There is nothing so degrading as the constant anxiety about one’s means of livelihood.
I have nothing but contempt for the people who despise money. They are hypocrites or fools.
Money is like a sixth sense without which you cannot make a complete use of the other five. Without an adequate income half the possibilities of life are shut off.
The only thing to be careful about is that you do not pay more than a shilling for the shilling you earn.
You will hear people say that poverty is the best spur to the artist. They have never felt the iron of it in their flesh. They do not know how mean it makes you. It exposes you to endless humiliation, it cuts your wings, it eats into your soul like a cancer.
It is not wealth one asks for, but just enough to preserve one’s dignity, to work unhampered, to be generous, frank, and independent.
I pity with all my heart the artist, whether he writes or paints, who is entirely dependent for subsistence upon his art.
―
William Somerset Maugham (1874 – 1965) was an English writer, known for his plays, novels and short stories. Born in Paris, where he spent his first ten years, Maugham was schooled in England and went to a German university. He became a medical student in London and qualified as a physician in 1897. Wikipedia
Editor’s Note:
Wow. There is a lot to unpack in these 12 sentences!
I was originally going to just quote the first 5 sentences, but quickly realized the impact of the 7 additional sentences for context and added depth.
These words are coming from a very smart man and medical doctor with lots of credibility.
Have things changed since then? Do his words still apply today? What do YOU think they mean?
COMMENT below…