--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Sometimes you have to go on when you…" description: "\"“Sometimes you have to go on when you don't feel like it, and sometimes you're doing good work when it feels like all you're managing is to shovel shit..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/05b/stephen-king-13_doing-good_sometimes-you-have-to-go-on-when-you-don_1586114.jpg" --- # Sometimes you have to go on when you don't feel like it… ![“Sometimes you have to go on when you don't feel like it, and sometimes you're doing good work when it feels like all you're managing is to shovel shit from a sitting position.” quote by Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/05b/stephen-king-13_doing-good_sometimes-you-have-to-go-on-when-you-don_1586114.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/05b/stephen-king-13_doing-good_sometimes-you-have-to-go-on-when-you-don_1586114.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/05b/stephen-king-13_doing-good_sometimes-you-have-to-go-on-when-you-don_1586114.jpg) > ““Sometimes you have to go on when you don't feel like it, and sometimes you're doing good work when it feels like all you're managing is to shovel shit from a sitting position.”” [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Continuing work despite lack of motivation can still produce valuable results; perseverance matters more than mood. **In simple terms:** Work can be productive even when uninspired. Key Takeaway Push through resistance to maintain progress. Themes perseverance creativity work ethic motivation Mood determined pragmatic Type advice motivational When to use this quote - writing deadlines - project milestones - daily routines - creative blocks Key Concepts grit intrinsic drive task completion Questions to Reflect On - What strategies help you stay effective when enthusiasm wanes? - How can you balance effort with self‑care? A Different Perspective Motivation alone may not sustain quality; burnout risk exists. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Doing good](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doing-good/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Writing advice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing-advice/) ## Related quotes > [“There is a muse, but he’s not going to come fluttering down into your writing room and scatter creative fairy-dust all over your typewriter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/there-is-a-muse-but-he-s-not-going-to-come-fluttering-down-into-your/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [Managing a country is like managing a company in many ways. It maybe involves more complicated issues, but it's the same skills.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohamed-elbaradei/managing-a-country-is-like-managing-a-company-in-many-ways-it-maybe/) [Mohamed ElBaradei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohamed-elbaradei/) > [...stopping a piece of work just because it's hard, either emotionally or imaginatively, is a bad idea. Sometimes you have to go on when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/stopping-a-piece-of-work-just-because-it-s-hard-either-emotionally-or/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“Sadie scooped up a big pile of crap and placed it in the wheelbarrow. Royce turned to leave, but then she said, "You know,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cindi-madsen/sadie-scooped-up-a-big-pile-of-crap-and-placed-it-in-the-wheelbarrow/) [Cindi Madsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cindi-madsen/) > [“To show man the best that is in him; not the most appealing or the most amusing or even the most realistic - but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/to-show-man-the-best-that-is-in-him-not-the-most-appealing-or-the/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [“Now, go shovel some shit.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-gruen/now-go-shovel-some-shit/) [Sara gruen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-gruen/) > [“Fiction should be in its way subversive. I don't think books should be neat or gentle or genteel or comforting. I think they should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edna-o-brien/fiction-should-be-in-its-way-subversive-i-don-t-think-books-should-be/) [Edna O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edna-o-brien/) > [“Your passion as an artist is a magnet that draws you at all times, but if you don’t follow, it will suffocate your heart.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pawan-mishra/your-passion-as-an-artist-is-a-magnet-that-draws-you-at-all-times-but/) [Pawan Mishra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pawan-mishra/) > [ “Running a close second \[as a writing lesson\] was the realization that stopping a piece of work just because it's hard, either emotionally or… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/running-a-close-second-as-a-writing-lesson-was-the-realization-that/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“Waiting rooms were made for books—of course!