--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Progress needs the brakeman, but the…" description: "\"Progress needs the brakeman, but the brakeman should not spend all his time putting on the brakes.\" — Elbert Hubbard" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89e/elbert-hubbard-510_brake_progress-needs-the-brakeman-but-the-brak_1247580.png" --- # Progress needs the brakeman, but the brakeman should not… ![“Progress needs the brakeman, but the brakeman should not spend all his time putting on the brakes.” quote by Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89e/elbert-hubbard-510_brake_progress-needs-the-brakeman-but-the-brak_1247580.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89e/elbert-hubbard-510_brake_progress-needs-the-brakeman-but-the-brak_1247580.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89e/elbert-hubbard-510_brake_progress-needs-the-brakeman-but-the-brak_1247580.png) > “Progress needs the brakeman, but the brakeman should not spend all his time putting on the brakes.” [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Progress requires control, but over‑caution stalls momentum; balance restraint with forward drive. **In simple terms:** Too much braking halts progress. Key Takeaway Find balance between caution and action. Themes productivity balance leadership Mood analytical pragmatic Type philosophical advice When to use this quote - project management - business scaling - personal goal setting Key Concepts risk management systems thinking Questions to Reflect On - When have you been overly cautious? - How can you calibrate risk without stalling progress? A Different Perspective Excessive restraint can lead to missed opportunities. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Brake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brake/) [Brakeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brakeman-800655/) [Brakeman Brakeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brakeman-brakeman-3919278/) [Brakeman Spend](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brakeman-spend-3919279/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [Needs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/needs/) [Needs Brakeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/needs-brakeman-3919277/) [Progress](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/progress/) [Putting Brakes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/putting-brakes-3919280/) [Should](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/should/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [Being a brakeman is very physical, and success is mostly determined by how fast you can push a sled for about 30 meters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elana-meyers/being-a-brakeman-is-very-physical-and-success-is-mostly-determined-by/) [Elana Meyers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elana-meyers/) > [I like to compare the two to a quarterback and a lineman. Being a brakeman is very physical and success is mostly determined by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elana-meyers/i-like-to-compare-the-two-to-a-quarterback-and-a-lineman-being-a/) [Elana Meyers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elana-meyers/) > [France is ready for a European revolution and it is Germany that is pulling the brakes. For a long time, it was the other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-schulz/france-is-ready-for-a-european-revolution-and-it-is-germany-that-is/) [Martin Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-schulz/) > [The daughters of God don't brake for jerks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-williamson/the-daughters-of-god-don-t-brake-for-jerks/) [Marianne Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-williamson/) > [You say that I should be your teacher! See to it that I am your pinion and not your brake.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/you-say-that-i-should-be-your-teacher-see-to-it-that-i-am-your-pinion/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [It is sometimes of God's mercy that men in the eager pursuit of worldly aggrandizement are baffled; for they are very like a train…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/it-is-sometimes-of-god-s-mercy-that-men-in-the-eager-pursuit-of/) [Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) > [You only hear the music when your heart begins to brake.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seether/you-only-hear-the-music-when-your-heart-begins-to-brake/) [Seether](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seether/) > [Lethal like venomous snake bites the marijuana makes my eyes bright red like brake lights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/canibus/lethal-like-venomous-snake-bites-the-marijuana-makes-my-eyes-bright/) [Canibus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/canibus/) > [Newman's first law: It is useless to put on your brakes when you're upside down.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-newman/newman-s-first-law-it-is-useless-to-put-on-your-brakes-when-you-re/) [Paul Newman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-newman/) > [The galleries are full of critics. They play no ball, they fight no fights. They make no mistakes because they attempt nothing. Down in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-m-shoup/the-galleries-are-full-of-critics-they-play-no-ball-they-fight-no/) [David M. Shoup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-m-shoup/) > [You brake to fuckin easy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/delphine-hogue/you-brake-to-fuckin-easy/) [Delphine Hogue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/delphine-hogue/) > [It's all happening too fast. I've got to put the brakes on or I'll smack into something.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mel-gibson/it-s-all-happening-too-fast-i-ve-got-to-put-the-brakes-on-or-i-ll/) [Mel Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mel-gibson/) > [Common sense is the guy who tells you that you ought to have had your brakes relined last week before you smashed a front…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/common-sense-is-the-guy-who-tells-you-that-you-ought-to-have-had-your/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [How do you, on the one hand, not object to Hillary Clinton being elected, and then, on the other hand, tell people, "Elect me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/how-do-you-on-the-one-hand-not-object-to-hillary-clinton-being/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [It is amazing how may drivers, even at the Formula One Level, think that the brakes are for slowing the car down.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-andretti/it-is-amazing-how-may-drivers-even-at-the-formula-one-level-think/) [Mario Andretti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-andretti/) ## More by Elbert Hubbard > [The teacher is one who makes two ideas grow where only one grew before.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/the-teacher-is-one-who-makes-two-ideas-grow-where-only-one-grew-before/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [The highest reward that God gives us for good work is the ability to do better](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/the-highest-reward-that-god-gives-us-for-good-work-is-the-ability-to/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [Art is nothing; it's a way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/art-is-nothing-it-s-a-way/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [Library: A place where the dead lie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/library-a-place-where-the-dead-lie/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [“If we cannot be happy and powerful and prey on others, we invent conscience and prey on ourselves.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/if-we-cannot-be-happy-and-powerful-and-prey-on-others-we-invent/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [The poor and ignorant will continue to lie and steal as long as the rich and educated show them how.