--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I work when I feel like I can do…" description: "\"I work when I feel like I can do something that pleases me, that I think I can give a little more than I've given up to yesterday.\" — Sophia Loren" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/183/sophia-loren-2705_can-do_i-work-when-i-feel-like-i-can-do-somethi_762908.jpg" --- # I work when I feel like I can do something that pleases… ![“I work when I feel like I can do something that pleases me, that I think I can give a little more than I've given up to yesterday.” quote by Sophia Loren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/183/sophia-loren-2705_can-do_i-work-when-i-feel-like-i-can-do-somethi_762908.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/183/sophia-loren-2705_can-do_i-work-when-i-feel-like-i-can-do-somethi_762908.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/183/sophia-loren-2705_can-do_i-work-when-i-feel-like-i-can-do-somethi_762908.jpg) > “I work when I feel like I can do something that pleases me, that I think I can give a little more than I've given up to yesterday.” [Sophia Loren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophia-loren/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. She works when motivated by personal satisfaction and the desire to surpass her previous efforts. **In simple terms:** She works when she feels she can improve on yesterday. Key Takeaway Seek work that fulfills and challenges you. Themes motivation self‑improvement fulfillment career Mood inspired determined Type career personal When to use this quote - writing - acting - entrepreneurship - skill development Key Concepts personal growth creative drive Questions to Reflect On - What tasks give you genuine joy? - How do you measure progress beyond yesterday? A Different Perspective Burnout risk if driven solely by self‑comparison. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Giving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work/) [Yesterday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/yesterday/) ## Related quotes > [Vienna is a handsome, lively city, and pleases me exceedingly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederic-chopin/vienna-is-a-handsome-lively-city-and-pleases-me-exceedingly/) [Frederic Chopin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederic-chopin/) > [I read a comment that made me think I should stop singing for a while. And I didn't want to stop singing, because it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bette-midler/i-read-a-comment-that-made-me-think-i-should-stop-singing-for-a-while/) [Bette Midler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bette-midler/) > [Some of my youthful readers are developing wonderful imaginations. This pleases me. When I was young I longed to write a great novel that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-frank-baum/some-of-my-youthful-readers-are-developing-wonderful-imaginations/) [L. Frank Baum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-frank-baum/) > [I really only have Perfect Fun with myself. Other people won't stop and look at the things I want to look at or, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-mansfield/i-really-only-have-perfect-fun-with-myself-other-people-won-t-stop/) [Katherine Mansfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-mansfield/) > [I love all the shows that encourage people to love, appreciate and help animals. There are more programs about animals than ever, and that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-day/i-love-all-the-shows-that-encourage-people-to-love-appreciate-and/) [Doris Day](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-day/) > [What would please me most is to make photographs as incomprehensible as life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-klein/what-would-please-me-most-is-to-make-photographs-as-incomprehensible/) [William Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-klein/) > [I'd learned something... Food had power. It could inspire, astonish, shock, excite, delight and impress. It had the power to please me... and others.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-bourdain/i-d-learned-something-food-had-power-it-could-inspire-astonish-shock/) [Anthony Bourdain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-bourdain/) > [There is nothing that pleases me more than a beautiful sentence ... It is something that satisfies me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/there-is-nothing-that-pleases-me-more-than-a-beautiful-sentence-it-is/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [I just do what I feel and what I like. I don't necessarily censor or feel an obligation to have a particular moral standard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denzel-washington/i-just-do-what-i-feel-and-what-i-like-i-don-t-necessarily-censor-or/) [Denzel Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denzel-washington/) > [Fain would I wed a fair young man that night and day could please me, When my mind or body grieved that had the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-campion/fain-would-i-wed-a-fair-young-man-that-night-and-day-could-please-me/) [Thomas Campion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-campion/) > [I've never done anything for the common consensus. I do things to please me. If you are happy with something yourself, you become bulletproof.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ricky-gervais/i-ve-never-done-anything-for-the-common-consensus-i-do-things-to/) [Ricky Gervais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ricky-gervais/) > [Quite the ugliest face I ever saw was that of a woman whom the world called beautiful. Through its silver veil the evil and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-greenleaf-whittier/quite-the-ugliest-face-i-ever-saw-was-that-of-a-woman-whom-the-world/) [John Greenleaf Whittier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-greenleaf-whittier/) > [A canteen I remember vividly, and maybe one other thing, I can't remember. And I knew then that he had bought them in an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-auster/a-canteen-i-remember-vividly-and-maybe-one-other-thing-i-can-t/) [Paul Auster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-auster/) > [Nothing will ever please me, no matter how excellent or beneficial, if I must retain the knowledge of it to myself. . . .