Our duty is to be useful, not according to our desires, but according to our powers. ~ Henri-Frédéric Amiel

Be not diverted from your duty by any idle reflections the silly world may make upon you, for their censures are not in your power, and consequently should not be any part of your concern. ~ Epictetus

Duty largely consists of pretending that the trivial is critical. ~ John Fowles

Do something every day that you don't want to do; this is the golden rule for acquiring the habit of doing your duty without pain. ~ Mark Twain

Don't consider our interests or desires. You have no duty to anyone but yourself. ~ Ayn Rand

Duty n: That which sternly impels us in the direction of profit, along the line of desire. ~ Ambrose Bierce, The Devil's Dictionary, 1906

Duty then is the sublimest word in the English language. You should do your duty in all things. You can never do more, you should never wish to do less. ~ Robert E. Lee

We do what we must, and call it by the best names. ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

We have come to think that duty should come first. I disagree. Duty should be a by-product. Writing, the creative effort, the use of the imagination, should come first, -- at least for some part of every day of your life. ~ Brenda Ueland

When a stupid man is doing something he is ashamed of, he always declares that it is his duty. ~ George Bernard Shaw

Think of your forefathers! Think of your posterity! ~ John Quincy Adams

Pressed into service means pressed out of shape. ~ Robert Frost

The first duty of a human being is to assume the right relationship to society--more briefly, to find your real job, and do it. ~ Charlotte Perkins Gilman

In the time we have it is surely our duty to do all the good we can to all the people we can in al the ways we can. ~ William Barclay

My duty is to obey orders. ~ Stonewall Jackson

It is the duty of the ship’s captain to make port, cost what it may. ~ Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, Wind, Sand and Stars

Duty is the sublimest word in our language. Do your duty in all things. You cannot do more. You should never do less. ~ Robert E. Lee