--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We Americans love original ideas. But…" description: "\"We Americans love original ideas. But truly, there are already plenty of good ones out there, ours for the taking. If I were too proud to copy the idea..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/291/mohnish-pabrai-17471_creativity_we-americans-love-original-ideas-but-tru_785157.png" --- # We Americans love original ideas. But truly, there are… ![“We Americans love original ideas. But truly, there are already plenty of good ones out there, ours for the taking. If I were too proud to copy the ideas of others, I likely wouldnt have even a fraction of my current success.” quote by Mohnish Pabrai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/291/mohnish-pabrai-17471_creativity_we-americans-love-original-ideas-but-tru_785157.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/291/mohnish-pabrai-17471_creativity_we-americans-love-original-ideas-but-tru_785157.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/291/mohnish-pabrai-17471_creativity_we-americans-love-original-ideas-but-tru_785157.png) > “We Americans love original ideas. But truly, there are already plenty of good ones out there, ours for the taking. If I were too proud to copy the ideas of others, I likely wouldnt have even a fraction of my current success.” [Mohnish Pabrai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohnish-pabrai/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He argues that ideas are abundant and that success often involves adapting existing concepts rather than inventing wholly new ones. **In simple terms:** Success comes from using others' ideas well. Key Takeaway Adapt and improve existing ideas. Themes entrepreneurship innovation competition learning humility Mood analytical reflective pragmatic Type advice observation When to use this quote - startup launches - product development - investment strategies Key Concepts idea diffusion strategic imitation value creation Questions to Reflect On - What ethical lines exist in idea borrowing? - When does adaptation become plagiarism? A Different Perspective Over-reliance on copying can stifle true innovation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Copy Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/copy-ideas-3516132/) [Creativity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creativity/) [Good](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Ideas Likely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas-likely-2252232/) [Ideas Truly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas-truly-1109726/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Original ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/original-ideas/) [Plenty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/plenty/) [Proud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/proud/) [Success](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/success/) ## Related quotes > [“If people copy your ideas or thoughts, don´t stop them. It´s a sign, that you are an influencer.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alin-sav/if-people-copy-your-ideas-or-thoughts-don-t-stop-them-it-s-a-sign/) [Alin Sav](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alin-sav/) > [“Unexpected ideas are more likely to stick because surprise makes us pay attention and think.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chip-heath/unexpected-ideas-are-more-likely-to-stick-because-surprise-makes-us/) [Chip Heath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chip-heath/) > [“We are not blood and gristle and hair and spit. We are ideas, if we are anything at all. That part of us that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-v-s-redick/we-are-not-blood-and-gristle-and-hair-and-spit-we-are-ideas-if-we-are/) [Robert V.S. Redick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-v-s-redick/) > [“All ideas in a truly free society should always be open for discussion.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryant-mcgill/all-ideas-in-a-truly-free-society-should-always-be-open-for-discussion/) [Bryant McGill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryant-mcgill/) > [Only those ideas that are least truly ours can be adequately expressed in words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-bergson/only-those-ideas-that-are-least-truly-ours-can-be-adequately/) [Henri Bergson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-bergson/) > [Really good original ideas are very hard to come up with. Good ideas - easy. Really good, original ideas - it can take months.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-sparks/really-good-original-ideas-are-very-hard-to-come-up-with-good-ideas/) [Nicholas Sparks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-sparks/) > [Back then, when I had that original idea to write about the seventeenth century, the whole thing was set in 1666. I was thinking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danielle-dutton/back-then-when-i-had-that-original-idea-to-write-about-the/) [Danielle Dutton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danielle-dutton/) > [Is it an original idea? Or is it something where you're literally a creative collagist? You're taking pieces of the world that you see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abigail-washburn/is-it-an-original-idea-or-is-it-something-where-you-re-literally-a/) [Abigail Washburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abigail-washburn/) > [Couture has copied my things for years, in addition to countless other costume designers, claiming theirs were the original ideas. It's all part of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-head/couture-has-copied-my-things-for-years-in-addition-to-countless-other/) [Edith