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/the-poor-and-ignorant-will-continue-to-lie-and-steal-as-long-as-the/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [So long as governments set the example of killing their enemies, private individuals will occasionally kill theirs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/so-long-as-governments-set-the-example-of-killing-their-enemies/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [If I supply you with a thought, you may remember it and you may not. But if I can make you think a thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/if-i-supply-you-with-a-thought-you-may-remember-it-and-you-may-not/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 A conservative is a man who is too cowardly to fight and too fat to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/1-2-3-4-5-a-conservative-is-a-man-who-is-too-cowardly-to-fight-and/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [The great man is not so great as folks think, and the dull man is not quite so stupid as he seems. The difference…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/the-great-man-is-not-so-great-as-folks-think-and-the-dull-man-is-not/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [Every knock is a boost.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/every-knock-is-a-boost/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [What boy well raised can compare with your street gamin who has the knowledge and the shrewdness of a grown-up broker.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/what-boy-well-raised-can-compare-with-your-street-gamin-who-has-the/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [Don't make excuses, make good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/don-t-make-excuses-make-good/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [What people need and what they want may be very different… Teachers are those who educate the people to appreciate the things they need.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/what-people-need-and-what-they-want-may-be-very-different-teachers/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [Men who sit back and pride themselves on their culture haven't any to speak of.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/men-who-sit-back-and-pride-themselves-on-their-culture-haven-t-any-to/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) [Explore all 506 Elbert Hubbard quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) ## More Brake quotes > [It is amazing how may drivers, even at the Formula One Level, think that the brakes are for slowing the car down.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-andretti/it-is-amazing-how-may-drivers-even-at-the-formula-one-level-think/) [Mario Andretti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-andretti/) > [How do you, on the one hand, not object to Hillary Clinton being elected, and then, on the other hand, tell people, "Elect me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/how-do-you-on-the-one-hand-not-object-to-hillary-clinton-being/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [Common sense is the guy who tells you that you ought to have had your brakes relined last week before you smashed a front…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/common-sense-is-the-guy-who-tells-you-that-you-ought-to-have-had-your/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [It's all happening too fast. I've got to put the brakes on or I'll smack into something.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mel-gibson/it-s-all-happening-too-fast-i-ve-got-to-put-the-brakes-on-or-i-ll/) [Mel Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mel-gibson/) > [You brake to fuckin easy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/delphine-hogue/you-brake-to-fuckin-easy/) [Delphine Hogue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/delphine-hogue/) > [The galleries are full of critics. They play no ball, they fight no fights. They make no mistakes because they attempt nothing. Down in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-m-shoup/the-galleries-are-full-of-critics-they-play-no-ball-they-fight-no/) [David M. Shoup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-m-shoup/) > [Newman's first law: It is useless to put on your brakes when you're upside down.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-newman/newman-s-first-law-it-is-useless-to-put-on-your-brakes-when-you-re/) [Paul Newman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-newman/) > [Lethal like venomous snake bites the marijuana makes my eyes bright red like brake lights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/canibus/lethal-like-venomous-snake-bites-the-marijuana-makes-my-eyes-bright/) [Canibus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/canibus/) > [You only hear the music when your heart begins to brake.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seether/you-only-hear-the-music-when-your-heart-begins-to-brake/) [Seether](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seether/) > [It is sometimes of God's mercy that men in the eager pursuit of worldly aggrandizement are baffled; for they are very like a train…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/it-is-sometimes-of-god-s-mercy-that-men-in-the-eager-pursuit-of/) [Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) > [You say that I should be your teacher! See to it that I am your pinion and not your brake.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/you-say-that-i-should-be-your-teacher-see-to-it-that-i-am-your-pinion/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [The daughters of God don't brake for jerks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-williamson/the-daughters-of-god-don-t-brake-for-jerks/) [Marianne Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-williamson/) > [France is ready for a European revolution and it is Germany that is pulling the brakes. For a long time, it was the other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-schulz/france-is-ready-for-a-european-revolution-and-it-is-germany-that-is/) [Martin Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-schulz/) > [“Some chains will never be broken, until you brake them through prayer.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gift-gugu-mona/some-chains-will-never-be-broken-until-you-brake-them-through-prayer/) [Gift Gugu Mona](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gift-gugu-mona/) > [One of the reasons we do history, in fact, is because it acts as a brake, a control, on our otherwise unbridled enthusiasm for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-t-wright-2/one-of-the-reasons-we-do-history-in-fact-is-because-it-acts-as-a/) [N. T. Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-t-wright-2/) [Browse all 186 Brake quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brake/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Progress needs the brakeman, but the brakeman should not spend all his time putting on the brakes.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Elbert Hubbard" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/progress-needs-the-brakeman-but-the-brakeman-should-not-spend-all-his/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Brake" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/progress-needs-the-brakeman-but-the-brakeman-should-not-spend-all-his/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89e/elbert-hubbard-510_brake_progress-needs-the-brakeman-but-the-brak_1247580.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89e/elbert-hubbard-510_brake_progress-needs-the-brakeman-but-the-brak_1247580.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89e/elbert-hubbard-510_brake_progress-needs-the-brakeman-but-the-brak_1247580.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Progress needs the brakeman, but the brakeman should not spend all his time putting on the brakes.” — Elbert Hubbard", "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": "Elbert Hubbard", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Progress needs the brakeman, but the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/progress-needs-the-brakeman-but-the-brakeman-should-not-spend-all-his/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/progress-needs-the-brakeman-but-the-brakeman-should-not-spend-all-his/#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 } } ] } ```