"Attempt easy tasks as if they were difficult, and difficult as if they were easy; in the one case, that confidence may not fall asleep, in the other, that it may not be dismayed"
About this Quote
As a Baroque-era philosopher and courtly operator, Gracian wrote for a world where status, favor, and survival could hinge on a single misstep. “Easy tasks” weren’t actually easy if they were performed in public, under scrutiny, or inside rigid hierarchies. The subtext is political as much as personal: vigilance is a social skill. If you get sloppy when the stakes feel low, you invite humiliation, rivals, or bad luck to do what they do best. Confidence “falling asleep” is a moral hazard; complacency is not just laziness, it’s exposure.
The second half flips the danger. Big challenges can trigger theatrical panic, the kind that makes people overcorrect, freeze, or self-sabotage. Gracian’s remedy is to rehearse ease: act as if difficulty is manageable so your mind doesn’t turn the task into a monster. It’s not “positive thinking”; it’s calibrated performance. You discipline your posture toward problems so fear doesn’t seize the steering wheel.
What makes the line work is its symmetry: two errors, two antidotes, one goal. Mastery is less about raw confidence than about keeping it awake when it wants to nap and steady when it wants to bolt.
Quote Details
| Topic | Confidence |
|---|---|
| Source | Verified source: Oráculo manual y arte de prudencia (Baltasar Gracian, 1647)
Evidence: Lo fácil se ha de emprender como dificultoso, y lo dificultoso como fácil. Allí porque la confianza no descuide, aquí porque la desconfianza no desmaye. (Aphorism / Maxim §204). This is the primary-source Spanish text from Baltasar Gracián’s Oráculo manual y arte de prudencia (first published 1647), aphorism §204. Your English wording matches Joseph Jacobs’ 1892 translation in The Art of Worldly Wisdom, which renders it as: “Attempt easy tasks as if they were difficult, and difficult as if they were easy. In the one case that confidence may not fall asleep, in the other that it may not be dismayed.” (Jacobs translation is a later translation, not the first publication.) The sacred-texts online edition shows the Jacobs translation as a numbered maxim collection, but the quote corresponds to §204 in the original work. ([wist.info](https://wist.info/gracian-y-morales-baltasar/28856/?utm_source=openai)) Other candidates (1) The Etiquette Collection (Baltasar Gracián, Eleanor Roosevelt, ..., 2020) compilation98.2% ... Attempt easy Tasks as if they were difficult, and difficult as if they were easy. In the one case that confidence... |
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Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
Gracian, Baltasar. (2026, February 25). Attempt easy tasks as if they were difficult, and difficult as if they were easy; in the one case, that confidence may not fall asleep, in the other, that it may not be dismayed. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/attempt-easy-tasks-as-if-they-were-difficult-and-38544/
Chicago Style
Gracian, Baltasar. "Attempt easy tasks as if they were difficult, and difficult as if they were easy; in the one case, that confidence may not fall asleep, in the other, that it may not be dismayed." FixQuotes. February 25, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/attempt-easy-tasks-as-if-they-were-difficult-and-38544/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"Attempt easy tasks as if they were difficult, and difficult as if they were easy; in the one case, that confidence may not fall asleep, in the other, that it may not be dismayed." FixQuotes, 25 Feb. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/attempt-easy-tasks-as-if-they-were-difficult-and-38544/. Accessed 5 Mar. 2026.
