--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: One's work usually occupies more than…" description: "\"One's work usually occupies more than half of one's waking life. Choosing work that does not bring happiness will lead to a life that is mostly disappo..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/39e/bo-bennett-18268_disappointing_one-s-work-usually-occupies-more-than-ha_2543950.jpg" --- # One's work usually occupies more than half of one's waking… ![“One's work usually occupies more than half of one's waking life. Choosing work that does not bring happiness will lead to a life that is mostly disappointing” quote by Bo Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/39e/bo-bennett-18268_disappointing_one-s-work-usually-occupies-more-than-ha_2543950.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/39e/bo-bennett-18268_disappointing_one-s-work-usually-occupies-more-than-ha_2543950.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/39e/bo-bennett-18268_disappointing_one-s-work-usually-occupies-more-than-ha_2543950.jpg) > “One's work usually occupies more than half of one's waking life. Choosing work that does not bring happiness will lead to a life that is mostly disappointing” [Bo Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bo-bennett/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Spending most of life on unfulfilling work leads to chronic dissatisfaction. **In simple terms:** Unhappy work creates a disappointing life. Key Takeaway Seek work that brings joy. Themes career satisfaction purpose life balance Mood thoughtful motivational Type advice self‑help When to use this quote - job search - career change - entrepreneurship - daily routine Key Concepts psychology meaningful work Questions to Reflect On - What would you change about your current work? - How can you align duties with passions? A Different Perspective Financial constraints may limit options. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Choosing Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choosing-work-1458609/) [Disappointing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disappointing/) [Half](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/half/) [Happiness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happiness/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Life Choosing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-choosing-324365/) [Life Disappointing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-disappointing-594524/) [More](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/more/) [Waking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/waking/) [Waking life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/waking-life/) [Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/will/) [Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work/) [Work Usually](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work-usually-558385/) ## Related quotes > [I like to do drama, something about life that could be disappointing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ang-lee/i-like-to-do-drama-something-about-life-that-could-be-disappointing/) [Ang Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ang-lee/) > [But I don't think any parent can expect to escape this life without disappointing his child at some point. And the same could be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-klassen/but-i-don-t-think-any-parent-can-expect-to-escape-this-life-without/) [Julie Klassen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-klassen/) > [What in life is not disappointing?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gurley/what-in-life-is-not-disappointing/) [Todd Gurley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gurley/) > [After everything he'd built, planned, fought for, fretted over, dreamed of, this was the summation of his life; one disappointing son and two suitcases.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/after-everything-he-d-built-planned-fought-for-fretted-over-dreamed/) [Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/) > [There's little in life so disappointing as a sunken cake.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-whaite/there-s-little-in-life-so-disappointing-as-a-sunken-cake/) [John Whaite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-whaite/) > [Choosing work is an interesting thing. It's a balance between what's available and what you've always got in the back of your mind -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-pearce/choosing-work-is-an-interesting-thing-it-s-a-balance-between-what-s/) [Guy Pearce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-pearce/) > [“For most of us the time we spend at our work is a large part of our whole lives, and as our job usually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-a-hayek/for-most-of-us-the-time-we-spend-at-our-work-is-a-large-part-of-our/) [Friedrich A. Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-a-hayek/) > [“Choosing to work in HR is like choosing to work in the complaint department of hell, except way more frustrating, because at least in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-lawson/choosing-to-work-in-hr-is-like-choosing-to-work-in-the-complaint/) [Jenny Lawson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-lawson/) > [“Jill told him that he just didn't understand what it meant to have been so promising your whole life and now to be so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meg-wolitzer/jill-told-him-that-he-just-didn-t-understand-what-it-meant-to-have/) [Meg Wolitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meg-wolitzer/) > [“The peculiar predicament of the present-day self surely came to pass as a consequence of the disappointment of the high expectations of the self…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-percy/the-peculiar-predicament-of-the-present-day-self-surely-came-to-pass/) [Walker Percy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-percy/) > [I start work around 8 a.m. and usually finish around noon. If there's more to do, I do it in the late afternoon, although…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/i-start-work-around-8-a-m-and-usually-finish-around-noon-if-there-s/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [So much of my life is not about work and that is usually mainly what I do tweet about. We live a very quiet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-ehle/so-much-of-my-life-is-not-about-work-and-that-is-usually-mainly-what/) [Jennifer Ehle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-ehle/) > [When it seems impossible like nothing is going to work, you are usually just a few millimeters away from making it happen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-robbins/when-it-seems-impossible-like-nothing-is-going-to-work-you-are/) [Tony Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-robbins/) > [Sometimes it's a struggle to make everything work. I usually work on music from nine in the morning until three in the afternoon. Then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hans-peter-lindstr-m/sometimes-it-s-a-struggle-to-make-everything-work-i-usually-work-on/) [Hans-Peter Lindstrøm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hans-peter-lindstr-m/) > [Work usually follows will.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-pasteur/work-usually-follows-will/) [Louis Pasteur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-pasteur/) ## More by Bo Bennett > [People who come from dysfunctional families are not destined for a dysfunctional life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bo-bennett/people-who-come-from-dysfunctional-families-are-not-destined-for-a/) [Bo Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bo-bennett/) > [Every day, people settle for less than they deserve. They are only partially living or at best living a partial life. Every human being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bo-bennett/every-day-people-settle-for-less-than-they-deserve-they-are-only/) [Bo Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bo-bennett/) > [“Every day, people settle for less than they desearve. They are only parially living or at best living a partial life. Every human being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bo-bennett/every-day-people-settle-for-less-than-they-desearve-they-are-only/) [Bo Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bo-bennett/) > [Value people on their potential, not on their history](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bo-bennett/value-people-on-their-potential-not-on-their-history/) [Bo Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bo-bennett/) > [Resume: a written exaggeration of only the good things a person has done in the past, as well as a wish list of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bo-bennett/resume-a-written-exaggeration-of-only-the-good-things-a-person-has/) [Bo Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bo-bennett/) > [Never expect people to treat you any better than you treat yourself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bo-bennett/never-expect-people-to-treat-you-any-better-than-you-treat-yourself/) [Bo Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bo-bennett/) > [Faked enthusiasm is worse than bad acting - it is bad acting with the intent to deceive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bo-bennett/faked-enthusiasm-is-worse-than-bad-acting-it-is-bad-acting-with-the/) [Bo Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bo-bennett/) > [Every economy is uncertain. Referring to this or any economy as 'uncertain' is an unnecessary and pessimistic redundancy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bo-bennett/every-economy-is-uncertain-referring-to-this-or-any-economy-as/) [Bo Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bo-bennett/) > [If you have not taken the time to define what happiness means to you, what have your spent your whole life pursuing?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bo-bennett/if-you-have-not-taken-the-time-to-define-what-happiness-means-to-you/) [Bo Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bo-bennett/) > [Communication is about being effective, not always about being proper.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bo-bennett/communication-is-about-being-effective-not-always-about-being-proper/) [Bo Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bo-bennett/) > [It is not our mistakes that define who we are; it is how we recover from those mistakes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bo-bennett/it-is-not-our-mistakes-that-define-who-we-are-it-is-how-we-recover/) [Bo Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bo-bennett/) > [“For every good reason there is to lie, there is an even better reason to tell the truth”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bo-bennett/for-every-good-reason-there-is-to-lie-there-is-an-even-better-reason/) [Bo Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bo-bennett/) > [Remember that it is not where you come from, or not even where you are; it is where you are going that matters most](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bo-bennett/remember-that-it-is-not-where-you-come-from-or-not-even-where-you-are/) [Bo Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bo-bennett/) > [Show interest in all people, not just those from whom you want something. Making people feel important and good about themselves is just the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bo-bennett/show-interest-in-all-people-not-just-those-from-whom-you-want/) [Bo Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bo-bennett/) > [Frustration, although quite painful at times, is a very positive and essential part of success.