--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I don't relax. I can't take vacations…" description: "\"I don't relax. I can't take vacations. I'm obsessive-compulsive, and I worry with every project that I'm going to fail. When it starts to go well, and ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ffe/mary-ellen-mark-8293_beautiful_i-don-t-relax-i-can-t-take-vacations-i-m_884273.png" --- # I don't relax. I can't take vacations. I'm… ![“I don't relax. I can't take vacations. I'm obsessive-compulsive, and I worry with every project that I'm going to fail. When it starts to go well, and I sense that something beautiful and important and meaningful is being created, it's a fantastic feeling, and I find it very hard to stop.” quote by Mary Ellen Mark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ffe/mary-ellen-mark-8293_beautiful_i-don-t-relax-i-can-t-take-vacations-i-m_884273.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ffe/mary-ellen-mark-8293_beautiful_i-don-t-relax-i-can-t-take-vacations-i-m_884273.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ffe/mary-ellen-mark-8293_beautiful_i-don-t-relax-i-can-t-take-vacations-i-m_884273.png) > “I don't relax. I can't take vacations. I'm obsessive-compulsive, and I worry with every project that I'm going to fail. When it starts to go well, and I sense that something beautiful and important and meaningful is being created, it's a fantastic feeling, and I find it very hard to stop.” [Mary Ellen Mark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-ellen-mark/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Perfectionism drives relentless work, making it hard to pause even when success arrives. **In simple terms:** Obsessive work ethic blocks relaxation. Key Takeaway Learn to pause and celebrate progress. Themes work perfectionism mental health creativity Mood anxious determined Type reflective motivational When to use this quote - project management - artist studio - therapy sessions - mindfulness practice Key Concepts obsessive‑compulsive traits creative flow Questions to Reflect On - What triggers your need to keep going? - How can you allow rest without guilt? A Different Perspective Perfectionism can cause burnout and missed joy. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Beautiful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beautiful/) [Obsessive compulsive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/obsessive-compulsive/) [Worry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worry/) ## Related quotes > [love is a mental illness, an obsessive-compulsive disorder romanticized!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-jerome-dickey/love-is-a-mental-illness-an-obsessive-compulsive-disorder-romanticized/) [Eric Jerome Dickey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-jerome-dickey/) > [My personality's very obsessive-compulsive. I tend to fixate a lot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitski/my-personality-s-very-obsessive-compulsive-i-tend-to-fixate-a-lot/) [Mitski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitski/) > [Baseball is not necessarily an obsessive-compulsive disorder, like washing your hands 100 times a day, but it's beginning to seem that way. 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I tend to not write for a long period of time until I can't not write, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-rapp/i-m-pretty-obsessive-compulsive-and-i-m-very-fast-i-tend-to-not-write/) [Adam Rapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-rapp/) > [Manchester United could have any goalkeeper in the world. I was a 23-year-old kid from New Jersey who, from an early age, had to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-howard/manchester-united-could-have-any-goalkeeper-in-the-world-i-was-a-23/) [Tim Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-howard/) > [“I lean my head back and stare at the stark white ceiling. “My friend Zoe used to say I had obsessive compulsive disorder when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/siobhan-davis/i-lean-my-head-back-and-stare-at-the-stark-white-ceiling-my-friend/) [Siobhan Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/siobhan-davis/) > [We work crazy hours in Silicon Valley; my wife says we're all kind of diseased in some way. We're totally obsessive compulsive - when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-fadell/we-work-crazy-hours-in-silicon-valley-my-wife-says-we-re-all-kind-of/) [Tony Fadell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-fadell/) ## More by Mary Ellen Mark > [In a portrait, you always leave part of yourself behind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-ellen-mark/in-a-portrait-you-always-leave-part-of-yourself-behind/) [Mary Ellen Mark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-ellen-mark/) > [That's the way I learned photography: You make your picture in the camera. Now, so much is made in the computer. ... I'm not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-ellen-mark/that-s-the-way-i-learned-photography-you-make-your-picture-in-the/) [Mary Ellen Mark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-ellen-mark/) > [I'm a documentary photographer. That's what I've always wanted to be; that's where my heart and soul is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-ellen-mark/i-m-a-documentary-photographer-that-s-what-i-ve-always-wanted-to-be/) [Mary Ellen Mark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-ellen-mark/) > [I wanted to travel from the beginning. As a kid, I used to dream about airplanes, before I ever flew in one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-ellen-mark/i-wanted-to-travel-from-the-beginning-as-a-kid-i-used-to-dream-about/) [Mary Ellen Mark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-ellen-mark/) > [A great photograph needs no explanation; it functions by suggestion. 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It's not really photography.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-ellen-mark/nowadays-shots-are-created-in-post-production-on-computers-it-s-not/) [Mary Ellen Mark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-ellen-mark/) > [ To touch on people's lives \[ in a way they \] haven't been touched on before, it´s fascianting. You know, it's one thing if… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-ellen-mark/to-touch-on-people-s-lives-in-a-way-they-haven-t-been-touched-on/) [Mary Ellen Mark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-ellen-mark/) > [What you look for in a picture is a metaphor, something that means something more, that makes you think about things you've seen or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-ellen-mark/what-you-look-for-in-a-picture-is-a-metaphor-something-that-means/) [Mary Ellen Mark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-ellen-mark/) > [It's just a matter of who you are and how you talk to people. Your subjects will trust you only if you're confident about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-ellen-mark/it-s-just-a-matter-of-who-you-are-and-how-you-talk-to-people-your/) [Mary Ellen Mark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-ellen-mark/) > [If I hadn't become a photographer, I would have loved to become a doctor. I would have loved to have done something that actually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-ellen-mark/if-i-hadn-t-become-a-photographer-i-would-have-loved-to-become-a/) [Mary Ellen Mark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-ellen-mark/) > [I'm not much for cats. I'm terrified of mice. I've worked a lot with elephants, and they are extremely intelligent and sensitive, and thankfully,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-ellen-mark/i-m-not-much-for-cats-i-m-terrified-of-mice-i-ve-worked-a-lot-with/) [Mary Ellen Mark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-ellen-mark/) > [I'm not against digital photography. It's great for newspapers. And there are photographers doing great work digitally. When they use Photoshop as a darkroom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-ellen-mark/i-m-not-against-digital-photography-it-s-great-for-newspapers-and/) [Mary Ellen Mark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-ellen-mark/) > [Im just interested in what makes a photograph.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-ellen-mark/im-just-interested-in-what-makes-a-photograph/) [Mary Ellen Mark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-ellen-mark/) [Explore all 82 Mary Ellen Mark quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-ellen-mark/) ## More Beautiful quotes > [I received a beautiful welcome to the world of music. 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Call her ugly once, and she will never forget it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tumblr/call-her-beautiful-a-million-times-and-she-won-t-believe-you-call-her/) Tumblr > [You will never know just how beautiful you are to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-will-never-know-just-how-beautiful-you-are-to-me/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You felt a deep sorrow, the kind of melancholy you feel when you're in a beautiful place and the sun is going down](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thrity-umrigar/you-felt-a-deep-sorrow-the-kind-of-melancholy-you-feel-when-you-re-in/) [Thrity Umrigar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thrity-umrigar/) > [ Teaching might even be the greatest of the arts since the medium is the human mind and spirit. 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