--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There are very few professions in which…" description: "\"There are very few professions in which people just sit down and think hard for five or six hours a day all by themselves. Of course it's why you want ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/34e/tobias-wolff-7890_down-and_there-are-very-few-professions-in-which_772193.png" --- # There are very few professions in which people just sit… ![“There are very few professions in which people just sit down and think hard for five or six hours a day all by themselves. Of course it's why you want to become a writer — because you have the liberty to do that, but once you have the liberty you also have the obligation to do it.” quote by Tobias Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/34e/tobias-wolff-7890_down-and_there-are-very-few-professions-in-which_772193.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/34e/tobias-wolff-7890_down-and_there-are-very-few-professions-in-which_772193.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/34e/tobias-wolff-7890_down-and_there-are-very-few-professions-in-which_772193.png) > “There are very few professions in which people just sit down and think hard for five or six hours a day all by themselves. Of course it's why you want to become a writer — because you have the liberty to do that, but once you have the liberty you also have the obligation to do it.” [Tobias Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tobias-wolff/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Writing demands solitary deep thought, granting freedom but also imposing responsibility to produce. **In simple terms:** Writers think alone, must act. Key Takeaway Embrace the duty of creation. Themes creativity solitude responsibility discipline Mood thoughtful serious Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - novel writing - academic research - personal journaling Key Concepts deep work creative freedom ethical obligation Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance solitude with connection? - What routines support disciplined thinking? A Different Perspective Isolation can hinder collaboration and mental health. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Down and](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/down-and/) [Freedom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom/) [Hours](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hours/) [Just Sit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/just-sit/) [Liberty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/liberty/) [Obligation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/obligation/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Profession](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/profession/) [Sit Think](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sit-think/) [Six](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/six/) [Think Hard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/think-hard/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want/) [Want Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want-writer/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writer Liberty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer-liberty-4651393/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [Of course it's why you want to become a writer - because you have the liberty to do that, but once you have the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tobias-wolff/of-course-it-s-why-you-want-to-become-a-writer-because-you-have-the/) [Tobias Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tobias-wolff/) > [Sometimes I sit and think and other times I just sit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/satchel-paige/sometimes-i-sit-and-think-and-other-times-i-just-sit/) [Satchel Paige](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/satchel-paige/) > [“remember this old Zen joke, “Don’t just do something, sit there!” I can think of no better market advice when you are feeling emotional.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/palgrave-macmillan-trade/remember-this-old-zen-joke-don-t-just-do-something-sit-there-i-can/) [Palgrave Macmillan Trade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/palgrave-macmillan-trade/) > [I find if I just sit down and think, a solution presents itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-connery/i-find-if-i-just-sit-down-and-think-a-solution-presents-itself/) [Sean Connery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-connery/) > [“Just sit and think? Perish the thought.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/just-sit-and-think-perish-the-thought/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Sometimes I just sit and think, what I could do with one more chance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/sometimes-i-just-sit-and-think-what-i-could-do-with-one-more-chance/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I insist on a lot of time being spent, almost every day, to just sit and think. That is very uncommon in American business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-buffett/i-insist-on-a-lot-of-time-being-spent-almost-every-day-to-just-sit/) [Warren Buffett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-buffett/) > [While all of you talk about me I just sit back and think damn I got myself a Fan Club](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/while-all-of-you-talk-about-me-i-just-sit-back-and-think-damn-i-got/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Sometimes I look at myself and think: have I been too hard in terms of pushing and challenging the players? But I only think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mickey-arthur/sometimes-i-look-at-myself-and-think-have-i-been-too-hard-in-terms-of/) [Mickey Arthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mickey-arthur/) > [If others would think as hard as I did, then they would get similar results.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-newton/if-others-would-think-as-hard-as-i-did-then-they-would-get-similar/) [Isaac Newton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-newton/) > [I think that it is always hard to find two voices that fit together well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-brightman/i-think-that-it-is-always-hard-to-find-two-voices-that-fit-together/) [Sarah Brightman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-brightman/) > [I always think if you are not a hard worker, you will get nowhere in English football.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cafu/i-always-think-if-you-are-not-a-hard-worker-you-will-get-nowhere-in/) [Cafu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cafu/) > [Think how hard physics would be if particles could think](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-gell-mann/think-how-hard-physics-would-be-if-particles-could-think/) [Murray Gell-Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-gell-mann/) > [To act is easy; to think is hard.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/to-act-is-easy-to-think-is-hard/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [What makes a song last is real content from a mind that is thinking a little bit harder about certain things. A lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billie-eilish/what-makes-a-song-last-is-real-content-from-a-mind-that-is-thinking-a/) [Billie Eilish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billie-eilish/) ## More by Tobias Wolff > [Memory is funny. Once you hit a vein the problem is not how to remember but how to control the flow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tobias-wolff/memory-is-funny-once-you-hit-a-vein-the-problem-is-not-how-to/) [Tobias Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tobias-wolff/) > [You boys know what tropism is, it's what makes a plant grow toward the light. Everything aspires to the light. You don't have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tobias-wolff/you-boys-know-what-tropism-is-it-s-what-makes-a-plant-grow-toward-the/) [Tobias Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tobias-wolff/) > [We even talked like Hemingway characters, though in travesty, as if to deny our discipleship: That is your bed, and it is a good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tobias-wolff/we-even-talked-like-hemingway-characters-though-in-travesty-as-if-to/) [Tobias Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tobias-wolff/) > [“But for now Anders can still make time. Time for the shadows to lengthen on the grass, time for the tethered dog to bark…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tobias-wolff/but-for-now-anders-can-still-make-time-time-for-the-shadows-to/) [Tobias Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tobias-wolff/) > [One of the last courses I taught was on the Russian short story, which I love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tobias-wolff/one-of-the-last-courses-i-taught-was-on-the-russian-short-story-which/) [Tobias Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tobias-wolff/) > [“He did not remember when everything began to remind him of something else.