--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Burnham’s frequent admonition: “Make no…" description: "\"“Burnham’s frequent admonition: “Make no little plans; they have no magic to stir men’s blood.” Burnham”\" — Erik Larson" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ab/erik-larson-1710_burnham_burnham-s-frequent-admonition-make-no-li_2734369.png" --- # Burnham’s frequent admonition: “Make no little plans; they… ![“Burnham’s frequent admonition: “Make no little plans; they have no magic to stir men’s blood.” Burnham” quote by Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ab/erik-larson-1710_burnham_burnham-s-frequent-admonition-make-no-li_2734369.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ab/erik-larson-1710_burnham_burnham-s-frequent-admonition-make-no-li_2734369.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ab/erik-larson-1710_burnham_burnham-s-frequent-admonition-make-no-li_2734369.png) > ““Burnham’s frequent admonition: “Make no little plans; they have no magic to stir men’s blood.” Burnham”” [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Small, bold plans ignite passion and drive action more than modest ones. **In simple terms:** Big plans inspire more than tiny ones. Key Takeaway Dream big to motivate others. Themes ambition motivation planning inspiration Mood enthusiastic determined Type motivational philosophical When to use this quote - entrepreneurship - political campaigns - creative projects Key Concepts psychology of goal‑setting leadership Questions to Reflect On - What bold plan could you start today? - How do you balance ambition with realism? A Different Perspective Grand visions may overlook practical constraints. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet ## Related quotes > [“Make no little plans; they have no magic to stir men’s blood. —Daniel Burnham”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/make-no-little-plans-they-have-no-magic-to-stir-men-s-blood-daniel/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [“An artist, he paints with lakes and wooded slopes, with lawns and banks and forest-covered hills." — Daniel Burnham talking about Frederick Law Olmstead”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/an-artist-he-paints-with-lakes-and-wooded-slopes-with-lawns-and-banks/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [“I will be on the look out for you, my dear girl," he wrote. "You must expect to give yourself up when you come."…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/i-will-be-on-the-look-out-for-you-my-dear-girl-he-wrote-you-must/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [My most frequent admonition to athletes and coaches is: train, do not strain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-lydiard/my-most-frequent-admonition-to-athletes-and-coaches-is-train-do-not/) [Arthur Lydiard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-lydiard/) > [Bo Burnham is great, he's a genius.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kyle-gass/bo-burnham-is-great-he-s-a-genius/) [Kyle Gass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kyle-gass/) > [Make no little plans; they have no magic to stir men's blood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/make-no-little-plans-they-have-no-magic-to-stir-men-s-blood/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Make no small plans; they have no magic to stir men’s souls. President Spencer W. Kimball”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-catherine-thomas/make-no-small-plans-they-have-no-magic-to-stir-men-s-souls-president/) M. Catherine Thomas > [Big dreams create the magic that stir men's souls to greatness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mccartney/big-dreams-create-the-magic-that-stir-men-s-souls-to-greatness/) [Bill McCartney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mccartney/) > [Do not make small goals because they do not have the magic to stir men's souls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/spencer-w-kimball/do-not-make-small-goals-because-they-do-not-have-the-magic-to-stir/) [Spencer W. Kimball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/spencer-w-kimball/) > [“Make no small plans. They have no magic to stir men's souls.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/spencer-w-kimball/make-no-small-plans-they-have-no-magic-to-stir-men-s-souls/) [Spencer W. Kimball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/spencer-w-kimball/) > [“Make no little plans,” he urged. “They have no magic to stir men’s blood.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-nasht/make-no-little-plans-he-urged-they-have-no-magic-to-stir-men-s-blood/) Simon Nasht > [Make no little plans; they have no magic to stir men's blood and probably themselves will not be realized.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-burnham/make-no-little-plans-they-have-no-magic-to-stir-men-s-blood-and/) [Daniel Burnham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-burnham/) > [“Make no small plans; they have no magic to stir men's blood.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-burnham/make-no-small-plans-they-have-no-magic-to-stir-men-s-blood/) [Daniel Burnham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-burnham/) > [Make no little plans; they have no magic to stir men's blood and probably will themselves not be realized. Make big plans; aim high…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/make-no-little-plans-they-have-no-magic-to-stir-men-s-blood-and-3/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Erik Larson > [I've heard from the movie marketplace that James Cameron did such a killer job with 'Titanic' that it's almost impossible to do anything better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/i-ve-heard-from-the-movie-marketplace-that-james-cameron-did-such-a/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [As a rule, I am very skeptical of tying books to anniversaries. I don't think readers care. I also feel that it just about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/as-a-rule-i-am-very-skeptical-of-tying-books-to-anniversaries-i-don-t/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [“look as if they had been plucked from the Palace of Versailles or a Jacobean mansion—that you were aboard a ship being propelled far…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/look-as-if-they-had-been-plucked-from-the-palace-of-versailles-or-a/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [That's what I love about history - nuance. I don't believe in unalloyed heroes. Everyone's got warts, and everyone's got a surprise side.