--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: As we get older, people close down. We…" description: "\"As we get older, people close down. We get less adaptive, less flexible - literally. Curiosity can diminish, and you want safety. You want what you kno..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8be/holly-hunter-2424_curiosity_as-we-get-older-people-close-down-we-get_2074664.jpg" --- # As we get older, people close down. We get less adaptive… ![“As we get older, people close down. We get less adaptive, less flexible - literally. Curiosity can diminish, and you want safety. You want what you know.” quote by Holly Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8be/holly-hunter-2424_curiosity_as-we-get-older-people-close-down-we-get_2074664.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8be/holly-hunter-2424_curiosity_as-we-get-older-people-close-down-we-get_2074664.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8be/holly-hunter-2424_curiosity_as-we-get-older-people-close-down-we-get_2074664.jpg) > “As we get older, people close down. We get less adaptive, less flexible - literally. Curiosity can diminish, and you want safety. You want what you know.” [Holly Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/holly-hunter/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Aging often leads to reduced openness and curiosity, favoring familiar safety over new experiences. **In simple terms:** Aging can make people less curious and more set in their ways. Key Takeaway Embrace new ideas and stay open. Themes aging curiosity adaptability comfort zones Mood reflective thoughtful Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - career development - learning new skills - social interactions - mental health - creative pursuits Key Concepts psychology neuroscience habit formation Questions to Reflect On - What new habit could you try today? - How can you balance safety with curiosity? A Different Perspective Change can be uncomfortable and may threaten existing identity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Curiosity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/curiosity/) [Curiosity Diminish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/curiosity-diminish-4021696/) [Flexible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/flexible/) [Older](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/older/) [Older people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/older-people/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Safety](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/safety/) [Safety Want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/safety-want-2739295/) [Want Safety](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want-safety-618612/) ## Related quotes > [To hell with safety. All I want to do is race.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hunt/to-hell-with-safety-all-i-want-to-do-is-race/) [James Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hunt/) > [I want regulations because I want safety, I want environmental - all environmental situations to be taken properly care of. It's very important to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/i-want-regulations-because-i-want-safety-i-want-environmental-all/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [Obviously for water safety, you want to learn just to be comfortable in the water; that's the main goal. I think the second that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-phelps/obviously-for-water-safety-you-want-to-learn-just-to-be-comfortable/) [Michael Phelps](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-phelps/) > [We want the safety of yesterday even though we know it's not where God would have us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-r-swindoll/we-want-the-safety-of-yesterday-even-though-we-know-it-s-not-where/) [Charles R. Swindoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-r-swindoll/) > [Our people want jobs. They don't want a safety net as a way of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marco-rubio/our-people-want-jobs-they-don-t-want-a-safety-net-as-a-way-of-life/) [Marco Rubio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marco-rubio/) > [“Do you see now, how that doesn’t work for me? I don’t want to be someone’s safety net... I don’t want to be there,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-c-stephens/do-you-see-now-how-that-doesn-t-work-for-me-i-don-t-want-to-be/) [S.C. Stephens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-c-stephens/) > [Sometime I'm going to do an essay called 'The Virtues of Amateurism' for all of those people who wish they earned their living in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-james-waller/sometime-i-m-going-to-do-an-essay-called-the-virtues-of-amateurism/) [Robert James Waller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-james-waller/) > [“I don’t want safety or guarantees— I want a life worth living. I want to jump off a skyscraper And fashion a parachute on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-wetch/i-don-t-want-safety-or-guarantees-i-want-a-life-worth-living-i-want/) [Justin Wetch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-wetch/) > [We could encourage the best qualities of youthfulness - curiosity, adventure, resilience, the capacity for surprising insight simply by being more flexible about time,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-taylor-gatto/we-could-encourage-the-best-qualities-of-youthfulness-curiosity/) [John Taylor Gatto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-taylor-gatto/) > [“And I