--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: You can't help getting older, but you…" description: "\"You can't help getting older, but you don't have to get old.\" — George Burns" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe0/george-burns-2737_age_you-can-t-help-getting-older-but-you-don_1112255.png" --- # You can't help getting older, but you don't have to get old. ![“You can't help getting older, but you don't have to get old.” quote by George Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe0/george-burns-2737_age_you-can-t-help-getting-older-but-you-don_1112255.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe0/george-burns-2737_age_you-can-t-help-getting-older-but-you-don_1112255.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe0/george-burns-2737_age_you-can-t-help-getting-older-but-you-don_1112255.png) > “You can't help getting older, but you don't have to get old.” [George Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-burns/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Aging is inevitable, but youthful attitude is a choice. **In simple terms:** You can grow older without becoming old‑hearted. Key Takeaway Cultivate curiosity and playfulness. Themes aging mindset longevity Mood lighthearted inspirational Type humorous motivational When to use this quote - career planning - retirement - personal development Key Concepts psychology philosophy Questions to Reflect On - How can you stay mentally young? - What habits keep you vibrant? A Different Perspective Physical decline may limit some activities. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Age](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/age/) [Getting older](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/getting-older/) [Youth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/youth/) ## Related quotes > [I need help getting over a broken heart, Who will help me?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/demetrius/i-need-help-getting-over-a-broken-heart-who-will-help-me/) [Demetrius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/demetrius/) > [I don’t need the factory behind me. I just need help getting my music heard.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kaskade/i-don-t-need-the-factory-behind-me-i-just-need-help-getting-my-music/) [Kaskade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kaskade/) > [As you get older, you don't get wiser. You get irritable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/as-you-get-older-you-don-t-get-wiser-you-get-irritable/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [The only thing I know as I get older is that I don't really need to be No. 1.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/the-only-thing-i-know-as-i-get-older-is-that-i-don-t-really-need-to/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [As you get older, you don't really have any excuse to be stupid anymore, to be in the dark.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deryck-whibley/as-you-get-older-you-don-t-really-have-any-excuse-to-be-stupid/) [Deryck Whibley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deryck-whibley/) > [As time goes on, I will play characters who get older: I don't want to be some Botoxed weirdo.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodie-foster/as-time-goes-on-i-will-play-characters-who-get-older-i-don-t-want-to/) [Jodie Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodie-foster/) > [The thing about getting older is the injuries. You just get injured more often. You take time off, you come back, you get injured…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allen-johnson/the-thing-about-getting-older-is-the-injuries-you-just-get-injured/) [Allen Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allen-johnson/) > [My friends have to remind me that it's OK to own the fact that you're good at something. I think it'll just come with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/earl-sweatshirt/my-friends-have-to-remind-me-that-it-s-ok-to-own-the-fact-that-you-re/) [Earl Sweatshirt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/earl-sweatshirt/) > [I used to love getting older.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-elliott/i-used-to-love-getting-older/) [Marianne Elliott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-elliott/) > [You have to embrace getting older](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meryl-streep/you-have-to-embrace-getting-older/) [Meryl Streep](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meryl-streep/) > [When I hear that a project takes place out of town, the material better be terrific, and it has to come at the right…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-holofcener/when-i-hear-that-a-project-takes-place-out-of-town-the-material/) [Nicole Holofcener](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-holofcener/) > [I love getting older!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evangeline-lilly/i-love-getting-older/) [Evangeline Lilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evangeline-lilly/) > [When you have heart disease, you start to be tired of everything. It's like getting older. You become more white, and after that, grey.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerard-depardieu/when-you-have-heart-disease-you-start-to-be-tired-of-everything-it-s/) [Gerard Depardieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-depardieu/) > [I love getting older. I think it has to do with always being the kid on set.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winona-ryder/i-love-getting-older-i-think-it-has-to-do-with-always-being-the-kid/) [Winona Ryder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winona-ryder/) > [I feel like old age in America is a very sad thing. I have been many different places around the world where getting older…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-waters/i-feel-like-old-age-in-america-is-a-very-sad-thing-i-have-been-many/) [Alice Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-waters/) ## More by George Burns > [Everyday happiness means getting up in the morning, and you can't wait to finish your breakfast. You can't wait to do your exercises. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-burns/everyday-happiness-means-getting-up-in-the-morning-and-you-can-t-wait/) [George Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-burns/) > [Being an actor is easy, just picture someone in a room and you outside waiting for your cue to go in. Elliot Gould's been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-burns/being-an-actor-is-easy-just-picture-someone-in-a-room-and-you-outside/) [George Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-burns/) > [Sex can be fun after eighty, after ninety, and after lunch!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-burns/sex-can-be-fun-after-eighty-after-ninety-and-after-lunch/) [George Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-burns/) > [Too bad all the people who know how to run this country are busy running taxicabs or cutting hair.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-burns/too-bad-all-the-people-who-know-how-to-run-this-country-are-busy/) [George Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-burns/) > [At my age flowers scare me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-burns/at-my-age-flowers-scare-me/) [George Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-burns/) > [I was brought up to respect my elders, so now I don't have to respect anybody.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-burns/i-was-brought-up-to-respect-my-elders-so-now-i-don-t-have-to-respect/) [George Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-burns/) > [What actresses do today when they appear on the screen is what they did once upon a time for getting to appear on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-burns/what-actresses-do-today-when-they-appear-on-the-screen-is-what-they/) [George Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-burns/) > [If you were married to Marilyn Monroe, you'd cheat with some ugly girl.