---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The only reason for being young is to…"
description: "\"The only reason for being young is to outgrow it.\" — Clifton Fadiman"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/735/clifton-fadiman-11053_outgrow_the-only-reason-for-being-young-is-to-ou_2341691.jpg"
---

#  The only reason for being young is to outgrow it.

![“The only reason for being young is to outgrow it.” quote by Clifton Fadiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/735/clifton-fadiman-11053_outgrow_the-only-reason-for-being-young-is-to-ou_2341691.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/735/clifton-fadiman-11053_outgrow_the-only-reason-for-being-young-is-to-ou_2341691.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/735/clifton-fadiman-11053_outgrow_the-only-reason-for-being-young-is-to-ou_2341691.jpg)

> “The only reason for being young is to outgrow it.”

[Clifton Fadiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clifton-fadiman/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Youth’s purpose is to outgrow youthful limitations and mature.

**In simple terms:** Being young is for growing beyond it.

Key Takeaway

Use youth as a time for growth.

Themes

growth youth maturity

Mood

hopeful reflective

Type

advice philosophical

When to use this quote

- education
- career planning
- personal reflection

Key Concepts

developmental psychology life stages self‑improvement

Questions to Reflect On

- What lessons can youth teach you?
- How to balance growth with enjoyment?

A Different Perspective

May ignore present joys.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reason/) [Youth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/youth/)

## Related quotes

> [A lot of people are very political when they are young, and then they outgrow it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-solomon/a-lot-of-people-are-very-political-when-they-are-young-and-then-they/)

[Andrew Solomon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-solomon/)

> [I'm sure that is a reason why young people occasionally bash up old people - because the ages don't mix any more.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penelope-keith/i-m-sure-that-is-a-reason-why-young-people-occasionally-bash-up-old/)

[Penelope Keith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penelope-keith/)

> [“What is it that a young man wants? Where is the central source of that wild fury that boils up in him, that goads…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-wolfe/what-is-it-that-a-young-man-wants-where-is-the-central-source-of-that/)

[Thomas Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-wolfe/)

> [You can no more outgrow your need for God than you can outgrow your need for oxygen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-can-no-more-outgrow-your-need-for-god-than-you-can-outgrow-your/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [If youth is a defect, it is one we outgrow too soon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-lowell/if-youth-is-a-defect-it-is-one-we-outgrow-too-soon/)

[Robert Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-lowell/)

> [We may outgrow the things of children, without acquiring sense and relish for those which become a man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lancaster-spalding/we-may-outgrow-the-things-of-children-without-acquiring-sense-and/)

[John Lancaster Spalding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lancaster-spalding/)

> [“We should invest on our personal development not only to outgrow challenges but also maximize every opportunity that comes on our way.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/assegid-habtewold/we-should-invest-on-our-personal-development-not-only-to-outgrow/)

[Assegid Habtewold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/assegid-habtewold/)

> [When we outgrow our core we become strangers to us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tasneem-hameed/when-we-outgrow-our-core-we-become-strangers-to-us/)

[Tasneem Hameed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tasneem-hameed/)

> [Sometimes you just outgrow certain people. Dont try to fix or repair it, just accept it and move on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/sometimes-you-just-outgrow-certain-people-dont-try-to-fix-or-repair/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“I’ve had friends like that,” he says, “the ones you outgrow but keep anyway.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-lauren/i-ve-had-friends-like-that-he-says-the-ones-you-outgrow-but-keep/)

[Christina Lauren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-lauren/)

> [I'd always vaguely expected to outgrow my limitations. One day, I'd stop twisting my hair, and wearing running shoes all the time, and eating…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gretchen-rubin/i-d-always-vaguely-expected-to-outgrow-my-limitations-one-day-i-d/)

[Gretchen Rubin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gretchen-rubin/)

> [Sometimes problems dont require a solution to solve them; instead they require maturity to outgrow them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/varsha-sharma/sometimes-problems-dont-require-a-solution-to-solve-them-instead-they/)

[Varsha Sharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/varsha-sharma/)

> [You never get away from that thing in your hometown that it has over you. You don't outgrow where you come from.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-fallon/you-never-get-away-from-that-thing-in-your-hometown-that-it-has-over/)

