---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I regret behaving badly when I was…"
description: "\"I regret behaving badly when I was younger. I did not know any better at the time. The thing is that the incidents that I caused were not funny... Yout..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/739/jim-broadbent-16636_behaving-badly_i-regret-behaving-badly-when-i-was-young_2280330.jpg"
---

#  I regret behaving badly when I was younger. I did not know…

![“I regret behaving badly when I was younger. I did not know any better at the time. The thing is that the incidents that I caused were not funny... Youth is wasted on the young. It is better to have the wisdom of an old man in a young body... I was a bit foolish and teased people, trying to be funny.” quote by Jim Broadbent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/739/jim-broadbent-16636_behaving-badly_i-regret-behaving-badly-when-i-was-young_2280330.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/739/jim-broadbent-16636_behaving-badly_i-regret-behaving-badly-when-i-was-young_2280330.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/739/jim-broadbent-16636_behaving-badly_i-regret-behaving-badly-when-i-was-young_2280330.jpg)

> “I regret behaving badly when I was younger. I did not know any better at the time. The thing is that the incidents that I caused were not funny... Youth is wasted on the young. It is better to have the wisdom of an old man in a young body... I was a bit foolish and teased people, trying to be funny.”

[Jim Broadbent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-broadbent/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Youth often lacks wisdom; it’s better to have mature insight in a young body, acknowledging past mistakes.

**In simple terms:** Youth is reckless; wisdom is valuable.

Key Takeaway

Seek growth from youthful errors.

Themes

growth wisdom humility

Mood

thoughtful nostalgic

Type

philosophical reflective

When to use this quote

- career missteps
- personal development
- social interactions

Key Concepts

psychology life stages

Questions to Reflect On

- How can you apply youthful experiences to gain wisdom?
- What does “youth is wasted on the young” mean to you?

A Different Perspective

Youthful mistakes can be repeated without reflection.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Behaving badly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/behaving-badly/) [Caused Funny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/caused-funny-5319426/) [Funny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/funny/) [Old man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/old-man/) [Regret](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/regret/) [Regret Behaving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/regret-behaving-5319425/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Wasted Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wasted-young-1287328/) [Wisdom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wisdom/) [Youth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/youth/)

## Related quotes

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> [I like being old, even if the names I hear are more and more unfamiliar. Maybe, to paraphrase Goethe who said that, "Youth is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolf-kahn/i-like-being-old-even-if-the-names-i-hear-are-more-and-more/)

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> [Youth is wasted on the young.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/youth-is-wasted-on-the-young/)

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> [I hate saying that youth is wasted on the young since it's so f\*\*king stupid, but I think you realize if you're fortunate enough…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-dirnt/i-hate-saying-that-youth-is-wasted-on-the-young-since-it-s-so-f-king/)

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> [I sighed; as comforting as it may be to some of us, sarcasm, like youth, is wasted on the young.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-lindsay/i-sighed-as-comforting-as-it-may-be-to-some-of-us-sarcasm-like-youth/)

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> [Change, like youth, is purely wasted on the young.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-ellerbee/change-like-youth-is-purely-wasted-on-the-young/)

[Linda Ellerbee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-ellerbee/)

> [Advice, like youth, probably just wasted on the young.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-schmich/advice-like-youth-probably-just-wasted-on-the-young/)

[Mary Schmich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-schmich/)

> [It's a pity youth is wasted on the young.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/it-s-a-pity-youth-is-wasted-on-the-young/)

[George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/)

> [Youth is not wasted on the young, it is perpetrated on the young.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-rakoff/youth-is-not-wasted-on-the-young-it-is-perpetrated-on-the-young/)

[David Rakoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-rakoff/)

> [Advice, like youth, probably wasted on the young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-schmich/advice-like-youth-probably-wasted-on-the-young/)

[Mary Schmich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-schmich/)

> [They always say 'youth is wasted on the young' - there's something to that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-aniston/they-always-say-youth-is-wasted-on-the-young-there-s-something-to-that/)

