--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The way you advance a technological…" description: "\"The way you advance a technological society is to try things - to be controversial and contrarian in your thinking in order to get to something that ev..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/954/boyan-slat-8602_advance_the-way-you-advance-a-technological-soci_2666402.jpg" --- # The way you advance a technological society is to try… ![“The way you advance a technological society is to try things - to be controversial and contrarian in your thinking in order to get to something that eventually people say, 'I told you it was a great idea.'” quote by Boyan Slat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/954/boyan-slat-8602_advance_the-way-you-advance-a-technological-soci_2666402.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/954/boyan-slat-8602_advance_the-way-you-advance-a-technological-soci_2666402.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/954/boyan-slat-8602_advance_the-way-you-advance-a-technological-soci_2666402.jpg) > “The way you advance a technological society is to try things - to be controversial and contrarian in your thinking in order to get to something that eventually people say, 'I told you it was a great idea.'” [Boyan Slat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boyan-slat/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Progress comes from daring, controversial ideas that challenge norms and eventually gain acceptance. **In simple terms:** Bold, controversial ideas drive technological progress. Key Takeaway Embrace contrarian thinking to innovate. Themes innovation controversy technology leadership Mood optimistic energetic Type motivational strategic When to use this quote - startup pitch - policy debate - research funding Key Concepts disruptive thinking risk taking visionary mindset Questions to Reflect On - How do you test controversial ideas safely? - When should you stay the course? A Different Perspective Risky ideas can fail and waste resources. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Innovation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/innovation/) [Society](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/society/) [Technology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/technology/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [Contrarian thinking at its best simply asks, Is this really true? 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First they try to murder me then they lie to me!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tupac-shakur/i-will-never-understand-this-society-first-they-try-to-murder-me-then/) [Tupac Shakur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tupac-shakur/) > [“As a society we should try to never inhibit another person's creativity. In people like myself, it's all we have.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-houbrick/as-a-society-we-should-try-to-never-inhibit-another-person-s/) [Michael Houbrick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-houbrick/) > [Whenever you see a man who is successful in society, try to discover what makes him pleasing, and if possible adopt his system.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-disraeli/whenever-you-see-a-man-who-is-successful-in-society-try-to-discover/) [Benjamin Disraeli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-disraeli/) > [Technological society leads to increasing numbers of people who cannot adapt to the inhuman rhythm of modern life with its emphasis on specialization. A…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-ellul/technological-society-leads-to-increasing-numbers-of-people-who/) [Jacques Ellul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-ellul/) > [Crazy ideas sometimes work, and the technological society that we have is built on a foundation of those crazy ideas that work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-myhrvold/crazy-ideas-sometimes-work-and-the-technological-society-that-we-have/) [Nathan Myhrvold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-myhrvold/) > [“Now a federated, decentralized system of free associations, incorporating economic as well as other social institutions, would be what I refer to as anarcho-syndicalism;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/now-a-federated-decentralized-system-of-free-associations/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [“Our advanced technological society is rapidly making objects of us and subtly programming us into conformity to the logic of its system to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-shaull/our-advanced-technological-society-is-rapidly-making-objects-of-us/) Richard Shaull > [Mass media provides the essential link between the individual and the demands of the technological society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-ellul/mass-media-provides-the-essential-link-between-the-individual-and-the/) [Jacques Ellul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-ellul/) > [Again I want to emphasize that the study of propaganda must be conducted within the context of a technological society. Propaganda is called upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-ellul/again-i-want-to-emphasize-that-the-study-of-propaganda-must-be/) [Jacques Ellul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-ellul/) > [“Xiii- men must...find their way from false to true consciousness, from their immediate to their real interest. They can do so only if they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-wright-mills-2/xiii-men-must-find-their-way-from-false-to-true-consciousness-from/) [C.Wright Mills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-wright-mills-2/) > [The media is the thought-form of the technological society, and it finds nothing