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lu-tong/the-first-cup-moistens-my-lips-and-throat-the-second-cup-breaks-my/) [Lu Tong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lu-tong/) > [There's a little perspiration involved in bringing about change too.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/there-s-a-little-perspiration-involved-in-bringing-about-change-too/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [It's true when they say songwriting is 10% inspiration and 90% perspiration. In truth, what happens is... songs comes through you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-lake/it-s-true-when-they-say-songwriting-is-10-inspiration-and-90/) [Greg Lake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-lake/) > [Invention is 10% inspiration and 90% perspiration.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-a-edison/invention-is-10-inspiration-and-90-perspiration/) [Thomas A. Edison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-a-edison/) > [People often say that writing is ten percent inspiration and ninety percent perspiration. This is nonsense, of course. It's pretty much one hundred percent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caprice-crane/people-often-say-that-writing-is-ten-percent-inspiration-and-ninety/) [Caprice Crane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caprice-crane/) > [There are many troubles which you cannot cure by the Bible and the hymn-book, but which you can cure by a good perspiration and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/there-are-many-troubles-which-you-cannot-cure-by-the-bible-and-the/) [Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) > [“The Deliverator belongs to an elite order, a hallowed subcategory. He’s got esprit up to here. Right now, he is preparing to carry out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-stephenson/the-deliverator-belongs-to-an-elite-order-a-hallowed-subcategory-he-s/) [Neal Stephenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-stephenson/) > [In Roslyn, Pennsylvania, we started our real-life family circus. They provided the inspiration for my cartoons. I provided the perspiration.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bil-keane/in-roslyn-pennsylvania-we-started-our-real-life-family-circus-they/) [Bil Keane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bil-keane/) > [Success is 90% perspiration and 10% inspiration!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-a-edison/success-is-90-perspiration-and-10-inspiration/) [Thomas A. Edison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-a-edison/) ## More by Arnold Bennett > [The chances are that you have already come to believe that happiness is unattainable. But men have attained it. And they have attained it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-bennett/the-chances-are-that-you-have-already-come-to-believe-that-happiness/) [Arnold Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-bennett/) > [Good taste is better than bad taste, but bad taste is better than no taste.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-bennett/good-taste-is-better-than-bad-taste-but-bad-taste-is-better-than-no/) [Arnold Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-bennett/) > [To write is to make oneself the echo of what cannot cease speaking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-bennett/to-write-is-to-make-oneself-the-echo-of-what-cannot-cease-speaking/) [Arnold Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-bennett/) > [The parents exist to teach the child, but also they must learn what the child has to teach them; and the child has a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-bennett/the-parents-exist-to-teach-the-child-but-also-they-must-learn-what/) [Arnold Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-bennett/) > [The gain in self-confidence of having accomplished a tiresome labour is immense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-bennett/the-gain-in-self-confidence-of-having-accomplished-a-tiresome-labour/) [Arnold Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-bennett/) > [A man of sixty has spent twenty years in bed and over three years in eating.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-bennett/a-man-of-sixty-has-spent-twenty-years-in-bed-and-over-three-years-in/) [Arnold Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-bennett/) > [“What then? Are we only to buy the books that we read? The question has merely to be thus bluntly put, and it answers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-bennett/what-then-are-we-only-to-buy-the-books-that-we-read-the-question-has/) [Arnold Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-bennett/) > [The most important preliminary to the task of arranging one's life so that one may live fully and comfortably within one's daily budget of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-bennett/the-most-important-preliminary-to-the-task-of-arranging-one-s-life-so/) [Arnold Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-bennett/) > [You are not in charge of the universe; you are in charge of yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-bennett/you-are-not-in-charge-of-the-universe-you-are-in-charge-of-yourself/) [Arnold Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-bennett/) > [“When one has thoroughly got imbued into one's head the leading truth that nothing happens without a cause, one grows not only large-minded, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-bennett/when-one-has-thoroughly-got-imbued-into-one-s-head-the-leading-truth/) [Arnold Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-bennett/) > [Any change, even a change for the better, is always accompanied by drawbacks and discomforts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-bennett/any-change-even-a-change-for-the-better-is-always-accompanied-by/) [Arnold Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-bennett/) > [“The public is a great actuality, like war. If you are a creative and creating artist, you cannot ignore it, though it can ignore…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-bennett/the-public-is-a-great-actuality-like-war-if-you-are-a-creative-and/) [Arnold Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-bennett/) > [“Good clothes, when put to the test, survive a change in fortune, as a Roman arch survives the luxury of departed empire.