This is perhaps the most famous verse in the Bhagavad-gītā. Kṛṣṇa gives Arjuna four clear guidelines for work: 1) You have a right to perform your duty. 2) You have no right to the fruits of your work. 3) Never consider yourself the cause of the results. 4) Never be attached to not doing your work. Arjuna wanted to quit because he didn’t like the predicted result—the death of his family. Kṛṣṇa says that the result is not his business. The result depends on many cosmic factors beyond his control. His only responsibility is to perform the act itself as best as he can. This teaching removes performance anxiety. If you are not the ‘owner’ of the result, you can work with total focus and peace. Kṛṣṇa warns Arjuna not to become lazy or inactive (‘akarmaṇi’) as an escape. He must work, but with the heart of a servant, not a shopkeeper.