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/waiting-rooms-were-made-for-books-of-course/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“Almost everyone can remember losing his or her virginity, and most writers can remember the first book he/she walked away from thinking, "I can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/almost-everyone-can-remember-losing-his-or-her-virginity-and-most/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“You have to read widely, constantly refining (and redefining) your own work as you do so. It’s hard for me to believe that people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/you-have-to-read-widely-constantly-refining-and-redefining-your-own/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“The truth is that most writers are needy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/the-truth-is-that-most-writers-are-needy/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“The pain in my hip was just short of apocalyptic. And the first five hundred words were uniquely terrifying—it was as if I’d never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/the-pain-in-my-hip-was-just-short-of-apocalyptic-and-the-first-five/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“This is a short book because most books about writing are filled with bullshit. Fiction writers, present company included, don't understand very much about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/this-is-a-short-book-because-most-books-about-writing-are-filled-with/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) ## More by Stephen King > [Shall there be truth between us, as two men? Not as friends, but as enemies and equals?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/shall-there-be-truth-between-us-as-two-men-not-as-friends-but-as/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [The worst advice? 'Don't listen to the critics.' I think that you really ought to listen to the critics, because sometimes they're telling you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/the-worst-advice-don-t-listen-to-the-critics-i-think-that-you-really/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“October 3, 2017 The clown, Hagarty said, looked like a cross between Ronald McDonald and that old TV clown, Bozo—or so he thought at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/october-3-2017-the-clown-hagarty-said-looked-like-a-cross-between/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“Eddie saw great things and near misses. Albert Einstein as a child, not quite struck by a run-away milk-wagon as he crossed a street.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/eddie-saw-great-things-and-near-misses-albert-einstein-as-a-child-not/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [It hurt, of course, but more often than not the best things do, I've found.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/it-hurt-of-course-but-more-often-than-not-the-best-things-do-i-ve/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“The idea that creative endeavor and mind-altering substances are entwined is one of the great pop-intellectual myths of our time... Creative people probably do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/the-idea-that-creative-endeavor-and-mind-altering-substances-are/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“The sun had burned through and the day had gone from dull to dazzling, yet in the west blask-satin thunderheads continued to stack up.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/the-sun-had-burned-through-and-the-day-had-gone-from-dull-to-dazzling/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“God, you had enough time to have been through it three times. You've been through my stuff. I bet you over and let one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/god-you-had-enough-time-to-have-been-through-it-three-times-you-ve/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“Flakes of snow swirled and danced across the porch. The Overlook faced it as it had for nearly three-quarters of a century, its darkened…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/flakes-of-snow-swirled-and-danced-across-the-porch-the-overlook-faced/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“In that instant it all seemed to come clear to him- it came in a grisly flash of light, and he realized that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/in-that-instant-it-all-seemed-to-come-clear-to-him-it-came-in-a/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [Who gets to be best-liked in any community? Who is the most trusted? Why, the man who does the dirty job, of course, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/who-gets-to-be-best-liked-in-any-community-who-is-the-most-trusted/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“¿Lo ves, tonto? Volvió a regañarse. Tú lo inventaste todo, gato asustado. No fue más que tu imaginación, gato asustado, gato asustado... No te…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/lo-ves-tonto-volvi-a-rega-arse-t-lo-inventaste-todo-gato-asustado-no/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“Death . . . but not for you. That was what Walter, clever as Satan even at the end, had said. A lawyer’s answer . . . so close to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/death-but-not-for-you-that-was-what-walter-clever-as-satan-even-at/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [The ghost story movie that scared me the most was The Changeling with George C. Scott. I think that's sometimes overlooked, but it's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/the-ghost-story-movie-that-scared-me-the-most-was-the-changeling-with/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“Climb aboard, Jonesy. I'm going to send you up where the air is rare and the view is much more than fair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/climb-aboard-jonesy-i-m-going-to-send-you-up-where-the-air-is-rare/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) [Explore all 3,589 Stephen King quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) ## More Doing good quotes > [There's nothing like getting feedback that's positive and supportive. That's what I'm all about. I'm really just genuinely doing good music. I'm not looking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tiffany-villarreal/there-s-nothing-like-getting-feedback-that-s-positive-and-supportive/) [Tiffany Villarreal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tiffany-villarreal/) > [As for doing good; that is one of the professions which is full. Moreover I have tried it fairly and, strange as it may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/as-for-doing-good-that-is-one-of-the-professions-which-is-full/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [When things are going bad that does not mean God has stopped doing good It's mean He is shifting things around you to get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christianquotes/when-things-are-going-bad-that-does-not-mean-god-has-stopped-doing/) ChristianQuotes > [“doing good required taking risks.