proverb · Words worth keeping
Keep thy shop, and thy shop will keep thee.
Keep thy shop, and thy shop will keep thee.
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
Attend to the work that supports your livelihood. The shop is pictured as returning care through its ability to sustain the person who maintains it.
Example
A small team maintains its shared tools and responds reliably to requests instead of neglecting the work it depends on.
Deeper explanation and when to use it
Keeping the shop means giving the undertaking ongoing attention rather than expecting it to prosper without care. The reciprocal wording can encourage reliable service, maintenance and follow-through. It does not promise that diligence will guarantee an income: circumstances beyond the worker’s control can matter greatly. A careful reading concerns responsibilities that can reasonably be met, without making endless work a condition of worth.
When to use it
Use it to encourage reasonable care for an ongoing livelihood or undertaking.
Keep in mind
Diligence does not guarantee income or justify harmful workloads.
An interpretation of the words, not a claim about their earliest origin.
Attribution & collection notes
- Author or tradition
- Traditional
Attribution: traditional - Country attributed
- Not established
A country attribution does not establish the earliest origin. - Historical period
- Date unknown
- Culture
- English