it does to be laughable, a sure sign that it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-phillip-verene/the-media-is-the-thought-form-of-the-technological-society-and-it/) [Donald Phillip Verene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-phillip-verene/) > [Technological society has succeeded in multiplying the opportunities for pleasure, but it has great difficulty in generating joy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-paul-vi/technological-society-has-succeeded-in-multiplying-the-opportunities/) [Pope Paul VI](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-paul-vi/) ## More by Boyan Slat > [Musk is very inspiring to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boyan-slat/musk-is-very-inspiring-to-me/) [Boyan Slat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boyan-slat/) > [I think humanity can do more than one thing at the same time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boyan-slat/i-think-humanity-can-do-more-than-one-thing-at-the-same-time/) [Boyan Slat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boyan-slat/) > [Whenever you start working on something, you have to go about it with the underlying assumption that this puzzle has a solution, right? If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boyan-slat/whenever-you-start-working-on-something-you-have-to-go-about-it-with/) [Boyan Slat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boyan-slat/) > [For 60 years man has been putting plastic into the ocean. And from that day onward we're also taking it back out again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boyan-slat/for-60-years-man-has-been-putting-plastic-into-the-ocean-and-from/) [Boyan Slat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boyan-slat/) > [We started solely concentrating on cleaning up the Garbage Patch because we felt it was the most neglected part of the spectrum of solutions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boyan-slat/we-started-solely-concentrating-on-cleaning-up-the-garbage-patch/) [Boyan Slat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boyan-slat/) > [We use a curtain, so we don't use a net, so there's nothing sea life can get entangled with. And also, the system moves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boyan-slat/we-use-a-curtain-so-we-don-t-use-a-net-so-there-s-nothing-sea-life/) [Boyan Slat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boyan-slat/) > [When ideas are confronted with reality, there will always be surprises.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boyan-slat/when-ideas-are-confronted-with-reality-there-will-always-be-surprises/) [Boyan Slat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boyan-slat/) > [When I started there was this consensus that you could never clean this up, that the problem is way too big, the ocean is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boyan-slat/when-i-started-there-was-this-consensus-that-you-could-never-clean/) [Boyan Slat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boyan-slat/) > [I think people overestimate the risk of high-risk projects.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boyan-slat/i-think-people-overestimate-the-risk-of-high-risk-projects/) [Boyan Slat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boyan-slat/) > [The legacy, the waste, is mostly in international waters that are sort of in no man's land and thus considered to be no one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boyan-slat/the-legacy-the-waste-is-mostly-in-international-waters-that-are-sort/) [Boyan Slat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boyan-slat/) > [I do enjoy being at the ocean, like most people, but not so much being on the ocean.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boyan-slat/i-do-enjoy-being-at-the-ocean-like-most-people-but-not-so-much-being/) [Boyan Slat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boyan-slat/) > [It's important to stay humble.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boyan-slat/it-s-important-to-stay-humble/) [Boyan Slat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boyan-slat/) > [It's never really fun to be in the public spotlight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boyan-slat/it-s-never-really-fun-to-be-in-the-public-spotlight/) [Boyan Slat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boyan-slat/) > [I would never be able to work on a photo-sharing app or 'Internet startup XYZ.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boyan-slat/i-would-never-be-able-to-work-on-a-photo-sharing-app-or-internet/) [Boyan Slat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boyan-slat/) > [Look at climate change. That's a bigger problem than plastic, but we can't all focus on that and forget about plastic - that isn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boyan-slat/look-at-climate-change-that-s-a-bigger-problem-than-plastic-but-we/) [Boyan Slat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boyan-slat/) [Explore all 79 Boyan Slat quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boyan-slat/) ## More Advance quotes > [I don't think we should tell them what we're going to do in advance. Let them think. Worry. Wonder. Uncertainty is the most chilling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vernon-a-walters/i-don-t-think-we-should-tell-them-what-we-re-going-to-do-in-advance/) [Vernon A. Walters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vernon-a-walters/) > [It's more common than not that bipolar illness will start in the teens. One of the reasons I spend a lot of time on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-redfield-jamison/it-s-more-common-than-not-that-bipolar-illness-will-start-in-the/) [Kay Redfield Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-redfield-jamison/) > [The advance of science spares us from irrational dread.