--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Don't keep forever on the public road…" description: "\"Don't keep forever on the public road, going only where others have gone. Leave the beaten track occasionally and dive into the woods. You will be cert..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/546/alexander-graham-bell-9356_beaten_don-t-keep-forever-on-the-public-road-go_2179912.jpg" --- # Don't keep forever on the public road, going only where… ![“Don't keep forever on the public road, going only where others have gone. Leave the beaten track occasionally and dive into the woods. You will be certain to find something you have never seen before. Of course it will be a little thing, but do not ignore it. One discovery will lead to another…” quote by Alexander Graham Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/546/alexander-graham-bell-9356_beaten_don-t-keep-forever-on-the-public-road-go_2179912.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/546/alexander-graham-bell-9356_beaten_don-t-keep-forever-on-the-public-road-go_2179912.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/546/alexander-graham-bell-9356_beaten_don-t-keep-forever-on-the-public-road-go_2179912.jpg) > “Don't keep forever on the public road, going only where others have gone. Leave the beaten track occasionally and dive into the woods. You will be certain to find something you have never seen before. Of course it will be a little thing, but do not ignore it. One discovery will lead to another, and before you know it, you will have something worth thinking about to occupy your mind, and really big discoveries are the result of thought.” [Alexander Graham Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-graham-bell/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Explores how stepping off familiar paths sparks new insights and breakthroughs. **In simple terms:** Leaving familiar routes leads to new ideas. Key Takeaway Seek novelty, explore beyond the usual. Themes creativity exploration discovery Mood inspired curious Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - travel - research - artistic projects - personal growth Key Concepts innovation serendipity curiosity Questions to Reflect On - What small, unfamiliar path could you take today? - How can you turn a minor discovery into a larger insight? 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Leave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-graham-bell/don-t-keep-forever-on-the-public-road-going-only-where-others-have-2/) [Alexander Graham Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-graham-bell/) > [I suppose the thing that really interests me is what mankind did with the big, big, big discoveries that have created our modern age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-fry/i-suppose-the-thing-that-really-interests-me-is-what-mankind-did-with/) [Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/) > [The people who do make big discoveries are the ones who somehow manage to free themselves from conventional ways of thinking and to see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-james-leggett/the-people-who-do-make-big-discoveries-are-the-ones-who-somehow/) [Anthony James Leggett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-james-leggett/) > [“Leeuwenhoek, Erwin, Woese, and others were at the fringes of their respective fields, the frontiers, to be generous. The same might be said to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-dunn/leeuwenhoek-erwin-woese-and-others-were-at-the-fringes-of-their/) [Rob Dunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-dunn/) > [“The more comfortable we become with being stupid, the deeper we will wade into the unknown and the more likely we are to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-a-schwartz/the-more-comfortable-we-become-with-being-stupid-the-deeper-we-will/) [Martin A. Schwartz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-a-schwartz/) > [Great discoveries and improvements invariably involve the cooperation of many minds. I may be given credit for having blazed the trail, but when I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-graham-bell/great-discoveries-and-improvements-invariably-involve-the-cooperation-2/) [Alexander Graham Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-graham-bell/) > [Don't keep forever on the public road, going only where others have gone and following one after the other like a flock of sheep.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-graham-bell/don-t-keep-forever-on-the-public-road-going-only-where-others-have-3/) [Alexander Graham Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-graham-bell/) > [Like buried treasures, the outposts of the universe have beckoned to the adventurous from immemorial times. Princes and potentates, political or industrial, equally with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-ellery-hale/like-buried-treasures-the-outposts-of-the-universe-have-beckoned-to/) [George Ellery Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-ellery-hale/) > [There seems to be one quality of mind which seems to be of special and extreme advantage in leading him to make discoveries. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-darwin/there-seems-to-be-one-quality-of-mind-which-seems-to-be-of-special/) [Francis Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-darwin/) > [It's nice to witness these discoveries at first hand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-aspel/it-s-nice-to-witness-these-discoveries-at-first-hand/) [Michael Aspel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-aspel/) > [“We only know a tiny proportion about the complexity of the natural world. Wherever you look, there are still things we don’t know about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-attenborough/we-only-know-a-tiny-proportion-about-the-complexity-of-the-natural/) [David Attenborough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-attenborough/) > [Science is the most exciting and sustained enterprise of discovery in the history of our species. It is the great adventure of our time.