am overwhelmed now by the awfulness of over-simplification. For now I realize that not only have I been guilty of it through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alistair-macleod/and-i-am-overwhelmed-now-by-the-awfulness-of-over-simplification-for/) [Alistair MacLeod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alistair-macleod/) > [When I hear music that parents hate, or older musicians hate, I know that's the new music. When I hear older people saying, 'I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-clinton/when-i-hear-music-that-parents-hate-or-older-musicians-hate-i-know/) [George Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-clinton/) > [Fear is a huge thing for older people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hillman/fear-is-a-huge-thing-for-older-people/) [James Hillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hillman/) > [I always hung out with older people. I would be the youngest out of the crew.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gunna/i-always-hung-out-with-older-people-i-would-be-the-youngest-out-of/) [Gunna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gunna/) > [We don't do enough to help older people recognize how much they matter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vivek-murthy/we-don-t-do-enough-to-help-older-people-recognize-how-much-they-matter/) [Vivek Murthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vivek-murthy/) > [If younger people see older people who haven't planned ahead and have to rely on charity, the young will be more likely to provide…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-browne/if-younger-people-see-older-people-who-haven-t-planned-ahead-and-have/) [Harry Browne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-browne/) ## More by Holly Hunter > [Giving up something personal to the public, you are surrendering something.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/holly-hunter/giving-up-something-personal-to-the-public-you-are-surrendering/) [Holly Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/holly-hunter/) > [In storytelling you kind of put your nightmares up there, you put your dreams up there and people can see them better because they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/holly-hunter/in-storytelling-you-kind-of-put-your-nightmares-up-there-you-put-your/) [Holly Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/holly-hunter/) > [I'm a practicing Catholic. And faith is very, very important to me. It was pounded in my head as a kid, and I hated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/holly-hunter/i-m-a-practicing-catholic-and-faith-is-very-very-important-to-me-it/) [Holly Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/holly-hunter/) > [The unknown makes people uncomfortable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/holly-hunter/the-unknown-makes-people-uncomfortable/) [Holly Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/holly-hunter/) > [It's not like television is now for women who have been put out to pasture. Television is for everybody.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/holly-hunter/it-s-not-like-television-is-now-for-women-who-have-been-put-out-to/) [Holly Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/holly-hunter/) > [I act probably a lot more than you see. I happen to choose movies that don't have much of a life, or I choose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/holly-hunter/i-act-probably-a-lot-more-than-you-see-i-happen-to-choose-movies-that/) [Holly Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/holly-hunter/) > [Being somebody who's like a theater geek that I am, I can just go right back to Aeschylus and Euripides and Sophocles: they were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/holly-hunter/being-somebody-who-s-like-a-theater-geek-that-i-am-i-can-just-go/) [Holly Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/holly-hunter/) > [I don't mind at all venturing off to do a television movie if it's gonna give me something new to mess around in my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/holly-hunter/i-don-t-mind-at-all-venturing-off-to-do-a-television-movie-if-it-s/) [Holly Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/holly-hunter/) > [Do I believe in God? I don't know what that really means. I don't know what my personal connections with G-o-d are. But spirituality…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/holly-hunter/do-i-believe-in-god-i-don-t-know-what-that-really-means-i-don-t-know/) [Holly Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/holly-hunter/) > [I reveal all of myself. I bring all of myself to my roles. You only see me. You don't see anything else but me.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/holly-hunter/i-reveal-all-of-myself-i-bring-all-of-myself-to-my-roles-you-only-see/) [Holly Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/holly-hunter/) > [Each project, I can almost feel like I'm like a different person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/holly-hunter/each-project-i-can-almost-feel-like-i-m-like-a-different-person/) [Holly Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/holly-hunter/) > [It's great to go to the cinema and have a conversation about something that is almost taboo.