Head](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-head/) > [“I want to debunk the myth that originality requires extreme risk taking and persuade you that originals are actually far more ordinary than we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-m-grant/i-want-to-debunk-the-myth-that-originality-requires-extreme-risk/) [Adam M. Grant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-m-grant/) > [If you come up with the original idea on your laptop, anything else is an embellishment of that idea. It's nice to have the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hudson-mohawke/if-you-come-up-with-the-original-idea-on-your-laptop-anything-else-is/) [Hudson Mohawke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hudson-mohawke/) > [As for borrowing Mr. Whistler's ideas about art, the only thoroughly original ideas I have heard him express have had reference to his own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/as-for-borrowing-mr-whistler-s-ideas-about-art-the-only-thoroughly/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [...I am exceedingly anxious that this Union, the Constitution, and the liberties of the people shall be perpetuated in accordance with the original idea…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/i-am-exceedingly-anxious-that-this-union-the-constitution-and-the/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [I think there are a substantial number of scientists who have manipulated data so that they will have dollars rolling into their projects. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-perry/i-think-there-are-a-substantial-number-of-scientists-who-have/) [Rick Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-perry/) > [What's given, in fact, always depends on the person or thing it's given to. A minor incident in the street brings the cook to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernando-pessoa/what-s-given-in-fact-always-depends-on-the-person-or-thing-it-s-given/) [Fernando Pessoa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-pessoa/) ## More by Mohnish Pabrai > [Entrepreneurs are great at dealing with uncertainty and also very good at minimizing risk. That's the classic great entrepreneur.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohnish-pabrai/entrepreneurs-are-great-at-dealing-with-uncertainty-and-also-very/) [Mohnish Pabrai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohnish-pabrai/) > [The essence of a good investment manager is one who studies a given business and extrapolates the future cash flows that the business is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohnish-pabrai/the-essence-of-a-good-investment-manager-is-one-who-studies-a-given/) [Mohnish Pabrai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohnish-pabrai/) > [“Einstein also recognized the power of simplicity, and it was the key to his breakthroughs in physics. He noted that the five ascending levels…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohnish-pabrai/einstein-also-recognized-the-power-of-simplicity-and-it-was-the-key/) [Mohnish Pabrai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohnish-pabrai/) > [The single biggest advantage a value investor has is not IQ. It's patience and waiting. Waiting for the right pitch, and waiting for many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohnish-pabrai/the-single-biggest-advantage-a-value-investor-has-is-not-iq-it-s/) [Mohnish Pabrai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohnish-pabrai/) > [One of the first things I tell people is, if you want to learn about investing, you want to open an account and make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohnish-pabrai/one-of-the-first-things-i-tell-people-is-if-you-want-to-learn-about/) [Mohnish Pabrai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohnish-pabrai/) > [To the extent societal rules or the wiring of your brains make it easy to acquire a lot of assets, then to the extent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohnish-pabrai/to-the-extent-societal-rules-or-the-wiring-of-your-brains-make-it/) [Mohnish Pabrai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohnish-pabrai/) > [Before starting my own investment funds, the only models I was aware of were those of Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger. Their models made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohnish-pabrai/before-starting-my-own-investment-funds-the-only-models-i-was-aware/) [Mohnish Pabrai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohnish-pabrai/) > [I have a hard time getting past the day without the nap, so the nap is a must.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohnish-pabrai/i-have-a-hard-time-getting-past-the-day-without-the-nap-so-the-nap-is/) [Mohnish Pabrai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohnish-pabrai/) > [The problem most nonprofits have is that they are run by romantics who are great to hang out with, but they have no clue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohnish-pabrai/the-problem-most-nonprofits-have-is-that-they-are-run-by-romantics/) [Mohnish Pabrai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohnish-pabrai/) > [The stock knows that I bought it, and it decides, 'Mohnish is done. Now let's go down.