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bo-bennett/frustration-although-quite-painful-at-times-is-a-very-positive-and/) [Bo Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bo-bennett/) [Explore all 35 Bo Bennett quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bo-bennett/) ## More Disappointing quotes > [To refer even in passing to unpublished or struggling authors and their problems is to put oneself at some risk, so I will say…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kingsley-amis/to-refer-even-in-passing-to-unpublished-or-struggling-authors-and/) [Kingsley Amis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kingsley-amis/) > [I never felt I was quite the ticket academically. I always felt I had to put in an enormous amount of effort not to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-mortimer/i-never-felt-i-was-quite-the-ticket-academically-i-always-felt-i-had/) [Emily Mortimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-mortimer/) > [I was depressed. I knew I was lost, but I had no idea how to find myself again. It was as though I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yasmina-khadra/i-was-depressed-i-knew-i-was-lost-but-i-had-no-idea-how-to-find/) [Yasmina Khadra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yasmina-khadra/) > [There's plenty of great stuff out there. I think it's just what we do is we all spend our allowance on the thing that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-englund/there-s-plenty-of-great-stuff-out-there-i-think-it-s-just-what-we-do/) [Robert Englund](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-englund/) > [It is always disappointing when you miss a match.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bhuvneshwar-kumar/it-is-always-disappointing-when-you-miss-a-match/) [Bhuvneshwar Kumar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bhuvneshwar-kumar/) > [I really like the George Clooney of Solaris also filmed by Andrei Tarkovsky, before Steven Soderbergh: that's very obviously sci-fi, and it seems to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoff-dyer/i-really-like-the-george-clooney-of-solaris-also-filmed-by-andrei/) [Geoff Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoff-dyer/) > [The exit polls suggest that after a relatively disappointing first term, Obama managed to reassemble almost all of his 2008 electorate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-podhoretz/the-exit-polls-suggest-that-after-a-relatively-disappointing-first/) [John Podhoretz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-podhoretz/) > [“How very disappointing truth is sometimes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ali-smith/how-very-disappointing-truth-is-sometimes/) [Ali Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ali-smith/) > [You're born and then you're on your own, you start having relationships, you're developing relationships to the world and your wider community, and then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mirah/you-re-born-and-then-you-re-on-your-own-you-start-having/) [Mirah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mirah/) > [What's disappointing about @usopengolf is the fans not being about to walk around the course/get close enough to most of the greens to cheer.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-horschel/what-s-disappointing-about-usopengolf-is-the-fans-not-being-about-to/) [Billy Horschel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-horschel/) > [For the world is an ever-elusive and ever-disappointing mirage only from the standpoint of someone standing aside from it—as if it were quite other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/for-the-world-is-an-ever-elusive-and-ever-disappointing-mirage-only/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Christianity persecuted, tortured, and burned. Like a hound it tracked the very scent of heresy. It kindled wars, and nursed furious hatreds and ambitions...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-santayana/christianity-persecuted-tortured-and-burned-like-a-hound-it-tracked/) [George Santayana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-santayana/) > [From this instant on, vow to stop disappointing yourself. Separate yourself from the mob. Decide to be extraordinary and do what you need to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/epictetus/from-this-instant-on-vow-to-stop-disappointing-yourself-separate/) [Epictetus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/epictetus/) > [Don't ever love anything too much, or expect too much it will just end up disappointing you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anurag-prakash-ray/don-t-ever-love-anything-too-much-or-expect-too-much-it-will-just-end/) [Anurag Prakash Ray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anurag-prakash-ray/) > [All those men who end up disappointing you. After a while, you don't even want to have feelings anymore. You just want to get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/candace-bushnell/all-those-men-who-end-up-disappointing-you-after-a-while-you-don-t/) [Candace Bushnell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/candace-bushnell/) [Browse all 364 Disappointing quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disappointing/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "One's work usually occupies more than half of one's waking life. 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