--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Because most people are not sufficiently…" description: "\"Because most people are not sufficiently employed in themselves, they run about loose, hungering for employment, and satisfy themselves in various supe..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f0f/laura-riding-9995_art_because-most-people-are-not-sufficiently_1801212.png" --- # Because most people are not sufficiently employed in… ![“Because most people are not sufficiently employed in themselves, they run about loose, hungering for employment, and satisfy themselves in various supererogatory occupations. The easiest of these occupations, which have all to do with making things already made, is the making of people: it is…” quote by Laura Riding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f0f/laura-riding-9995_art_because-most-people-are-not-sufficiently_1801212.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f0f/laura-riding-9995_art_because-most-people-are-not-sufficiently_1801212.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f0f/laura-riding-9995_art_because-most-people-are-not-sufficiently_1801212.png) > “Because most people are not sufficiently employed in themselves, they run about loose, hungering for employment, and satisfy themselves in various supererogatory occupations. The easiest of these occupations, which have all to do with making things already made, is the making of people: it is called the art of friendship.” [Laura Riding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-riding/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People often seek purpose through superficial work, but true fulfillment comes from genuine connections and the craft of friendship. **In simple terms:** Friendship is a meaningful, purposeful art. Key Takeaway Cultivate authentic friendships for deeper fulfillment. Themes friendship purpose meaning self‑realization community Mood reflective thoughtful inspirational Type philosophical social When to use this quote - Workplace - social circles - volunteering - creative collaborations Key Concepts Existentialism social psychology authenticity Questions to Reflect On - What does authentic friendship look like for you? - How can you prioritize meaningful connections? A Different Perspective Superficial jobs may distract from deeper relational needs. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Easiest Occupations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/easiest-occupations-2033173/) [Employed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/employed/) [Employment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/employment/) [Friendship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friendship/) [Made](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/made/) [Making People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/making-people-255083/) [Occupation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/occupation/) [Occupations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/occupations/) [Occupations Easiest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/occupations-easiest-2033174/) [Occupations Making](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/occupations-making-2033172/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Running](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/running/) [Various](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/various/) ## Related quotes > [I am always the first to say that fame and entertainment is one of the best and easiest occupations to ever have, but one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cannon/i-am-always-the-first-to-say-that-fame-and-entertainment-is-one-of/) [Nick Cannon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cannon/) > [In every province, the chief occupations, in order of importance, are lovemaking, malicious gossip, and talking nonsense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/in-every-province-the-chief-occupations-in-order-of-importance-are/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [The compulsion to do the opposite of what you are told does not lend itself to many occupations outside the entertainment industry. Within the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-fitzsimmons/the-compulsion-to-do-the-opposite-of-what-you-are-told-does-not-lend/) [Greg Fitzsimmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-fitzsimmons/) > [Even a boring occupation can be interesting when your goal is to do it better](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-half/even-a-boring-occupation-can-be-interesting-when-your-goal-is-to-do/) [Robert Half](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-half/) > [“I have no profession. It is another example of my decadence. My attitude - quite an indefensible one - is that so long as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster-2/i-have-no-profession-it-is-another-example-of-my-decadence-my/) [E.M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster-2/) > [Librarian like Stewardess, Certified Public Accountant, Used Car Salesman is one of those occupations that people assume attract a certain deformed personality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-mccracken/librarian-like-stewardess-certified-public-accountant-used-car/) [Elizabeth McCracken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-mccracken/) > [The bearing, rearing, feeding and educating of children; the running of a house with its thousand details; human relationships with their myriad pulls -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-morrow-lindbergh/the-bearing-rearing-feeding-and-educating-of-children-the-running-of/) [Anne Morrow Lindbergh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-morrow-lindbergh/) > [Of 472 civilian occupations defined by the Department of Commerce, only six are majority immigrant (legal and illegal). These six occupations account for 1…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-krikorian/of-472-civilian-occupations-defined-by-the-department-of-commerce/) [Mark Krikorian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-krikorian/) > [Most of our occupations are low comedy… We must play our part duly, but as the part of a borrowed character. Of the mask…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/most-of-our-occupations-are-low-comedy-we-must-play-our-part-duly-but/) [Michel de Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/) > [When occupations