Aspiring Noble Deeds and Perfection is a Sign of Nobility

"Then know that seeking the virtuous deeds is the end goal of those who strive, and that there are varying levels of good deeds. There are people who see virtue to be asceticism, while others see it as occupation with worship.

In fact, the highest virtues are none other than combining knowledge and action, for when they are achieved, the person is raised to the highest status, for that is the aspired goal, and according to one's ambition, opportunites arise. Thus, your ambition must be to seek perfection. Some people restricted themselves to ascetisism, and others devoted themselves to knowledge, while yet others combined complete knowledge with complete action. However, not everything one desires is achieved, nor does every seeker find what he is seeking, nor does every one who begins a praisworthy matter complete what he began! And not everything one wishes for one achieves, or as the famous poet Abu al-Tayyib said:

'And not every lover of goodness is a doer of it
Nor does every doer of it complete it!'

But one must strive, and each will have that for which he was created for facilitated for him, and Allah, Glory be to Him, is the Giver of Aid."

p.71 from The Value of Time, by Shaykh 'Abd al-Fattah Abu Ghuddah