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/holly-hunter/it-s-great-to-go-to-the-cinema-and-have-a-conversation-about/) [Holly Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/holly-hunter/) > [I think that my looks through the years have served me well because I was never a great beauty and I was never cast…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/holly-hunter/i-think-that-my-looks-through-the-years-have-served-me-well-because-i/) [Holly Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/holly-hunter/) > [I never thought about moving to L.A.; I always wanted to be in New York. I moved there, and now I still have a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/holly-hunter/i-never-thought-about-moving-to-l-a-i-always-wanted-to-be-in-new-york/) [Holly Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/holly-hunter/) > [I really would love to take a big break and not be photographed, not perform.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/holly-hunter/i-really-would-love-to-take-a-big-break-and-not-be-photographed-not/) [Holly Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/holly-hunter/) [Explore all 167 Holly Hunter quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/holly-hunter/) ## More Curiosity quotes > [I'm a strange mixture of my mother's curiosity; my father, who grew up the son of the manse in a Presbyterian family, who had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rupert-murdoch/i-m-a-strange-mixture-of-my-mother-s-curiosity-my-father-who-grew-up/) [Rupert Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rupert-murdoch/) > [“Metal makes everything magical. Just ask a unicorn.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sybrina-durant/metal-makes-everything-magical-just-ask-a-unicorn/) [Sybrina Durant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sybrina-durant/) > [ We have no clear ideas of the agency of \[demonic\] spirits, nor is it necessary. The Scripture says little to satisfy our curiosity; but… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-newton/we-have-no-clear-ideas-of-the-agency-of-demonic-spirits-nor-is-it/) [John Newton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-newton/) > [The four Cs of making dreams come true: Curiosity, Courage, Consistency, Confidence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-disney/the-four-cs-of-making-dreams-come-true-curiosity-courage-consistency/) [Walt Disney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-disney/) > [Curiosity Can Kill.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anison/curiosity-can-kill/) [Anison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anison/) > [“So curious you must be. Like little calves poking their heads through the fence with big eyes and a headful of curiosity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carew-papritz/so-curious-you-must-be-like-little-calves-poking-their-heads-through/) [Carew Papritz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carew-papritz/) > [ “\[T\]he question "What is everything?" has no meaning, even though it seems to be profound. \[...\] The point is, perhaps, that I am not… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-w-watts/t-he-question-what-is-everything-has-no-meaning-even-though-it-seems/) [Alan W. Watts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-w-watts/) > [ By profession a biologist, \[Thomas Henry Huxley\] covered in fact the whole field of the exact sciences, and then bulged through its four fences.… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/by-profession-a-biologist-thomas-henry-huxley-covered-in-fact-the/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [How do we know that we have a right to kill creatures that we are so little above, as dogs, for our curiosity or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/how-do-we-know-that-we-have-a-right-to-kill-creatures-that-we-are-so/) [Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/) > [Be curious not judge mental](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/unknow/be-curious-not-judge-mental/) [Unknow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/unknow/) > [There is nothing so carking as the pangs of unsatisfied curiosity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gertrude-atherton/there-is-nothing-so-carking-as-the-pangs-of-unsatisfied-curiosity/) [Gertrude Atherton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gertrude-atherton/) > [Curiosity is the essence of human existence. 'Who are we? Where are we? Where do we come from? Where are we going?'... I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/curiosity-is-the-essence-of-human-existence-who-are-we-where-are-we/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Sometimes curiosity is a poison, not only for those who drink it but for everyone around it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-norman-lippert/sometimes-curiosity-is-a-poison-not-only-for-those-who-drink-it-but/) [G. Norman Lippert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-norman-lippert/) > [As long as your curiosity is greater than your fear, you will move forward!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/as-long-as-your-curiosity-is-greater-than-your-fear-you-will-move/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [Curiosity may have killed the cat, but it sure has earned a lot of people graduate degrees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robyn-irving/curiosity-may-have-killed-the-cat-but-it-sure-has-earned-a-lot-of/) [Robyn Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robyn-irving/) [Browse all 2,721 Curiosity quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/curiosity/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "As we get older, people close down. We get less adaptive, less flexible - literally. Curiosity can diminish, and you want safety. 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