come to us we must accept them; when things come to us we must understand them from the ground up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lu-yen-hsun/when-occupations-come-to-us-we-must-accept-them-when-things-come-to/) [Lu Yen-hsun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lu-yen-hsun/) > [“Diane sometimes hears that Troy is an actuary. Sometimes she hears Troy is a florist. Sometimes she hears Troy is a cop, a toll…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-fink/diane-sometimes-hears-that-troy-is-an-actuary-sometimes-she-hears/) [Joseph Fink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-fink/) > [Woman, no less than man, can qualify herself for the more onerous occupations of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victoria-woodhull/woman-no-less-than-man-can-qualify-herself-for-the-more-onerous/) [Victoria Woodhull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victoria-woodhull/) > [When I grew up I always wanted to act. Also, I wanted to be either a lawyer or a doctor. However, when I got…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tia-mowry/when-i-grew-up-i-always-wanted-to-act-also-i-wanted-to-be-either-a/) [Tia Mowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tia-mowry/) > [Usually, the leaders appear in the moment of the highest stress, when it is time, speaking symbolically, to go to the barricades. Then people,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-bukovsky/usually-the-leaders-appear-in-the-moment-of-the-highest-stress-when/) [Vladimir Bukovsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-bukovsky/) > [To say what I would have been if I wasn't boxing, I don't know why, but I always wanted to be an x-ray technician…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sugar-ray-leonard/to-say-what-i-would-have-been-if-i-wasn-t-boxing-i-don-t-know-why-but/) [Sugar Ray Leonard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sugar-ray-leonard/) ## More by Laura Riding > [I believe that misconceptions about oneself that one does not correct where possible act as a bad magic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-riding/i-believe-that-misconceptions-about-oneself-that-one-does-not-correct/) [Laura Riding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-riding/) > [To a poet the mere making of a poem can seem to solve the problem of truth…but only a problem of art is solved…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-riding/to-a-poet-the-mere-making-of-a-poem-can-seem-to-solve-the-problem-of/) [Laura Riding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-riding/) > [Evil I had never found satisfactorily placeable as an integral element of the universal, or total, content of existence. Indeed, evil is evil just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-riding/evil-i-had-never-found-satisfactorily-placeable-as-an-integral/) [Laura Riding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-riding/) > [“Forgive me, giver, if I destroy the gift: it is so nearly what would please me I cannot but perfect it”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-riding/forgive-me-giver-if-i-destroy-the-gift-it-is-so-nearly-what-would/) [Laura Riding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-riding/) > [The new "ambiguity" means, in a way adjudged favorable to literary, poetic, intellectually and psychologically well-devised and praiseworthily executed linguistic performance, uncertainty of meaning,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-riding/the-new-ambiguity-means-in-a-way-adjudged-favorable-to-literary/) [Laura Riding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-riding/) > [Conversation succeeds conversation, Until there's nothing left to talk about Except truth, the perennial monologue, And no talker to dispute it but itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-riding/conversation-succeeds-conversation-until-there-s-nothing-left-to-talk/) [Laura Riding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-riding/) > [Women, ever since there have been women, have had a way of being people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-riding/women-ever-since-there-have-been-women-have-had-a-way-of-being-people/) [Laura Riding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-riding/) > [ She \[Venison\] had never travelled and so could invent all kinds of strange places without being limited, as travelled people are, by knowledge of… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-riding/she-venison-had-never-travelled-and-so-could-invent-all-kinds-of/) [Laura Riding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-riding/) > [rummaging in the storehouses of religious or literary history for myth-matter for ideational uses is of the nature of spiritual vulgarity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-riding/rummaging-in-the-storehouses-of-religious-or-literary-history-for/) [Laura Riding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-riding/) > [The terms 'male' and 'female' must be understood as representing no mere primitive opposition of sex to sex; but as defining two worlds of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-riding/the-terms-male-and-female-must-be-understood-as-representing-no-mere/) [Laura Riding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-riding/) > [The object of all religious activity is to mingle the human and the non-human, and the lower gods represent that which is cast back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-riding/the-object-of-all-religious-activity-is-to-mingle-the-human-and-the/) [Laura Riding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-riding/) > [Women are strangers in the country of man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-riding/women-are-strangers-in-the-country-of-man/) [Laura Riding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-riding/) > [Every thought sounds like a footfall, Till a thought like a boot kicks down the wall.