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-crichton/science-is-the-most-exciting-and-sustained-enterprise-of-discovery-in/) [Michael Crichton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-crichton/) > [To me, part of the magic of this era is that the very same innovations, discoveries, and technologies that are allowing us to live…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-sebelius/to-me-part-of-the-magic-of-this-era-is-that-the-very-same-innovations/) [Kathleen Sebelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-sebelius/) > [“The nimble of mind long for the challenge of new discoveries. Weary minds cling to what is already known.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/k-lee-lerner/the-nimble-of-mind-long-for-the-challenge-of-new-discoveries-weary/) [K. Lee Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/k-lee-lerner/) > [Out of the questions of students come most of the creative ideas and discoveries.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-langer/out-of-the-questions-of-students-come-most-of-the-creative-ideas-and/) [Ellen Langer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-langer/) ## More by Alexander Graham Bell > [First words on the first telephone - "Mr. Watson - come here - I want to see you."](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-graham-bell/first-words-on-the-first-telephone-mr-watson-come-here-i-want-to-see/) [Alexander Graham Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-graham-bell/) > [“Concentrate all your thoughts upon the work in hand. The Sun's rays do not burn until brought to a focus”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-graham-bell/concentrate-all-your-thoughts-upon-the-work-in-hand-the-sun-s-rays-do/) [Alexander Graham Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-graham-bell/) > [We are all too much inclined, I think, to walk through life with our eyes shut. There are things all round us and right…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-graham-bell/we-are-all-too-much-inclined-i-think-to-walk-through-life-with-our/) [Alexander Graham Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-graham-bell/) > [ “Mr. Watson — Come here — I want to see you. \[ First intelligible words spoken over the telephone \]” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-graham-bell/mr-watson-come-here-i-want-to-see-you-first-intelligible-words-spoken/) [Alexander Graham Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-graham-bell/) > [I have heard articulate speech produced by sunlight I have heard a ray of the sun laugh and cough and sing! … I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-graham-bell/i-have-heard-articulate-speech-produced-by-sunlight-i-have-heard-a/) [Alexander Graham Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-graham-bell/) > [“Concentrate all your thoughts on the task at hand. The sun's rays do not burn until brought to a focus.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-graham-bell/concentrate-all-your-thoughts-on-the-task-at-hand-the-sun-s-rays-do/) [Alexander Graham Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-graham-bell/) > [Such a chimerical idea as telegraphing vocal sounds would indeed, to most minds, seem scarcely feasible enough to spend time in working over. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-graham-bell/such-a-chimerical-idea-as-telegraphing-vocal-sounds-would-indeed-to/) [Alexander Graham Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-graham-bell/) > [Sometimes we stare so long at a door that is closing that we see too late the one that is open.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-graham-bell/sometimes-we-stare-so-long-at-a-door-that-is-closing-that-we-see-too/) [Alexander Graham Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-graham-bell/) > [One day every major city in America will have a telephone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-graham-bell/one-day-every-major-city-in-america-will-have-a-telephone/) [Alexander Graham Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-graham-bell/) > [I do not recognize the right of the public to break in the front door of a man's private life in order to satisfy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-graham-bell/i-do-not-recognize-the-right-of-the-public-to-break-in-the-front-door/) [Alexander Graham Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-graham-bell/) > [Dumbness comes from the fact that a child is born deaf and that it consequently never learns how to articulate, for it is by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-graham-bell/dumbness-comes-from-the-fact-that-a-child-is-born-deaf-and-that-it/) [Alexander Graham Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-graham-bell/) > [When one door closes, another one opens.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-graham-bell/when-one-door-closes-another-one-opens/) [Alexander Graham Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-graham-bell/) > [There cannot be mental atrophy in any person who continues to observe, to remember what he observes, and to seek answers for his unceasing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-graham-bell/there-cannot-be-mental-atrophy-in-any-person-who-continues-to-observe/) [Alexander Graham Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-graham-bell/) > [Observe, Remember, Compare.