--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is always cheaper to do the job right…" description: "\"It is always cheaper to do the job right the first time.\" — Phil Crosby" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f35/phil-crosby-16889_cheaper_it-is-always-cheaper-to-do-the-job-right_1892753.png" --- # It is always cheaper to do the job right the first time. ![“It is always cheaper to do the job right the first time.” quote by Phil Crosby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f35/phil-crosby-16889_cheaper_it-is-always-cheaper-to-do-the-job-right_1892753.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f35/phil-crosby-16889_cheaper_it-is-always-cheaper-to-do-the-job-right_1892753.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f35/phil-crosby-16889_cheaper_it-is-always-cheaper-to-do-the-job-right_1892753.png) > “It is always cheaper to do the job right the first time.” [Phil Crosby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-crosby/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Doing a job correctly the first time saves time, money, and future rework. **In simple terms:** Do it right the first time. Key Takeaway Prioritize quality over speed. Themes efficiency quality cost saving Mood practical focused Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - manufacturing - software development - home projects Key Concepts lean principles process improvement Questions to Reflect On - What steps can you take to improve first‑time quality? - When is it acceptable to revise later? A Different Perspective Initial perfection may be unrealistic; iterative improvement can be valuable. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cheaper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cheaper/) [Cheaper Job](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cheaper-job-2745278/) [First time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/first-time/) [Firsts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firsts/) [Job Right](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/job-right-311276/) [Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jobs/) [Right](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/right/) [Right time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/right-time/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [Do your job and do it right, life's a ball, TV tonight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-zappa/do-your-job-and-do-it-right-life-s-a-ball-tv-tonight/) [Frank Zappa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-zappa/) > [“it is easier to do a job right than to explain why you didnt”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-van-buren/it-is-easier-to-do-a-job-right-than-to-explain-why-you-didnt/) [Martin Van Buren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-van-buren/) > [ If you're doing your job right, some substantial group of people \[is\] going to be mad at you. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-krugman/if-you-re-doing-your-job-right-some-substantial-group-of-people-is/) [Paul Krugman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-krugman/) > [Ninety percent of your job is done if you find the right cast.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-krasinski/ninety-percent-of-your-job-is-done-if-you-find-the-right-cast/) [John Krasinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-krasinski/) > [If you do a job, do it right or there is no point.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-ripken-jr/if-you-do-a-job-do-it-right-or-there-is-no-point/) [Cal Ripken, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-ripken-jr/) > [I think if you're not scared, you're not doing your job right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scotty-lago/i-think-if-you-re-not-scared-you-re-not-doing-your-job-right/) [Scotty Lago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scotty-lago/) > [Sometimes casting falls in place easily and sometimes it takes a while. Fifty per cent of my job is done when I get the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mani-ratnam/sometimes-casting-falls-in-place-easily-and-sometimes-it-takes-a/) [Mani Ratnam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mani-ratnam/) > [“I can tell he’s a good man who doesn’t like his job for all the right reasons. He seemed on the verge of constant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cole/i-can-tell-he-s-a-good-man-who-doesn-t-like-his-job-for-all-the-right/) [Nick Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cole/) > [Confidence, knowing for certain that the person making the call has your safety foremost in their mind. And knowing that the job you are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-gleason/confidence-knowing-for-certain-that-the-person-making-the-call-has/) [Paul Gleason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-gleason/) > [“A leader’s job is to get it right for the organization, not to be right.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-scott/a-leader-s-job-is-to-get-it-right-for-the-organization-not-to-be-right/) [Susan Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-scott/) > [Doing a job RIGHT the first time gets the job done. Doing the job WRONG fourteen times gives you job security.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/doing-a-job-right-the-first-time-gets-the-job-done-doing-the-job/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [I'm an actor - it's not brain surgery. If I do my job right, people won't ask for their money back.