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tobias-wolff/he-did-not-remember-when-everything-began-to-remind-him-of-something/) [Tobias Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tobias-wolff/) > [Because I don't have to be careful of people's feelings when I teach literature, and I do when I'm teaching writing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tobias-wolff/because-i-don-t-have-to-be-careful-of-people-s-feelings-when-i-teach/) [Tobias Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tobias-wolff/) > [Work for most people is really very social, and the actual thinking is often done in community.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tobias-wolff/work-for-most-people-is-really-very-social-and-the-actual-thinking-is/) [Tobias Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tobias-wolff/) > [Writers cannot let themselves be servants of the official mythology. They have to, whatever the cost, say what truth they have to say.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tobias-wolff/writers-cannot-let-themselves-be-servants-of-the-official-mythology/) [Tobias Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tobias-wolff/) > [One can imagine a world without essays. It would be a little poorer, of course, like a world without chess, but one could live…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tobias-wolff/one-can-imagine-a-world-without-essays-it-would-be-a-little-poorer-of/) [Tobias Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tobias-wolff/) > [I was giving up--being realistic, as people liked to say, meaning the same thing. Being realistic made me feel bitter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tobias-wolff/i-was-giving-up-being-realistic-as-people-liked-to-say-meaning-the/) [Tobias Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tobias-wolff/) > [“Lose Faith. Pray anyway. Persist. We are made to persist, to complete the whole tour. That's how we find out who we are.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tobias-wolff/lose-faith-pray-anyway-persist-we-are-made-to-persist-to-complete-the/) [Tobias Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tobias-wolff/) > [I believe that the short story is as different a form from the novel as poetry is, and the best stories seem to me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tobias-wolff/i-believe-that-the-short-story-is-as-different-a-form-from-the-novel/) [Tobias Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tobias-wolff/) > [It's probably why I'm a short story writer. I tend to remember things in the past in narrative form, in story form, and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tobias-wolff/it-s-probably-why-i-m-a-short-story-writer-i-tend-to-remember-things/) [Tobias Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tobias-wolff/) > [When we are green, still half-created, we believe that our dreams are rights, that the world is disposed to act in our best interests,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tobias-wolff/when-we-are-green-still-half-created-we-believe-that-our-dreams-are/) [Tobias Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tobias-wolff/) [Explore all 86 Tobias Wolff quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tobias-wolff/) ## More Down and quotes > [Since I worked with Danny Boyle before on Slumdog Millionaire, we have great success and everything. So, when I first got the script and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-r-rahman/since-i-worked-with-danny-boyle-before-on-slumdog-millionaire-we-have/) [A. R. Rahman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-r-rahman/) > [Many Republicans have always reminded me of professional WWF wrestlers. They come into the ring all pumped up and acting like they're invincible and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-feig/many-republicans-have-always-reminded-me-of-professional-wwf/) [Paul Feig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-feig/) > [If I had my brothers I think with just a little bit of the correct marketing, I'd like to be almost exclusively in small…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-bozzio/if-i-had-my-brothers-i-think-with-just-a-little-bit-of-the-correct/) [Terry Bozzio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-bozzio/) > [In relations between the rich and the strong, between the rich and the poor, between the master and the servant, it's liberty that grinds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/in-relations-between-the-rich-and-the-strong-between-the-rich-and-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Sometimes life seems like a dream, especially when I look down and see that I forgot to put on my pants.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-handey/sometimes-life-seems-like-a-dream-especially-when-i-look-down-and-see/) [Jack Handey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-handey/) > [There's a dishonest tyranny in the liberal/progressive/socialist agenda that comes down and says 'we are here because we care about you; we want what's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allen-west/there-s-a-dishonest-tyranny-in-the-liberal-progressive-socialist/) [Allen West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allen-west/) > [If you feel like you want to die, it's time to sit down and make a list of all the things you haven't done…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deacon-jones/if-you-feel-like-you-want-to-die-it-s-time-to-sit-down-and-make-a/) [Deacon Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deacon-jones/) > [Music is how I get free. It's a way to shut the rest of the world down and create your own world within it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gift-of-gab/music-is-how-i-get-free-it-s-a-way-to-shut-the-rest-of-the-world-down/) [Gift of Gab](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gift-of-gab/) > [Being funny is one of my greatest strengths. I can make girls smile when they're down, and when they're having a good time, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-krasinski/being-funny-is-one-of-my-greatest-strengths-i-can-make-girls-smile/) [John Krasinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-krasinski/) > [When I look at nature I feel as if I'll be able to paint it all, note it all down, and then you might…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-monet/when-i-look-at-nature-i-feel-as-if-i-ll-be-able-to-paint-it-all-note/) [Claude Monet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claude-monet/) > [I think the best Thanksgiving we ever had was one where we didn't even have a turkey. Mom and Dad sat us kids down…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-handey/i-think-the-best-thanksgiving-we-ever-had-was-one-where-we-didn-t/) [Jack Handey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-handey/) > [When an angel comes down and takes me away, memories of me and my songs will always stay until the end of time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tupac-shakur/when-an-angel-comes-down-and-takes-me-away-memories-of-me-and-my/) [Tupac Shakur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tupac-shakur/) > [I think there's too much mult-tasking going on. 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Something made them stronger than the other kids, the ones who had died in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-higson/there-was-a-reason-these-boys-were-still-alive-though-something-made/) [Charlie Higson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-higson/) [Browse all 2,527 Down and quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/down-and/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "There are very few professions in which people just sit down and think hard for five or six hours a day all by themselves. 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