--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: You must elect your work; you shall take…" description: "\"You must elect your work; you shall take what your brains can, and drop all the rest. Only so can that amount of vital force accumulate which can make ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/904/ralph-waldo-emerson-6_amount_you-must-elect-your-work-you-shall-take_319551.png" --- # You must elect your work; you shall take what your brains… ![“You must elect your work; you shall take what your brains can, and drop all the rest. Only so can that amount of vital force accumulate which can make the step from knowing to doing. No matter how much faculty of idle seeing a man has, the step from knowing to doing is rarely taken. It is a step…” quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/904/ralph-waldo-emerson-6_amount_you-must-elect-your-work-you-shall-take_319551.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/904/ralph-waldo-emerson-6_amount_you-must-elect-your-work-you-shall-take_319551.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/904/ralph-waldo-emerson-6_amount_you-must-elect-your-work-you-shall-take_319551.png) > “You must elect your work; you shall take what your brains can, and drop all the rest. Only so can that amount of vital force accumulate which can make the step from knowing to doing. No matter how much faculty of idle seeing a man has, the step from knowing to doing is rarely taken. It is a step out of a chalk circle of imbecility into fruitfulness.” [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Action requires focusing mental energy on essential tasks, discarding distractions to turn knowledge into productive results. **In simple terms:** Focus on essential work to turn knowledge into action. Key Takeaway Prioritize vital tasks, drop the rest. Themes productivity focus action knowledge execution Mood determined focused Type motivational practical When to use this quote - project management - personal development - learning to work - creative endeavors Key Concepts willpower mental energy resource allocation Questions to Reflect On - What distractions prevent you from acting on what you know? - How can you identify the vital tasks? A Different Perspective Even with focus, external constraints may limit execution. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Brain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brain/) [Circles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/circles/) [Fruitfulness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fruitfulness/) [Imbecility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imbecility/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) ## Related quotes > [No matter how much faculty of idle seeing a man has, the step from knowing to doing is rarely taken.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/no-matter-how-much-faculty-of-idle-seeing-a-man-has-the-step-from/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [I am always writing no matter what I am doing and no matter what it is for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-cho/i-am-always-writing-no-matter-what-i-am-doing-and-no-matter-what-it/) [Margaret Cho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-cho/) > [Don't let a day go by without doing something... no matter how small.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-g-allen/don-t-let-a-day-go-by-without-doing-something-no-matter-how-small/) [Robert G. 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If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sadhguru/the-whole-spiritual-process-is-just-this-that-you-are-willing-to-take/) [Sadhguru](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sadhguru/) > [The key to the age may be this, or that, or the other, as the young orators describe; the key to all ages is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-key-to-the-age-may-be-this-or-that-or-the-other-as-the-young/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [History is full, down to this day, of the imbecility of kings and governors. 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Do not, then, read the reviews.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/no-man-can-be-criticised-but-by-a-greater-than-he-do-not-then-read/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Coal lay in ledges under the ground since the Flood, until a laborer with pick and windlass brings it to the surface. We may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/coal-lay-in-ledges-under-the-ground-since-the-flood-until-a-laborer/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [I am; therefore, I had nothing better to do than to think.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/i-am-therefore-i-had-nothing-better-to-do-than-to-think/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [In a library we are surrounded by many hundreds of dear friends, but they are imprisoned by an enchanter in these paper and leathern…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/in-a-library-we-are-surrounded-by-many-hundreds-of-dear-friends-but/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [The compensations of calamity are made apparent to the understanding also, after long intervals of time. 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What matters is what that amount represents in terms of your life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-rohn/the-amount-you-give-isn-t-important-what-matters-is-what-that-amount/) [Jim Rohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-rohn/) > [There's a place in Botswana where there are 100,000 elephants living in a single population. Think of the amount of space they need. Remember,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-bergin/there-s-a-place-in-botswana-where-there-are-100-000-elephants-living/) [Patrick Bergin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-bergin/) > [How could you justify giving Holland twice the amount of money that you gave Belgium? Well, finally, I put it up to them. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-averell-harriman/how-could-you-justify-giving-holland-twice-the-amount-of-money-that/) [W. Averell Harriman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-averell-harriman/) > [I am not a great believer in dialectical struggle. I am much more of a fusion person. 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