--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When I was a child, my behavior was far…" description: "\"When I was a child, my behavior was far from being what most people would label 'intelligent.' It was often limited, repetitive and anti-social. I coul..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d75/daniel-tammet-8321_anti-social_when-i-was-a-child-my-behavior-was-far-f_2233472.png" --- # When I was a child, my behavior was far from being what… ![“When I was a child, my behavior was far from being what most people would label 'intelligent.' It was often limited, repetitive and anti-social. I could not do many of the things that most people take for granted, such as looking someone in the eye or deciphering a person's body language, and only…” quote by Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d75/daniel-tammet-8321_anti-social_when-i-was-a-child-my-behavior-was-far-f_2233472.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d75/daniel-tammet-8321_anti-social_when-i-was-a-child-my-behavior-was-far-f_2233472.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d75/daniel-tammet-8321_anti-social_when-i-was-a-child-my-behavior-was-far-f_2233472.png) > “When I was a child, my behavior was far from being what most people would label 'intelligent.' It was often limited, repetitive and anti-social. I could not do many of the things that most people take for granted, such as looking someone in the eye or deciphering a person's body language, and only acquired these skills with much effort over time.” [Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote reflects on early social challenges and the effort needed to develop interpersonal skills that many take for granted. **In simple terms:** Childhood social skills were hard to learn. Key Takeaway Practice and patience build social competence. Themes development self-awareness empathy Mood reflective hopeful Type personal educational When to use this quote - school interactions - workplace communication - friendship building - public speaking Key Concepts neurodiversity social cognition personal growth Questions to Reflect On - What strategies helped you improve social understanding? - How can others support those struggling with similar challenges? A Different Perspective Skill acquisition can be slow and frustrating, requiring sustained effort. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Anti social](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anti-social/) [Behavior](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/behavior/) [Behavior Far](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/behavior-far-5033389/) [Body](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body/) [Body language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body-language/) [Child Behavior](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/child-behavior-1354670/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Effort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/effort/) [Eye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eye/) [Granted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/granted/) [Habits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/habits/) [Intelligent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intelligent/) [Labels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/labels/) [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Persons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/persons/) [Repetitive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/repetitive/) [Skills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/skills/) [Social](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/social/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [I was a physical education major with a child psychology minor at Temple, which means if you ask me a question about a child's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-cosby/i-was-a-physical-education-major-with-a-child-psychology-minor-at/) [Bill Cosby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-cosby/) > [“Too many children live with the feeling that they are not accepted for who they are, that, somehow, they are “disappointing” their parents or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/myla-kabat-zinn/too-many-children-live-with-the-feeling-that-they-are-not-accepted/) [Myla Kabat-Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/myla-kabat-zinn/) > [It is imperative that mothers understand their child's behavior and not blindly support the wrongdoings or faults in their sons.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jaya-prada/it-is-imperative-that-mothers-understand-their-child-s-behavior-and/) [Jaya Prada](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jaya-prada/) > [The moment when you are most repelled by a child's behavior, that is your warning light to draw the very closest to that child.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/the-moment-when-you-are-most-repelled-by-a-child-s-behavior-that-is/) [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) > [“A child's behavior we see on the surface is the reflection of the feelings that are rooted underneath. We can use topical treatments to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-bartlett/a-child-s-behavior-we-see-on-the-surface-is-the-reflection-of-the/) [Kelly Bartlett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-bartlett/) > [To be told that our child's behavior is normal offers little solace when our feelings are badly hurt, or when we worry that his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-be-told-that-our-child-s-behavior-is-normal-offers-little-solace-2/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [To be told that our child's behavior is "normal" offers little solace when our feelings are badly hurt, or when we worry that hisactions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruno-bettelheim/to-be-told-that-our-child-s-behavior-is-normal-offers-little-solace/) [Bruno Bettelheim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruno-bettelheim/) > [“How a family reacts to a child’s behavior and how a child is disciplined also play a big role in the development of