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-burns/if-you-were-married-to-marilyn-monroe-you-d-cheat-with-some-ugly-girl/) [George Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-burns/) > [I find you have to take each day as it comes and be thankful for who's left and whatever you can still do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-burns/i-find-you-have-to-take-each-day-as-it-comes-and-be-thankful-for-who/) [George Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-burns/) > [Take care not to wear stripes that are out of sync with your wrinkles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-burns/take-care-not-to-wear-stripes-that-are-out-of-sync-with-your-wrinkles/) [George Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-burns/) > [ By \[age\] 93, I had shrunk quite a lot. My car was known as the Phantom Cadillac. People would see it whizzing by and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-burns/by-age-93-i-had-shrunk-quite-a-lot-my-car-was-known-as-the-phantom/) [George Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-burns/) > [I drink coffee with my right hand, and I smoke with my left. But I talk with both hands.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-burns/i-drink-coffee-with-my-right-hand-and-i-smoke-with-my-left-but-i-talk/) [George Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-burns/) > [Nice to be here? At my age it's nice to be anywhere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-burns/nice-to-be-here-at-my-age-it-s-nice-to-be-anywhere/) [George Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-burns/) > [Be sure to wear a good cologne, a nice aftershave lotion, and a strong underarm deodorant. And it might be a good idea to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-burns/be-sure-to-wear-a-good-cologne-a-nice-aftershave-lotion-and-a-strong/) [George Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-burns/) > [My best advice: Fall in love with what you do for a living.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-burns/my-best-advice-fall-in-love-with-what-you-do-for-a-living/) [George Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-burns/) [Explore all 151 George Burns quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-burns/) ## More Age quotes > [I need a bath." He chuckled. "You smell of smoke, as do I." The duke turned, leaning heavily on his cane. "Jameson, open the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-hawkins/i-need-a-bath-he-chuckled-you-smell-of-smoke-as-do-i-the-duke-turned/) [Karen Hawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-hawkins/) > [While we've youth in our hearts, we can never grow old.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr/while-we-ve-youth-in-our-hearts-we-can-never-grow-old/) [Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr/) > [It's easier to change a law than an age-old mentality. Deep down, many prejudices, many hostilities, many fears persist. But if we take a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dacia-maraini/it-s-easier-to-change-a-law-than-an-age-old-mentality-deep-down-many/) [Dacia Maraini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dacia-maraini/) > [When I first started writing, when I was 15, I would go to work with people and they would tell me my lyrics were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sabrina-claudio/when-i-first-started-writing-when-i-was-15-i-would-go-to-work-with/) [Sabrina Claudio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sabrina-claudio/) > [Real people speak in my books about the main events of the age, such as the war, the Chernobyl disaster, and the downfall of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/svetlana-alexievich/real-people-speak-in-my-books-about-the-main-events-of-the-age-such/) [Svetlana Alexievich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/svetlana-alexievich/) > [As a child I was very involved with sports and I knew at age 9 that I wanted to be an Olympic champion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-jones/as-a-child-i-was-very-involved-with-sports-and-i-knew-at-age-9-that-i/) [Marion Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-jones/) > [If there is any period one would desire to be born in, is it not the age of Revolution; when the old and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/if-there-is-any-period-one-would-desire-to-be-born-in-is-it-not-the/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [I am just enjoying the dream of being Milan coach at the age of 40.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gennaro-gattuso/i-am-just-enjoying-the-dream-of-being-milan-coach-at-the-age-of-40/) [Gennaro Gattuso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gennaro-gattuso/) > [Age is an accumulation of life and loss. Adulthood is a series of lines crossed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-goodman/age-is-an-accumulation-of-life-and-loss-adulthood-is-a-series-of/) [Ellen Goodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-goodman/) > [I calculated that if I live up to the age of 80, then I end up using 450 toothbrushes in my life. All that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dia-mirza/i-calculated-that-if-i-live-up-to-the-age-of-80-then-i-end-up-using/) [Dia Mirza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dia-mirza/) > [Why is wisdom so fair? Why is beauty so wise? Because all else is temporary, while beauty and wisdom are the only real and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/why-is-wisdom-so-fair-why-is-beauty-so-wise-because-all-else-is/) [Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/) > [It was only when I went to acting school that I was like, "You are absolutely such a pigheaded freak show that you thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giles-matthey/it-was-only-when-i-went-to-acting-school-that-i-was-like-you-are/) [Giles Matthey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giles-matthey/) > [That old man dies prematurely whose memory records no benefits conferred. They only have lived long who have lived virtuously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-brinsley-sheridan/that-old-man-dies-prematurely-whose-memory-records-no-benefits/) [Richard Brinsley Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-brinsley-sheridan/) > [We have started to make music at age seven. That was a hard work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-kaulitz/we-have-started-to-make-music-at-age-seven-that-was-a-hard-work/) [Bill Kaulitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-kaulitz/) [Browse all 18,948 Age quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/age/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "You can't help getting older, but you don't have to get old.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "George Burns" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-burns/you-can-t-help-getting-older-but-you-don-t-have-to-get-old/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Age" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-burns/you-can-t-help-getting-older-but-you-don-t-have-to-get-old/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe0/george-burns-2737_age_you-can-t-help-getting-older-but-you-don_1112255.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe0/george-burns-2737_age_you-can-t-help-getting-older-but-you-don_1112255.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe0/george-burns-2737_age_you-can-t-help-getting-older-but-you-don_1112255.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“You can't help getting older, but you don't have to get old.” — George Burns", "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": "George Burns", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-burns/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "You can't help getting older, but...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-burns/you-can-t-help-getting-older-but-you-don-t-have-to-get-old/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-burns/you-can-t-help-getting-older-but-you-don-t-have-to-get-old/#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 } } ] } ```