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/that-s-what-i-love-about-history-nuance-i-don-t-believe-in-unalloyed/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [“Holmes was charming and gracious, but something about him made Belknap uneasy. He could not have defined it. Indeed, for the next several decades…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/holmes-was-charming-and-gracious-but-something-about-him-made-belknap/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [. . . why some men choose to fill their brief allotment of time engaging the impossible, others in the manufacture of sorrow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/why-some-men-choose-to-fill-their-brief-allotment-of-time-engaging/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [“At present," he said, "I am responsible for conveying my associates to a place called Chicago. I understand it is somewhere in the hinterland.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/at-present-he-said-i-am-responsible-for-conveying-my-associates-to-a/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [I knew from an online search that the Wisconsin State Historical Society, on the vast University of Wisconsin campus, held the papers of Sigrid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/i-knew-from-an-online-search-that-the-wisconsin-state-historical/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [Dodd continued to hope that the murders would so outrage the German public that the regime would fall, but as the days passed he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/dodd-continued-to-hope-that-the-murders-would-so-outrage-the-german/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [I envy other writers who claim to have a backlog of books they'd like to write.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/i-envy-other-writers-who-claim-to-have-a-backlog-of-books-they-d-like/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [Trying to find ideas is the hardest part of my job. 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I found good airfares on Lufthansa, an airline I quite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/i-figured-correctly-that-berlin-in-february-was-not-a-destination/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [“It was truly a transitional moment: There he was, at the cusp of the twentieth century, using the telephone to send a telegram.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/it-was-truly-a-transitional-moment-there-he-was-at-the-cusp-of-the/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) [Explore all 214 Erik Larson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) ## More Burnham quotes > [“I will be on the look out for you, my dear girl," he wrote. "You must expect to give yourself up when you come."…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/i-will-be-on-the-look-out-for-you-my-dear-girl-he-wrote-you-must/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [Bo Burnham is great, he's a genius.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kyle-gass/bo-burnham-is-great-he-s-a-genius/) [Kyle Gass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kyle-gass/) > [“An artist, he paints with lakes and wooded slopes, with lawns and banks and forest-covered hills." — Daniel Burnham talking about Frederick Law Olmstead”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/an-artist-he-paints-with-lakes-and-wooded-slopes-with-lawns-and-banks/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [“Make no little plans; they have no magic to stir men’s blood. —Daniel Burnham”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/make-no-little-plans-they-have-no-magic-to-stir-men-s-blood-daniel/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) Browse all 5 Burnham quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Burnham’s frequent admonition: “Make no little plans; they have no magic to stir men’s blood.” Burnham”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Erik Larson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/burnham-s-frequent-admonition-make-no-little-plans-they-have-no-magic/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Burnham" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/burnham-s-frequent-admonition-make-no-little-plans-they-have-no-magic/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ab/erik-larson-1710_burnham_burnham-s-frequent-admonition-make-no-li_2734369.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ab/erik-larson-1710_burnham_burnham-s-frequent-admonition-make-no-li_2734369.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ab/erik-larson-1710_burnham_burnham-s-frequent-admonition-make-no-li_2734369.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Burnham’s frequent admonition: “Make no little plans; they have no magic to stir men’s blood.” Burnham” — Erik Larson", "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": "Erik Larson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Burnham’s frequent admonition: “Make no little...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/burnham-s-frequent-admonition-make-no-little-plans-they-have-no-magic/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/burnham-s-frequent-admonition-make-no-little-plans-they-have-no-magic/#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 } } ] } ```