defiant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-bernstein/how-a-family-reacts-to-a-child-s-behavior-and-how-a-child-is/) [Jeffrey Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-bernstein/) > [“Every child apprehends, feels and changes with age and developmental stage, as they also learn to develop. Nevertheless, if you recognize what to expect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-dsouza/every-child-apprehends-feels-and-changes-with-age-and-developmental/) [Patricia Dsouza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-dsouza/) > [“No behavior problem is just the kid's problem; it's also a family problem. To help your child best, you need to step back and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michele-borba/no-behavior-problem-is-just-the-kid-s-problem-it-s-also-a-family/) [Michele Borba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michele-borba/) > [“If your child had only your behavior to watch, what would he see? Which of your behaviors does he copy most? Smoking a cigarette?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michele-borba/if-your-child-had-only-your-behavior-to-watch-what-would-he-see-which/) [Michele Borba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michele-borba/) > [I think if I ever stopped pushing myself, I would revert quickly to quite repetitive, restrictive behaviour. But in pushing myself and concentrating on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/i-think-if-i-ever-stopped-pushing-myself-i-would-revert-quickly-to/) [Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) > [“Damn it!” I rubbed my eyes. My head hurt from staring at the laptop screen the whole day. “I’ve got to put this down…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chase-webster/damn-it-i-rubbed-my-eyes-my-head-hurt-from-staring-at-the-laptop/) [Chase Webster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chase-webster/) > [So in Jewry we recognise a contemporary universal anti-social phenomenon, which has reached its present pitch through a process of, historical development in which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-marx/so-in-jewry-we-recognise-a-contemporary-universal-anti-social/) [Karl Marx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-marx/) > [I get very anti-social, depressed and irritable with people. I don't have time for them. I can't make phone calls and stuff. I just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-cowell/i-get-very-anti-social-depressed-and-irritable-with-people-i-don-t/) [Simon Cowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-cowell/) ## More by Daniel Tammet > [It was hard for me to find my voice because I was, for so long, absorbed in my own world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/it-was-hard-for-me-to-find-my-voice-because-i-was-for-so-long/) [Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) > [When things don't come so naturally to you, you want to persevere, you want to keep pushing yourself to overcome obstacles that prevent you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/when-things-don-t-come-so-naturally-to-you-you-want-to-persevere-you/) [Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) > [Aesthetic judgments, rather than abstract reasoning, guide and shape the process by which we all come to know what we know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/aesthetic-judgments-rather-than-abstract-reasoning-guide-and-shape/) [Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) > [I'm very comfortable with the idea of there being late bloomers, and for me, of course, there's no difficulty at all in the way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/i-m-very-comfortable-with-the-idea-of-there-being-late-bloomers-and/) [Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) > [Growing up, I would have to watch the other children and learn from my mistakes. I would have to push myself to overcome the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/growing-up-i-would-have-to-watch-the-other-children-and-learn-from-my/) [Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) > [I love music. I have a fondness for Chopin, and I very much like his 'Raindrop Prelude.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/i-love-music-i-have-a-fondness-for-chopin-and-i-very-much-like-his/) [Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) > [My algebra was relatively poor. I found it very difficult to use equations that substituted numbers - to which I had a synesthetic and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/my-algebra-was-relatively-poor-i-found-it-very-difficult-to-use/) [Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) > [I've got a quiet voice. I think it's because as a child I didn't speak very much. I used to put my fingers in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/i-ve-got-a-quiet-voice-i-think-it-s-because-as-a-child-i-didn-t-speak/) [Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) > [I feel traveling certainly does broaden the mind. In my case certainly I feel more confident. It gives you a new perspective on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/i-feel-traveling-certainly-does-broaden-the-mind-in-my-case-certainly/) [Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) > [We know next to nothing with any certainty about Pythagoras, except that he was not really called Pythagoras. The name by which he is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/we-know-next-to-nothing-with-any-certainty-about-pythagoras-except/) [Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) > [Aesthetics - rather than reason - shapes our thought processes. First comes aesthetics, then logic. 