Success Quote by Thomas S. Monson

A clunky little tongue-twister, this line works because it turns moral counsel into a verdict. Thomas S. Monson, speaking from the pulpit tradition, isn’t offering productivity advice so much as drawing a bright boundary between two spiritual postures: disciplined agency and passive yearning. The alliteration and near-drill-sergeant rhythm ("wishy washy wishing") is the tell. It’s meant to be memorable enough to replay in your head when you’re tempted to substitute hope for effort.

The intent is corrective. In Monson’s world, wishing can become a form of self-deception: a way to feel aligned with a goal without paying the price of pursuing it. By mocking "wishy washy", he frames indecision as not merely ineffective but unserious, even slightly embarrassing. That tonal move matters; it nudges listeners through social pressure as much as through doctrine.

The subtext is classic Latter-day Saint emphasis on agency, self-reliance, and action as a proof of faith. Work isn’t just labor; it’s the outward sign that belief has teeth. The phrase also quietly resolves a theological tension: if providence exists, why strive? Monson’s answer is implicit: divine help doesn’t replace effort; it meets it.

Contextually, this fits a late-20th-century American religious leader addressing congregations navigating modern distraction and comfort. It’s sermon rhetoric engineered for repetition: a compact mantra that swaps vague aspiration for accountable motion, and makes the latter sound like the only respectable choice.