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-connery/i-m-an-actor-it-s-not-brain-surgery-if-i-do-my-job-right-people-won-t/) [Sean Connery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-connery/) > [I'm not a fighter. I used to be, when work was all-encompassing. Now I let things come as they come. If people don't want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fearne-cotton/i-m-not-a-fighter-i-used-to-be-when-work-was-all-encompassing-now-i/) [Fearne Cotton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fearne-cotton/) > [If you're going to do a job, do it right. If you're going to throw a birthday party, make it amazing. If you're going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-john-liautaud/if-you-re-going-to-do-a-job-do-it-right-if-you-re-going-to-throw-a/) [Jimmy John Liautaud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-john-liautaud/) > [I think for me the job always has to be the right thing at the right time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-blunt/i-think-for-me-the-job-always-has-to-be-the-right-thing-at-the-right/) [Emily Blunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-blunt/) ## More by Phil Crosby > [You don't have to be noisy to be effective.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-crosby/you-don-t-have-to-be-noisy-to-be-effective/) [Phil Crosby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-crosby/) > [We must define quality as conformance to specifications if we are to manage it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-crosby/we-must-define-quality-as-conformance-to-specifications-if-we-are-to/) [Phil Crosby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-crosby/) > [Selecting the right person for the right job is the largest part of coaching.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-crosby/selecting-the-right-person-for-the-right-job-is-the-largest-part-of/) [Phil Crosby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-crosby/) > [Slowness to change usually means fear of the new.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-crosby/slowness-to-change-usually-means-fear-of-the-new/) [Phil Crosby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-crosby/) > [Quality means conformance to requirements, not elegance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-crosby/quality-means-conformance-to-requirements-not-elegance/) [Phil Crosby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-crosby/) > [Successful people breed success.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-crosby/successful-people-breed-success/) [Phil Crosby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-crosby/) > [Being convinced one knows the whole story is the surest way to fail.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-crosby/being-convinced-one-knows-the-whole-story-is-the-surest-way-to-fail/) [Phil Crosby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-crosby/) > [Change should be a friend. It should happen by plan, not by accident.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-crosby/change-should-be-a-friend-it-should-happen-by-plan-not-by-accident/) [Phil Crosby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-crosby/) > [The cost of quality is the expense of doing things wrong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-crosby/the-cost-of-quality-is-the-expense-of-doing-things-wrong/) [Phil Crosby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-crosby/) > [You are going to be measured anyway by some means, fair or foul. Usually the one doing the measuring has nothing specific in mind;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-crosby/you-are-going-to-be-measured-anyway-by-some-means-fair-or-foul/) [Phil Crosby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-crosby/) > [It isn't what you find, it's what you do about what you find.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-crosby/it-isn-t-what-you-find-it-s-what-you-do-about-what-you-find/) [Phil Crosby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-crosby/) > [Improving quality requires a culture change, not just a new diet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-crosby/improving-quality-requires-a-culture-change-not-just-a-new-diet/) [Phil Crosby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-crosby/) > [You have to lead people gently toward what they already know is right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-crosby/you-have-to-lead-people-gently-toward-what-they-already-know-is-right/) [Phil Crosby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-crosby/) > [When you're out of quality, you're out of business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-crosby/when-you-re-out-of-quality-you-re-out-of-business/) [Phil Crosby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-crosby/) > [Quality is the result of a carefully constructed cultural environment. It has to be the fabric of the organization, not part of the fabric.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-crosby/quality-is-the-result-of-a-carefully-constructed-cultural-environment/) [Phil Crosby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-crosby/) [Explore all 38 Phil Crosby quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-crosby/) ## More Cheaper quotes > [The machines need to get faster. They need to get cheaper.