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-graham-bell/observe-remember-compare/) [Alexander Graham Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-graham-bell/) > [What this power is I cannot say; all I know is that it exists and it becomes available only when a man is in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-graham-bell/what-this-power-is-i-cannot-say-all-i-know-is-that-it-exists-and-it/) [Alexander Graham Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-graham-bell/) [Explore all 72 Alexander Graham Bell quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-graham-bell/) ## More Beaten quotes > [I think children have talent and insight, but it gets beaten out of them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-dove/i-think-children-have-talent-and-insight-but-it-gets-beaten-out-of/) [Rita Dove](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-dove/) > [It's kind of the yin and yang that fascinate me. That for all the evil men do, there are also people who work obnoxiously…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-gardner/it-s-kind-of-the-yin-and-yang-that-fascinate-me-that-for-all-the-evil/) [Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) > [It's always a wake-up call to get beaten.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/usain-bolt/it-s-always-a-wake-up-call-to-get-beaten/) [Usain Bolt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/usain-bolt/) > [“I felt my heart skip a beat, just one, but it was enough that I took notice. It was nice to know that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-m-stunich/i-felt-my-heart-skip-a-beat-just-one-but-it-was-enough-that-i-took/) [C.M. Stunich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-m-stunich/) > [Class clowns are never allowed to date anybody decent, but you don't get beaten up, you're invited to parties, and everybody likes you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-harmon/class-clowns-are-never-allowed-to-date-anybody-decent-but-you-don-t/) [Dan Harmon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-harmon/) > [I know from my own clinical work that when people are beaten and hurt, they numb out so that they cant feel anymore.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bradshaw/i-know-from-my-own-clinical-work-that-when-people-are-beaten-and-hurt/) [John Bradshaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bradshaw/) > [You could be beaten down by anybody and by everybody and it doesn't matter what everybody else thinks it's how you see yourself and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-cuban/you-could-be-beaten-down-by-anybody-and-by-everybody-and-it-doesn-t/) [Mark Cuban](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-cuban/) > [Could beauty be beaten out, O youth the cities have sent to strike at each other's strength, it is you who have kept her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilda-doolittle/could-beauty-be-beaten-out-o-youth-the-cities-have-sent-to-strike-at/) [Hilda Doolittle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilda-doolittle/) > [The midget, Bush, and that Rumsfeld deserve only to be beaten with shoes by freedom loving people everywhere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohammed-saeed-al-sahaf/the-midget-bush-and-that-rumsfeld-deserve-only-to-be-beaten-with/) [Mohammed Saeed al-Sahaf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohammed-saeed-al-sahaf/) > [Like with every form of cancer, early detection is what it is all about. I urge everyone to learn the facts about this condition.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rod-stewart/like-with-every-form-of-cancer-early-detection-is-what-it-is-all/) [Rod Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rod-stewart/) > [In our culture of constant access and nonstop media, nothing feels more like a curse from God than time in the wilderness. To be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-martin/in-our-culture-of-constant-access-and-nonstop-media-nothing-feels/) [Jonathan Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-martin/) > [A man who is determined never to move out of the beaten road cannot lose his way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-hazlitt/a-man-who-is-determined-never-to-move-out-of-the-beaten-road-cannot/) [William Hazlitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-hazlitt/) > [I admit that I've been beaten up so many times in films, but we do not fake it - we actually have to fight…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/min-sik-choi/i-admit-that-i-ve-been-beaten-up-so-many-times-in-films-but-we-do-not/) [Min-sik Choi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/min-sik-choi/) > [I do not approve of children being beaten. It is always a confession of failure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-wentworth/i-do-not-approve-of-children-being-beaten-it-is-always-a-confession/) [Patricia Wentworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-wentworth/) > [If you can feel that staying human is worth while, even when it can't have any practical result whatsoever, you've beaten them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/if-you-can-feel-that-staying-human-is-worth-while-even-when-it-can-t/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) [Browse all 665 Beaten quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beaten/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Don't keep forever on the public road, going only where others have gone. Leave the beaten track occasionally and dive into the woods. You will be certain to find something you have never seen before. Of course it will be a little thing, but do not ignore it. 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