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-rees/the-advance-of-science-spares-us-from-irrational-dread/) [Martin Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-rees/) > [Some companies out there quote a start of production that is substantially in advance of when customers get their cars.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elon-musk/some-companies-out-there-quote-a-start-of-production-that-is/) [Elon Musk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elon-musk/) > [My priority in life is my whanau, followed by my work as an artist, which has blessed me with the ability to provide opportunities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cliff-curtis/my-priority-in-life-is-my-whanau-followed-by-my-work-as-an-artist/) [Cliff Curtis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cliff-curtis/) > [Others have said it before me. If you don't have a seat at the table, you're probably on the menu. And so it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-warren/others-have-said-it-before-me-if-you-don-t-have-a-seat-at-the-table/) [Elizabeth Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-warren/) > [What I have in advance are people I want to write about and a problem or problems that I see those people encountering and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chaim-potok/what-i-have-in-advance-are-people-i-want-to-write-about-and-a-problem/) [Chaim Potok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chaim-potok/) > [Error is discipline through which we advance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ellery-channing/error-is-discipline-through-which-we-advance/) [William Ellery Channing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ellery-channing/) > [I think it's important to earn your fan base and not just try to immediately advance to the top. If you ride to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-mraz/i-think-it-s-important-to-earn-your-fan-base-and-not-just-try-to/) [Jason Mraz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-mraz/) > [The Chinese public is deeply nationalist, which matters to China's unelected political leadership as much as U.S. nationalism does to American politicians. As China…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noah-feldman/the-chinese-public-is-deeply-nationalist-which-matters-to-china-s/) [Noah Feldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noah-feldman/) > [Some might complain that nuclear disarmament is little more than a dream. But that ignores the very tangible benefits disarmament would bring for all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ban-ki-moon/some-might-complain-that-nuclear-disarmament-is-little-more-than-a/) [Ban Ki-moon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ban-ki-moon/) > [Let our advance worrying become advance thinking and planning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/let-our-advance-worrying-become-advance-thinking-and-planning/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [Let us not bankrupt our todays by paying interest on the regrets of yesterday and by borrowing in advance the troubles of tomorrow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-w-sockman-2/let-us-not-bankrupt-our-todays-by-paying-interest-on-the-regrets-of/) Ralph W. Sockman > [In times of failing health, don't hopelessly pray for the intervention of a mythical god; wish hopefully for an advance in medical science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-fowler/in-times-of-failing-health-don-t-hopelessly-pray-for-the-intervention/) [Steve Fowler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-fowler/) > [Clearly, unless thinking beings inevitably wipe themselves out soon after developing technology, extraterrestrial intelligence could often be millions or billions of years in advance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/clearly-unless-thinking-beings-inevitably-wipe-themselves-out-soon/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) Browse all 263 Advance quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The way you advance a technological society is to try things - to be controversial and contrarian in your thinking in order to get to something that eventually people say, 'I told you it was a great idea.'", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Boyan Slat" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boyan-slat/the-way-you-advance-a-technological-society-is-to-try-things-to-be/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Advance" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boyan-slat/the-way-you-advance-a-technological-society-is-to-try-things-to-be/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/954/boyan-slat-8602_advance_the-way-you-advance-a-technological-soci_2666402.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/954/boyan-slat-8602_advance_the-way-you-advance-a-technological-soci_2666402.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/954/boyan-slat-8602_advance_the-way-you-advance-a-technological-soci_2666402.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The way you advance a technological society is to try things - to be controversial and contrarian in your…” — Boyan Slat", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Boyan Slat", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boyan-slat/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The way you advance a technological...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boyan-slat/the-way-you-advance-a-technological-society-is-to-try-things-to-be/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boyan-slat/the-way-you-advance-a-technological-society-is-to-try-things-to-be/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```