He who wants to do something finds a way; he who does not want to do anything finds an excuse. Motivation is the only real obstacle — those who truly want to achieve something will always find the means.
This proverb is longer and more philosophical than most Venetian folk sayings, which tend toward brevity and punch. Its elaboration suggests it emerged from a context of careful moral instruction — perhaps from the pulpit, from a guild master's workshop, or from the kind of winter evening storytelling (veglia or filò) that was the primary form of cultural transmission in rural Veneto before literacy became widespread. The contrast between 'way' and 'excuse' captures the Venetian suspicion of elaborate justifications for inaction. In a commercial republic where a merchant who missed a seasonal trading wind lost a year's profit, excuses were literally expensive. The Venetian Arsenal — the great shipyard that could build a fully equipped war galley in a single day at its peak in the sixteenth century — operated on precisely this logic: problems were engineering challenges to be solved, not obstacles to be explained away. In the postwar economic miracle, the same energy drove the small-firm entrepreneurs of Vicenza, Treviso, and Pordenone who built global industrial districts from nothing, often starting in garages and back rooms. Today the proverb circulates in Venetian workplaces as a gentle rebuke to those who produce impressive explanations for why something cannot be done.
The extended proverb structure suggests transmission through the veglia or filò — the communal winter evening gathering in Veneto farmhouses where stories, proverbs, and moral teachings were shared across generations.
A workshop owner responding to an employee's explanation of why a deadline was missed
Tre ore di spiegazioni e il pezzo non è pronto. Chi vol far qualcossa trova el modo, chi no vol far niente trova la scusa.
Three hours of explanations and the piece is not ready. He who wants to do something finds a way; he who does not want to do anything finds an excuse.
A mother talking to her son who says he has no time to study
Non hai tempo? Hai tempo per il telefono tutto il giorno. Chi vol far qualcossa trova el modo — smettila con le scuse.
You have no time? You have time for your phone all day. He who wants to do something finds a way — stop making excuses.
An entrepreneur explaining his philosophy at a business talk in Verona
Quando ho aperto la mia prima officina non avevo i soldi per i macchinari. Ma chi vol far qualcossa trova el modo — ho trovato un socio e ho cominciato.
When I opened my first workshop I did not have money for the machinery. But he who wants to do something finds a way — I found a partner and I started.
Two colleagues discussing a project that keeps being postponed
È la terza riunione senza una decisione. — Lo sai come funziona. Chi no vol far niente trova la scusa.
It is the third meeting without a decision. — You know how it works. He who does not want to do anything finds an excuse.