[Jennifer Aniston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-aniston/)

> [It's true that youth is wasted on the young and, if I had my life to live over again, I suppose I would pay…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivia-hussey/it-s-true-that-youth-is-wasted-on-the-young-and-if-i-had-my-life-to/)

[Olivia Hussey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivia-hussey/)

> [“Youth is wasted on the young. If it was me, you can be sure I wouldn't be lazing around thinking I had the right…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/avery-flynn/youth-is-wasted-on-the-young-if-it-was-me-you-can-be-sure-i-wouldn-t/)

[Avery Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/avery-flynn/)

> [“Youth is wasted on the young - beauty is wasted on the vain”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-seller/youth-is-wasted-on-the-young-beauty-is-wasted-on-the-vain/)

[David Seller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-seller/)

> [They say that youth is wasted on the young but you have the ability to prove that wrong. On your 18th birthday, make me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/they-say-that-youth-is-wasted-on-the-young-but-you-have-the-ability/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

## More by Jim Broadbent

> [A make-up artist I know polished her Oscar and it lost its lustre. But if you don't polish it, it doesn't tarnish.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-broadbent/a-make-up-artist-i-know-polished-her-oscar-and-it-lost-its-lustre-but/)

[Jim Broadbent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-broadbent/)

> [To do a blockbuster that isn't stressful is a delight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-broadbent/to-do-a-blockbuster-that-isn-t-stressful-is-a-delight/)

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> [It's funny how a film about a murderous old English toff can help you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-broadbent/it-s-funny-how-a-film-about-a-murderous-old-english-toff-can-help-you/)

[Jim Broadbent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-broadbent/)

> [I like being able to go to the supermarket and go on the Tube and have an ordinary domestic life. I'd hate to have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-broadbent/i-like-being-able-to-go-to-the-supermarket-and-go-on-the-tube-and/)

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> [We seem to have reached the age where life stops giving us things and starts taking them away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-broadbent/we-seem-to-have-reached-the-age-where-life-stops-giving-us-things-and/)

[Jim Broadbent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-broadbent/)

> [In Hollywood films everything is tidied up at the end with clean lines and clean character definitions. It's sort of unsatisfying.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-broadbent/in-hollywood-films-everything-is-tidied-up-at-the-end-with-clean/)

[Jim Broadbent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-broadbent/)

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> [Oh, I think I've been entirely selfish with my career. I've done what I wanted to do, and not put myself out for anyone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-broadbent/oh-i-think-i-ve-been-entirely-selfish-with-my-career-i-ve-done-what-i/)

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> [I love French films, and European films. They're not any bigger, but there's just a sort of definition, and a confidence, and strength to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-broadbent/i-love-french-films-and-european-films-they-re-not-any-bigger-but/)

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[Jim Broadbent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-broadbent/)

[Explore all 39 Jim Broadbent quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-broadbent/)

## More Behaving badly quotes

> [“It is important you understand how fear affects you and how it drives human behavior so you can start to see situations and people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimberly-giles/it-is-important-you-understand-how-fear-affects-you-and-how-it-drives/)

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> [I was brought up to believe that human beings are good, which is why it shocks me to the core when I see human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benazir-bhutto/i-was-brought-up-to-believe-that-human-beings-are-good-which-is-why/)

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> [“The development of the biologically toxic Mauna Kea Observatories (MKO) is the fruition of professional astronomers behaving badly.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/the-development-of-the-biologically-toxic-mauna-kea-observatories-mko/)

[Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/)

> [I like movies about women behaving badly, because women behave badly just like men, and we're not always adorable and cute about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greta-gerwig/i-like-movies-about-women-behaving-badly-because-women-behave-badly/)

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> [Women behaving badly has always been funny, to me personally, so I knew I wanted to do something like that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nahnatchka-khan/women-behaving-badly-has-always-been-funny-to-me-personally-so-i-knew/)

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