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-dekker/doing-good-required-taking-risks/) [Ted Dekker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-dekker/) > [NGOs have a complicated space in neoliberal politics. They are supposed to mop up the anger. Even when they are doing good work, they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/ngos-have-a-complicated-space-in-neoliberal-politics-they-are/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [“Rich and famous and doing good," mused Schlichtmann. "Rich isn't so difficult. Famous isn't so difficult. Rich and famous together aren't so difficult. Rich,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-harr/rich-and-famous-and-doing-good-mused-schlichtmann-rich-isn-t-so/) Jonathan Harr > [There is only one way of not hating those who do us wrong, and that is by doing them good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-frederic-amiel/there-is-only-one-way-of-not-hating-those-who-do-us-wrong-and-that-is/) [Henri Frederic Amiel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-frederic-amiel/) > [“What is an artist? For every thousand people there's nine hundred doing the work, ninety doing well, nine doing good, and one lucky bastard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-stoppard/what-is-an-artist-for-every-thousand-people-there-s-nine-hundred/) [Tom Stoppard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-stoppard/) > [Being a good person is appreciable. But doing good things in life is what shows others who really you are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anurag-prakash-ray/being-a-good-person-is-appreciable-but-doing-good-things-in-life-is/) [Anurag Prakash Ray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anurag-prakash-ray/) > [As long as any one has the means of doing good to his neighbours, and does not do so, he shall be reckoned a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irenaeus-of-lyons/as-long-as-any-one-has-the-means-of-doing-good-to-his-neighbours-and/) [Irenaeus of Lyons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irenaeus-of-lyons/) > [My mum supported me after she saw I was doing good in weightlifting, I was able to get a scholarship, I was able to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hidilyn-diaz/my-mum-supported-me-after-she-saw-i-was-doing-good-in-weightlifting-i/) [Hidilyn Diaz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hidilyn-diaz/) > [We've always tried to convey these strong messages of strength and power and doing good in the world and, at the same time, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-halford/we-ve-always-tried-to-convey-these-strong-messages-of-strength-and/) [Rob Halford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-halford/) > [The pulpit only "teaches" to be honest; the market-place "trains" to overreaching and fraud; and teaching has not a tithe of the efficiency of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace-mann/the-pulpit-only-teaches-to-be-honest-the-market-place-trains-to/) [Horace Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace-mann/) > [We are not to preach the doing of good things; good deeds are not to be preached, they are to be performed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oswald-chambers/we-are-not-to-preach-the-doing-of-good-things-good-deeds-are-not-to/) [Oswald Chambers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oswald-chambers/) > [Even if everyone elseIs not doing good,I alone will.Even if everyone elseis doing wrong,I alone will not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gautama-buddha/even-if-everyone-elseis-not-doing-good-i-alone-will-even-if-everyone/) [Gautama Buddha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gautama-buddha/) [Browse all 783 Doing good quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doing-good/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Sometimes you have to go on when you don't feel like it, and sometimes you're doing good work when it feels like all you're managing is to shovel shit from a sitting position.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Stephen King" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/sometimes-you-have-to-go-on-when-you-don-t-feel-like-it-and-sometimes/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Doing good" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/sometimes-you-have-to-go-on-when-you-don-t-feel-like-it-and-sometimes/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/05b/stephen-king-13_doing-good_sometimes-you-have-to-go-on-when-you-don_1586114.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/05b/stephen-king-13_doing-good_sometimes-you-have-to-go-on-when-you-don_1586114.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/05b/stephen-king-13_doing-good_sometimes-you-have-to-go-on-when-you-don_1586114.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Sometimes you have to go on when you don't feel like it, and sometimes you're doing good work when it feels…” — Stephen King", "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": "Stephen King", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Sometimes you have to go on...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/sometimes-you-have-to-go-on-when-you-don-t-feel-like-it-and-sometimes/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/sometimes-you-have-to-go-on-when-you-don-t-feel-like-it-and-sometimes/#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 } } ] } ```