…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seneca-the-younger/nothing-will-ever-please-me-no-matter-how-excellent-or-beneficial-if/) [Seneca the Younger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seneca-the-younger/) > [The moments when I first made something, like when I first wrote a song please me so intensely. Everything else after that is just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-lee/the-moments-when-i-first-made-something-like-when-i-first-wrote-a/) [Ben Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-lee/) ## More by Sophia Loren > [I have never judged myself by other people’s standards. I have always expected a great deal of myself, and if I fail, I fail…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophia-loren/i-have-never-judged-myself-by-other-people-s-standards-i-have-always/) [Sophia Loren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophia-loren/) > [“Discipline is the great equalizer. If a young woman is beautiful but has no discipline, she will lose her looks as she grows older.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophia-loren/discipline-is-the-great-equalizer-if-a-young-woman-is-beautiful-but/) [Sophia Loren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophia-loren/) > [I can cook, I can breathe, I can live!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophia-loren/i-can-cook-i-can-breathe-i-can-live/) [Sophia Loren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophia-loren/) > [Getting ahead in a difficult profession requires avid faith in yourself...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophia-loren/getting-ahead-in-a-difficult-profession-requires-avid-faith-in/) [Sophia Loren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophia-loren/) > [I don't believe in anti-aging creams. I believe the skin should be clean, should be nourished, but most of all you should eat the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophia-loren/i-don-t-believe-in-anti-aging-creams-i-believe-the-skin-should-be/) [Sophia Loren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophia-loren/) > [Sex is like washing your face - just something you do because you have to. Sex without love is absolutely ridiculous. Sex follows love,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophia-loren/sex-is-like-washing-your-face-just-something-you-do-because-you-have/) [Sophia Loren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophia-loren/) > [Learn to use your brains as deftly as your powder box, and then, perhaps, powder box you will not need ... Know smart women…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophia-loren/learn-to-use-your-brains-as-deftly-as-your-powder-box-and-then/) [Sophia Loren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophia-loren/) > [For me, it is good to be vulnerable. It makes me nice... weak sometimes, but in a good way, not a tragic way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophia-loren/for-me-it-is-good-to-be-vulnerable-it-makes-me-nice-weak-sometimes/) [Sophia Loren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophia-loren/) > [It's necessary to have an energy that carries you forward. You need the will to live, to have a great curiosity. To look for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophia-loren/it-s-necessary-to-have-an-energy-that-carries-you-forward-you-need/) [Sophia Loren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophia-loren/) > [My mother was so beautiful, she really was a a wonderful person. Always walking like a queen. Like she owned the world. Maybe I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophia-loren/my-mother-was-so-beautiful-she-really-was-a-a-wonderful-person-always/) [Sophia Loren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophia-loren/) > [Good food is a celebration of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophia-loren/good-food-is-a-celebration-of-life/) [Sophia Loren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophia-loren/) > [I know how to say 'no' in twelve languages. That's enough for a woman.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophia-loren/i-know-how-to-say-no-in-twelve-languages-that-s-enough-for-a-woman/) [Sophia Loren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophia-loren/) > [I have to say that since my mother died, I am not the same person anymore. My life has changed a great deal because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophia-loren/i-have-to-say-that-since-my-mother-died-i-am-not-the-same-person/) [Sophia Loren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophia-loren/) > [Jealousy is a miserable feeling. It means you aspire to something that you cannot have. Even in love, it is better to leave, better…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophia-loren/jealousy-is-a-miserable-feeling-it-means-you-aspire-to-something-that/) [Sophia Loren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophia-loren/) > [It's a mistake to think that once you're done with school you need never learn anything new.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophia-loren/it-s-a-mistake-to-think-that-once-you-re-done-with-school-you-need/) [Sophia Loren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophia-loren/) [Explore all 153 Sophia Loren quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophia-loren/) ## More Can do quotes > [Changes before your eyes, things you can do and things you can't. My attitude is always let it keep rolling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terrence-malick/changes-before-your-eyes-things-you-can-do-and-things-you-can-t-my/) [Terrence Malick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terrence-malick/) > [The happy medium is television. And if you find a good suitor, you can do it for years. With movies, you roll the dice.