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-bennett/good-clothes-when-put-to-the-test-survive-a-change-in-fortune-as-a/) [Arnold Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-bennett/) > [Ninety percent of the friction of daily life is caused by tone of voice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-bennett/ninety-percent-of-the-friction-of-daily-life-is-caused-by-tone-of/) [Arnold Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-bennett/) > [During a long and varied career as a bachelor, I have noticed that marriage is the death of politeness between a man and a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-bennett/during-a-long-and-varied-career-as-a-bachelor-i-have-noticed-that/) [Arnold Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-bennett/) [Explore all 133 Arnold Bennett quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-bennett/) ## More Eager quotes > [“This is all I can offer, Wilhelmina, this is all of me. What you see is all I can give you, and what you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronnell-d-porter/this-is-all-i-can-offer-wilhelmina-this-is-all-of-me-what-you-see-is/) [Ronnell D. Porter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronnell-d-porter/) > [“Happy in his silence yet eager for his words.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daphne-du-maurier/happy-in-his-silence-yet-eager-for-his-words/) [Daphne du Maurier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daphne-du-maurier/) > [“If you stay passionate and committed, mediocrity will never be eager to befriend you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israelmore-ayivor/if-you-stay-passionate-and-committed-mediocrity-will-never-be-eager/) [Israelmore Ayivor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israelmore-ayivor/) > [We've already seen digital picture frames pre-loaded with viruses; I'm not eager to have my refrigerator hacked or my alarm clock turned against me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamais-cascio/we-ve-already-seen-digital-picture-frames-pre-loaded-with-viruses-i-m/) [Jamais Cascio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamais-cascio/) > [Somebody had given me a copy of 'Hunky Dory,' which had yet to be a hit, although it was starting to percolate. I'd seen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mick-rock/somebody-had-given-me-a-copy-of-hunky-dory-which-had-yet-to-be-a-hit/) [Mick Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mick-rock/) > [As a young woman, I was so eager to please that I served others' happiness and even their values before my own. It didn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-harrison/as-a-young-woman-i-was-so-eager-to-please-that-i-served-others/) [Kathryn Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-harrison/) > [I feel eager to learn as much as I can, not only about my craft but the world and the cosmos and how we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-burstyn/i-feel-eager-to-learn-as-much-as-i-can-not-only-about-my-craft-but/) [Ellen Burstyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-burstyn/) > [Wishes are thoughts vibrant with life and eager for action.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-martin/wishes-are-thoughts-vibrant-with-life-and-eager-for-action/) [Mary Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-martin/) > [God is more eager to answer than we are to ask.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/smith-wigglesworth/god-is-more-eager-to-answer-than-we-are-to-ask/) [Smith Wigglesworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/smith-wigglesworth/) > [The hunger and thirst for knowledge, the keen delight in the chase, the good humored willingness to admit that the scent was false, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederic-william-maitland/the-hunger-and-thirst-for-knowledge-the-keen-delight-in-the-chase-the/) [Frederic William Maitland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederic-william-maitland/) > [Do not be eager for things above.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-aurobindo/do-not-be-eager-for-things-above/) [Sri Aurobindo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-aurobindo/) > [But once I went for it, left my inhibitions aside and saw its eventual success, it made me much more comfortable and eager THIS…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-biggs/but-once-i-went-for-it-left-my-inhibitions-aside-and-saw-its-eventual/) [Jason Biggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-biggs/) > [I decided to take two years between finishing undergraduate and beginning medical school to devote fully to medical research. I knew that I wanted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eva-vertes/i-decided-to-take-two-years-between-finishing-undergraduate-and/) [Eva Vertes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-vertes/) > [I think that people are more eager to learn about food than almost every other topic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-conover/i-think-that-people-are-more-eager-to-learn-about-food-than-almost/) [Adam Conover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-conover/) > [Be eager in your desires but humbly patient in their accomplishment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mackillop/be-eager-in-your-desires-but-humbly-patient-in-their-accomplishment/) [Mary MacKillop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mackillop/) [Browse all 157 Eager quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eager/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Ardour in well-doing is a misleading and a treacherous thing. 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