[Brian Fallon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-fallon/)

> [“No matter how old you are, you never fully outgrow the need for your family’s acknowledgment and approval.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valerie-young/no-matter-how-old-you-are-you-never-fully-outgrow-the-need-for-your/)

[Valerie Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valerie-young/)

> [Confession is something we will never outgrow, even if we become the saints God made us to be. Pope John Paul II and Mother…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-wuerl/confession-is-something-we-will-never-outgrow-even-if-we-become-the/)

[Donald Wuerl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-wuerl/)

## More by Clifton Fadiman

> [To divide one's life by years is of course to tumble into a trap set by our own arithmetic. The calendar consents to carry…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clifton-fadiman/to-divide-one-s-life-by-years-is-of-course-to-tumble-into-a-trap-set/)

[Clifton Fadiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clifton-fadiman/)

> [A good memory is one trained to forget the trivial.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clifton-fadiman/a-good-memory-is-one-trained-to-forget-the-trivial/)

[Clifton Fadiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clifton-fadiman/)

> [A bottle of wine begs to be shared; I have never met a miserly wine lover.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clifton-fadiman/a-bottle-of-wine-begs-to-be-shared-i-have-never-met-a-miserly-wine/)

[Clifton Fadiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clifton-fadiman/)

> [ \[Books\] will visit you at your convenience, whether you are lonesome or not, on rainy days or fair. They propose themselves as either transient… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clifton-fadiman/books-will-visit-you-at-your-convenience-whether-you-are-lonesome-or/)

[Clifton Fadiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clifton-fadiman/)

> [Name me any liquid except our own blood that flows more intimately and incessantly through the labyrinth of symbols we have conceived to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clifton-fadiman/name-me-any-liquid-except-our-own-blood-that-flows-more-intimately/)

[Clifton Fadiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clifton-fadiman/)

> [Wine is a civilizing agent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clifton-fadiman/wine-is-a-civilizing-agent/)

[Clifton Fadiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clifton-fadiman/)

> [When you read a classic, you do not see more in the book than you did before; you see more in you than there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clifton-fadiman/when-you-read-a-classic-you-do-not-see-more-in-the-book-than-you-did/)

[Clifton Fadiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clifton-fadiman/)

> [To take wine into your mouth is to savor a droplet of the river of human history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clifton-fadiman/to-take-wine-into-your-mouth-is-to-savor-a-droplet-of-the-river-of/)

[Clifton Fadiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clifton-fadiman/)

> [The adjective is the banana peel of the parts of speech.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clifton-fadiman/the-adjective-is-the-banana-peel-of-the-parts-of-speech/)

[Clifton Fadiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clifton-fadiman/)

> [“Don't be afraid of poetry.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clifton-fadiman/don-t-be-afraid-of-poetry/)

[Clifton Fadiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clifton-fadiman/)

> [Being a child is in itself a profession.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clifton-fadiman/being-a-child-is-in-itself-a-profession/)

[Clifton Fadiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clifton-fadiman/)

> [ Seriously, I do not know what to say of this book \[ Absalom, Absalom!\] except that it seem to point to the final blowup… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clifton-fadiman/seriously-i-do-not-know-what-to-say-of-this-book-absalom-absalom/)

[Clifton Fadiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clifton-fadiman/)

> [A man who is careful with his palate is not likely to be careless with his paragraphs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clifton-fadiman/a-man-who-is-careful-with-his-palate-is-not-likely-to-be-careless/)

[Clifton Fadiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clifton-fadiman/)

> [To feel at home, stay at home.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clifton-fadiman/to-feel-at-home-stay-at-home/)

[Clifton Fadiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clifton-fadiman/)

> [The kind of poetry to avoid in the pretty-pretty kind that pleased our grandmothers, the kind that Longfellow and Tennyson, good poets at their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clifton-fadiman/the-kind-of-poetry-to-avoid-in-the-pretty-pretty-kind-that-pleased/)

[Clifton Fadiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clifton-fadiman/)

[Explore all 62 Clifton Fadiman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clifton-fadiman/)