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gates/the-machines-need-to-get-faster-they-need-to-get-cheaper/) [Bill Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gates/) > [If you're angry, you don't have to write a poem dealing with the cause of your anger. But it needs to be an angry…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-asher/if-you-re-angry-you-don-t-have-to-write-a-poem-dealing-with-the-cause/) [Jay Asher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-asher/) > [For many oppositional movements, the Internet, while providing the opportunity to distribute information more quickly and cheaper, may have actually made their struggle more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evgeny-morozov/for-many-oppositional-movements-the-internet-while-providing-the/) [Evgeny Morozov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evgeny-morozov/) > [ We have the ability to take him \[President of Venezuela, Hugo Chavez\] out, and I think the time has come that we exercise that… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-robertson/we-have-the-ability-to-take-him-president-of-venezuela-hugo-chavez/) [Pat Robertson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-robertson/) > [The smaller & cheaper the pleasure, ¦the more richer you are!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/biman-gandhi/the-smaller-cheaper-the-pleasure-the-more-richer-you-are/) [Biman Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/biman-gandhi/) > [I don't really pay too much attention to designers, I know what I like and I just try to find it, and I always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bethany-cosentino/i-don-t-really-pay-too-much-attention-to-designers-i-know-what-i-like/) [Bethany Cosentino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bethany-cosentino/) > [There's a myth that free-to-play is cheaper than a $60 game. It's just elastic. For some users, it winds up being a lot more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-lasky/there-s-a-myth-that-free-to-play-is-cheaper-than-a-60-game-it-s-just/) [Mitch Lasky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-lasky/) > [I have a constant kind of soundtrack going on at all times. I almost always have a song in my head. I'm very musically…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erin-davie/i-have-a-constant-kind-of-soundtrack-going-on-at-all-times-i-almost/) [Erin Davie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erin-davie/) > [ \[On President Bush's plan to get to Mars in 10 years\] Stupid. Robots would do a better job and be much cheaper because you… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/on-president-bush-s-plan-to-get-to-mars-in-10-years-stupid-robots/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [I thought to spend my declining years writing poetry and teaching - but that won't pay the Bergdorf's bill. I think I'll move to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-jong/i-thought-to-spend-my-declining-years-writing-poetry-and-teaching-but/) [Erica Jong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-jong/) > [You don't make houses cheaper by making them more expensive to build.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-baillieu/you-don-t-make-houses-cheaper-by-making-them-more-expensive-to-build/) [Ted Baillieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-baillieu/) > [I buy my produce at the local farmer's market, which is actually cheaper than shopping at the grocery store.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-getty/i-buy-my-produce-at-the-local-farmer-s-market-which-is-actually/) [Anna Getty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-getty/) > [We've begun to long for the pitter-patter of little feet - so we bought a dog. Well, it's cheaper, and you get more feet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-rudner/we-ve-begun-to-long-for-the-pitter-patter-of-little-feet-so-we-bought/) [Rita Rudner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-rudner/) > [Used books are the sluts of the literary world. Passed around from person to person, spreading their pages for anyone, getting cheaper and cheaper…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/used-books-are-the-sluts-of-the-literary-world-passed-around-from/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [Try to find if something out there is similar. If it's already being done, now you need to find out if you can do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cameron-johnson/try-to-find-if-something-out-there-is-similar-if-it-s-already-being/) [Cameron Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cameron-johnson/) [Browse all 411 Cheaper quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cheaper/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It is always cheaper to do the job right the first time.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Phil Crosby" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-crosby/it-is-always-cheaper-to-do-the-job-right-the-first-time/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Cheaper" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-crosby/it-is-always-cheaper-to-do-the-job-right-the-first-time/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f35/phil-crosby-16889_cheaper_it-is-always-cheaper-to-do-the-job-right_1892753.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f35/phil-crosby-16889_cheaper_it-is-always-cheaper-to-do-the-job-right_1892753.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f35/phil-crosby-16889_cheaper_it-is-always-cheaper-to-do-the-job-right_1892753.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It is always cheaper to do the job right the first time.” — Phil Crosby", "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": "Phil Crosby", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-crosby/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "It is always cheaper to do...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-crosby/it-is-always-cheaper-to-do-the-job-right-the-first-time/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-crosby/it-is-always-cheaper-to-do-the-job-right-the-first-time/#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 } } ] } ```