'Thinking in Numbers' is not about an attempt to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/aesthetics-rather-than-reason-shapes-our-thought-processes-first/) [Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) > [There are always things I find difficult - being in crowds, remembering faces. I do like routines. I always travel with someone. My life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/there-are-always-things-i-find-difficult-being-in-crowds-remembering/) [Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) > [One particular aspect of Siddhartha’s revelation of the outside world has always struck me. Quite possibly he lived his first thirty years without any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/one-particular-aspect-of-siddhartha-s-revelation-of-the-outside-world/) [Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) > [I love books so much. I've read more books than anyone else I know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/i-love-books-so-much-i-ve-read-more-books-than-anyone-else-i-know/) [Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) > [I recited Pi to 22,514 decimal points in five hours and nine minutes. I was able to do this because of weeks of study,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/i-recited-pi-to-22-514-decimal-points-in-five-hours-and-nine-minutes/) [Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) [Explore all 82 Daniel Tammet quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) ## More Anti social quotes > [I get very anti-social, depressed and irritable with people. I don't have time for them. I can't make phone calls and stuff. I just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-cowell/i-get-very-anti-social-depressed-and-irritable-with-people-i-don-t/) [Simon Cowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-cowell/) > [So in Jewry we recognise a contemporary universal anti-social phenomenon, which has reached its present pitch through a process of, historical development in which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-marx/so-in-jewry-we-recognise-a-contemporary-universal-anti-social/) [Karl Marx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-marx/) > [“Damn it!” I rubbed my eyes. My head hurt from staring at the laptop screen the whole day. “I’ve got to put this down…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chase-webster/damn-it-i-rubbed-my-eyes-my-head-hurt-from-staring-at-the-laptop/) [Chase Webster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chase-webster/) > [The State, on the other hand, both in its genesis and by its primary intention, is purely anti-social. It is not based on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-j-nock/the-state-on-the-other-hand-both-in-its-genesis-and-by-its-primary/) [Albert J. Nock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-j-nock/) > [My view is that to get anywhere in life you have to be anti-social, otherwise you'll end up being devoured. I've never been particularly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-connery/my-view-is-that-to-get-anywhere-in-life-you-have-to-be-anti-social/) [Sean Connery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-connery/) > [I would never commit the positively anti-social action of robbing a bank, or worse still, working in one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilbert-k-chesterton/i-would-never-commit-the-positively-anti-social-action-of-robbing-a/) [Gilbert K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilbert-k-chesterton/) > [Of the maxims of orthodox finance none, surely, is more anti-social than the fetish of liquidity, the doctrine of that it is a positive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-maynard-keynes/of-the-maxims-of-orthodox-finance-none-surely-is-more-anti-social/) [John Maynard Keynes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-maynard-keynes/) > [Being anti-social can also mean that you're aware of how annoying it is to be social.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dov-davidoff/being-anti-social-can-also-mean-that-you-re-aware-of-how-annoying-it/) [Dov Davidoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dov-davidoff/) > [“I don't think I'm anti-social. I just like to be alone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gin-getz/i-don-t-think-i-m-anti-social-i-just-like-to-be-alone/) [Gin Getz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gin-getz/) > [I am as sure as I am of the fact of Christ's reign, that a comprehensive and centralised system of national education, separated from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/archibald-alexander-hodge/i-am-as-sure-as-i-am-of-the-fact-of-christ-s-reign-that-a/) [Archibald Alexander Hodge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/archibald-alexander-hodge/) > [Human envy is certainly not one of the sources of discontent that a free society can eliminate. It is probably one of the essential…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/human-envy-is-certainly-not-one-of-the-sources-of-discontent-that-a/) [Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/) > [“I thought how true it was that the world was a delightful place if it were not for the people, and how more than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-mansfield/i-thought-how-true-it-was-that-the-world-was-a-delightful-place-if-it/) [Katherine Mansfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-mansfield/) > [I really need a friend I can talk to about my anti social behavior.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikhil-saluja/i-really-need-a-friend-i-can-talk-to-about-my-anti-social-behavior/) [Nikhil Saluja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikhil-saluja/) > [You don't need to go far to see the hatred and abuse that happens online. Even using social media is anti-social because people are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronny-chieng/you-don-t-need-to-go-far-to-see-the-hatred-and-abuse-that-happens/) [Ronny Chieng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronny-chieng/) > [Instead of recognizing the State as ‘the common enemy of all well-disposed, industrious and decent men,’ the run of mankind, with rare exceptions, regards…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-j-nock/instead-of-recognizing-the-state-as-the-common-enemy-of-all-well-2/) [Albert J. Nock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-j-nock/) [Browse all 95 Anti social quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anti-social/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "When I was a child, my behavior was far from being what most people would label 'intelligent.' It was often limited, repetitive and anti-social. 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