## More Outgrow quotes

> [A lot of people are very political when they are young, and then they outgrow it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-solomon/a-lot-of-people-are-very-political-when-they-are-young-and-then-they/)

[Andrew Solomon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-solomon/)

> [We may outgrow the things of children, without acquiring sense and relish for those which become a man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lancaster-spalding/we-may-outgrow-the-things-of-children-without-acquiring-sense-and/)

[John Lancaster Spalding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lancaster-spalding/)

> [I'd always vaguely expected to outgrow my limitations. One day, I'd stop twisting my hair, and wearing running shoes all the time, and eating…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gretchen-rubin/i-d-always-vaguely-expected-to-outgrow-my-limitations-one-day-i-d/)

[Gretchen Rubin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gretchen-rubin/)

> [You can no more outgrow your need for God than you can outgrow your need for oxygen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-can-no-more-outgrow-your-need-for-god-than-you-can-outgrow-your/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“No matter how old you are, you never fully outgrow the need for your family’s acknowledgment and approval.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valerie-young/no-matter-how-old-you-are-you-never-fully-outgrow-the-need-for-your/)

[Valerie Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valerie-young/)

> [You never get away from that thing in your hometown that it has over you. You don't outgrow where you come from.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-fallon/you-never-get-away-from-that-thing-in-your-hometown-that-it-has-over/)

[Brian Fallon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-fallon/)

> [Sometimes problems dont require a solution to solve them; instead they require maturity to outgrow them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/varsha-sharma/sometimes-problems-dont-require-a-solution-to-solve-them-instead-they/)

[Varsha Sharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/varsha-sharma/)

> [Confession is something we will never outgrow, even if we become the saints God made us to be. Pope John Paul II and Mother…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-wuerl/confession-is-something-we-will-never-outgrow-even-if-we-become-the/)

[Donald Wuerl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-wuerl/)

> [“I’ve had friends like that,” he says, “the ones you outgrow but keep anyway.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-lauren/i-ve-had-friends-like-that-he-says-the-ones-you-outgrow-but-keep/)

[Christina Lauren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-lauren/)

> [Sometimes you just outgrow certain people. Dont try to fix or repair it, just accept it and move on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/sometimes-you-just-outgrow-certain-people-dont-try-to-fix-or-repair/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [When we outgrow our core we become strangers to us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tasneem-hameed/when-we-outgrow-our-core-we-become-strangers-to-us/)

[Tasneem Hameed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tasneem-hameed/)

> [“We should invest on our personal development not only to outgrow challenges but also maximize every opportunity that comes on our way.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/assegid-habtewold/we-should-invest-on-our-personal-development-not-only-to-outgrow/)

[Assegid Habtewold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/assegid-habtewold/)

> [If youth is a defect, it is one we outgrow too soon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-lowell/if-youth-is-a-defect-it-is-one-we-outgrow-too-soon/)

[Robert Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-lowell/)

> [Grow we must, if we outgrow all that loves us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/grow-we-must-if-we-outgrow-all-that-loves-us/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [When we consciously and deliberately develop new and better habits, our self image tends to outgrow the old habits and grow into the new…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxwell-maltz/when-we-consciously-and-deliberately-develop-new-and-better-habits/)

[Maxwell Maltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxwell-maltz/)

Browse all 54 Outgrow quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "The only reason for being young is to outgrow it.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Clifton Fadiman"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clifton-fadiman/the-only-reason-for-being-young-is-to-outgrow-it/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Outgrow"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clifton-fadiman/the-only-reason-for-being-young-is-to-outgrow-it/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/735/clifton-fadiman-11053_outgrow_the-only-reason-for-being-young-is-to-ou_2341691.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/735/clifton-fadiman-11053_outgrow_the-only-reason-for-being-young-is-to-ou_2341691.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/735/clifton-fadiman-11053_outgrow_the-only-reason-for-being-young-is-to-ou_2341691.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“The only reason for being young is to outgrow it.” — Clifton Fadiman",
                "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": "Clifton Fadiman",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clifton-fadiman/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "The only reason for being young...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clifton-fadiman/the-only-reason-for-being-young-is-to-outgrow-it/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clifton-fadiman/the-only-reason-for-being-young-is-to-outgrow-it/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