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-campbell/the-happy-medium-is-television-and-if-you-find-a-good-suitor-you-can/) [Bruce Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-campbell/) > [If I had a million dollars, I just wouldn't just completely set back. I'd have to get out there and show my face to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muddy-waters/if-i-had-a-million-dollars-i-just-wouldn-t-just-completely-set-back-i/) [Muddy Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muddy-waters/) > [Anybody can be Prince Charming one day a year, with the dinner and the flowers and all that. But you know what impresses me?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-howard/anybody-can-be-prince-charming-one-day-a-year-with-the-dinner-and-the/) [Ryan Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-howard/) > [And if the mind thinks with a believing attitude one can do amazing things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-vincent-peale/and-if-the-mind-thinks-with-a-believing-attitude-one-can-do-amazing/) [Norman Vincent Peale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-vincent-peale/) > [The amount of things you can do with a kettlebell is unsurpassed by any other training equipment - dumbbells, resistance machines, free weights.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laird-hamilton/the-amount-of-things-you-can-do-with-a-kettlebell-is-unsurpassed-by/) [Laird Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laird-hamilton/) > [It's nice when you've done enough movies that you can do your own anthology.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lithgow/it-s-nice-when-you-ve-done-enough-movies-that-you-can-do-your-own/) [John Lithgow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lithgow/) > [If people don't have their own vision, all they can do is 'sign-up' for someone else's.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-senge/if-people-don-t-have-their-own-vision-all-they-can-do-is-sign-up-for/) [Peter Senge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-senge/) > [The one thing that flies in the face of all human history and experience, is that the government can do a superior job than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-cook/the-one-thing-that-flies-in-the-face-of-all-human-history-and/) [James Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-cook/) > [...what I can do is offer myself, wholehearted and present, to walk with the people I love through the fear and the mess. That's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shauna-niequist/what-i-can-do-is-offer-myself-wholehearted-and-present-to-walk-with/) [Shauna Niequist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shauna-niequist/) > [Whether that's speaking up in your job or asking for a promotion or saying, 'I think I can do that.' Using your voice in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-shriver/whether-that-s-speaking-up-in-your-job-or-asking-for-a-promotion-or/) [Maria Shriver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-shriver/) > [The average ordinary citizen can do a lot of different things when it comes to the climate crisis.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-bender/the-average-ordinary-citizen-can-do-a-lot-of-different-things-when-it/) [Lawrence Bender](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-bender/) > [A professional is a man who can do his job when he doesn't feel like it. An amateur is a man who can't do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-agate/a-professional-is-a-man-who-can-do-his-job-when-he-doesn-t-feel-like/) [James Agate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-agate/) > [The Lord gives and the Lord takes away, as it pleases him, for he can do all things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer/the-lord-gives-and-the-lord-takes-away-as-it-pleases-him-for-he-can/) [Homer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer/) > [I'm not an educated man. I only know what I'm told, and I'm not told that much; I have no frame of reference for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maynard-james-keenan/i-m-not-an-educated-man-i-only-know-what-i-m-told-and-i-m-not-told/) [Maynard James Keenan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maynard-james-keenan/) Browse all 5,673 Can do quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I work when I feel like I can do something that pleases me, that I think I can give a little more than I've given up to yesterday.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Sophia Loren" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophia-loren/i-work-when-i-feel-like-i-can-do-something-that-pleases-me-that-i/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Can do" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophia-loren/i-work-when-i-feel-like-i-can-do-something-that-pleases-me-that-i/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/183/sophia-loren-2705_can-do_i-work-when-i-feel-like-i-can-do-somethi_762908.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/183/sophia-loren-2705_can-do_i-work-when-i-feel-like-i-can-do-somethi_762908.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/183/sophia-loren-2705_can-do_i-work-when-i-feel-like-i-can-do-somethi_762908.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I work when I feel like I can do something that pleases me, that I think I can give a little more than I've…” — Sophia Loren", "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": "Sophia Loren", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophia-loren/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I work when I feel like...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophia-loren/i-work-when-i-feel-like-i-can-do-something-that-pleases-me-that-i/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophia-loren/i-work-when-i-feel-like-i-can-do-something-that-pleases-me-that-i/#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 } } ] } ```