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-riding/every-thought-sounds-like-a-footfall-till-a-thought-like-a-boot-kicks/) [Laura Riding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-riding/) > [Politics have always covered two distinct kinds of problems: problems of administrative routine, and those that may be called 'questions of the moment.' A…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-riding/politics-have-always-covered-two-distinct-kinds-of-problems-problems/) [Laura Riding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-riding/) > [To tell one comprehensive story of how it has happened that what is is, one which shall hold true, come what may, now-after -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-riding/to-tell-one-comprehensive-story-of-how-it-has-happened-that-what-is/) [Laura Riding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-riding/) [Explore all 68 Laura Riding quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-riding/) ## More Art quotes > [True works of art contain their own theory and give us the measurement according to which we should judge them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/true-works-of-art-contain-their-own-theory-and-give-us-the/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [Before Noah, men having only water to drink, could not find the truth. Accordingly...they became abominably wicked, and they were justly exterminated by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/before-noah-men-having-only-water-to-drink-could-not-find-the-truth/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [“Hear the sum of the whole matter in the compass of one brief word — every art possessed by man comes from Prometheus.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aeschylus/hear-the-sum-of-the-whole-matter-in-the-compass-of-one-brief-word/) [Aeschylus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aeschylus/) > [I think most artists feel like they're outside society - no matter how many accolades they receive, or how much money is in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-rose/i-think-most-artists-feel-like-they-re-outside-society-no-matter-how/) [Aaron Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-rose/) > [The capacity to be puzzled is the premise of all creation, be it in art or in science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-capacity-to-be-puzzled-is-the-premise-of-all-creation-be-it-in/) [Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/) > [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [“So, really," continued Jacob as if this were perfectly normal to expound on art in these circumstances, "when you think about it, the artists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen-headley/so-really-continued-jacob-as-if-this-were-perfectly-normal-to-expound/) [Justina Chen Headley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen-headley/) > [“There are two options in art; either to adopt philosophical life by dissecting art, or to write your own philosophical life and claim it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taf-teh/there-are-two-options-in-art-either-to-adopt-philosophical-life-by/) [Taf Teh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taf-teh/) > [The house has to serve comfort. The work of art is revolutionary; the house is conservative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-loos/the-house-has-to-serve-comfort-the-work-of-art-is-revolutionary-the/) [Adolf Loos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-loos/) > [During human progress, every science is evolved out of its corresponding art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/during-human-progress-every-science-is-evolved-out-of-its/) [Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/) > [In literature and art memory is a synonym for invention. It is the life-blood of imagination, which faints and dies when the veins are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/in-literature-and-art-memory-is-a-synonym-for-invention-it-is-the/) [Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/) > [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/) [G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/) > [“The only thing--I tell you this straight from the heart--that disgusts me in Salzburg is that one can't have any proper social intercourse with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/the-only-thing-i-tell-you-this-straight-from-the-heart-that-disgusts/) [Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/) > [The sublime in art is the attempt to express the infinite without finding in the realm of phenomena any object which proves itself fitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/the-sublime-in-art-is-the-attempt-to-express-the-infinite-without/) [Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/) > [Art isn't done to decorate apartments, but to wage war against the enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/art-isn-t-done-to-decorate-apartments-but-to-wage-war-against-the/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) [Browse all 48,643 Art quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Because most people are not sufficiently employed in themselves, they run about loose, hungering for employment, and satisfy themselves in various supererogatory occupations. The easiest of these occupations, which have all to do with making things already made, is the making of people: it is called the art of friendship.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Laura Riding" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-riding/because-most-people-are-not-sufficiently-employed-in-themselves-they/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Art" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-riding/because-most-people-are-not-sufficiently-employed-in-themselves-they/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f0f/laura-riding-9995_art_because-most-people-are-not-sufficiently_1801212.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f0f/laura-riding-9995_art_because-most-people-are-not-sufficiently_1801212.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f0f/laura-riding-9995_art_because-most-people-are-not-sufficiently_1801212.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Because most people are not sufficiently employed in themselves, they run about loose, hungering for…” — Laura Riding", "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": "Laura Riding", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-riding/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Because most people are not sufficiently...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-riding/because-most-people-are-not-sufficiently-employed-in-themselves-they/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-riding/because-most-people-are-not-sufficiently-employed-in-themselves-they/#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 } } ] } ```