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohnish-pabrai/the-stock-knows-that-i-bought-it-and-it-decides-mohnish-is-done-now/) [Mohnish Pabrai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohnish-pabrai/) > [Mistakes are the best teachers. One does not learn from success. It is desirable to learn vicariously from other people's failures, but it gets…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohnish-pabrai/mistakes-are-the-best-teachers-one-does-not-learn-from-success-it-is/) [Mohnish Pabrai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohnish-pabrai/) > [ Wall Street sometimes gets confused between risk and uncertainty, and you can profit handsomely from that confusion. The low-risk, high-uncertainty \[situation\] gives us our… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohnish-pabrai/wall-street-sometimes-gets-confused-between-risk-and-uncertainty-and/) [Mohnish Pabrai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohnish-pabrai/) > [I own a company called Rain Industries.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohnish-pabrai/i-own-a-company-called-rain-industries/) [Mohnish Pabrai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohnish-pabrai/) > [The government has to be flexible in Air India sale price, structure, and employee management plan.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohnish-pabrai/the-government-has-to-be-flexible-in-air-india-sale-price-structure/) [Mohnish Pabrai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohnish-pabrai/) > [I think a lot of people are getting more serious about how to do the most good, but there is no road map. I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohnish-pabrai/i-think-a-lot-of-people-are-getting-more-serious-about-how-to-do-the/) [Mohnish Pabrai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohnish-pabrai/) [Explore all 37 Mohnish Pabrai quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohnish-pabrai/) ## More Creativity quotes > [The prophet who fails to present a bearable alternative and yet preaches doom is part of the trap that he postulates. Not only does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/the-prophet-who-fails-to-present-a-bearable-alternative-and-yet/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [“The Soviet “creative intelligentsia” - that is, people accustomed to thinking one thing, saying another and doing a third - is as a whole…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrei-amalrik/the-soviet-creative-intelligentsia-that-is-people-accustomed-to/) [Andrei Amalrik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrei-amalrik/) > [It’s so important to create in your own voice, to hold onto what makes you unique, and have faith in your vision.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lasseter/it-s-so-important-to-create-in-your-own-voice-to-hold-onto-what-makes/) [John Lasseter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lasseter/) > [A rock pile ceases to be a rock pile the moment a single man contemplates it, bearing within him the image of a cathedral.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/a-rock-pile-ceases-to-be-a-rock-pile-the-moment-a-single-man/) [Antoine de Saint-Exupery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/) > [You don't get lucky. You create lucky.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-sharma/you-don-t-get-lucky-you-create-lucky/) [Robin Sharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-sharma/) > [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/) > [“You are the end of beauty and creativity one must have created so far.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-f-moonzajer/you-are-the-end-of-beauty-and-creativity-one-must-have-created-so-far/) [M.F. Moonzajer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-f-moonzajer/) > [Jonah Lehrer is one of the most talented explainers of science that we’ve got. What a pleasure it is to follow his investigation of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-foer/jonah-lehrer-is-one-of-the-most-talented-explainers-of-science-that/) [Joshua Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-foer/) > [If you've got creativity, imagination, and intelligence, and you want to be hypnotised, then there's no reason you shouldn't be able to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-barry/if-you-ve-got-creativity-imagination-and-intelligence-and-you-want-to/) [Keith Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-barry/) > [“I believe in magic. As a writer, I create them on blank paper.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonnia-kemmer/i-believe-in-magic-as-a-writer-i-create-them-on-blank-paper/) [Sonnia Kemmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonnia-kemmer/) > [Creativity is like chasing chickens.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christoph-niemann/creativity-is-like-chasing-chickens/) [Christoph Niemann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christoph-niemann/) > [It is proposed that a form of free dialogue may well be one of the most effective ways of investigating the crisis which faces…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bohm/it-is-proposed-that-a-form-of-free-dialogue-may-well-be-one-of-the/) [David Bohm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bohm/) > [You always hear actors say, 'Theater is my first love,' and it is. It's a time when you really get to do what you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-landecker/you-always-hear-actors-say-theater-is-my-first-love-and-it-is-it-s-a/) [Amy Landecker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-landecker/) > [Create an environment for people to fail, to learn, and to grow. Their creativity and productivity will increase.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/create-an-environment-for-people-to-fail-to-learn-and-to-grow-their/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 13,625 Creativity quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creativity/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We Americans love original ideas. But truly, there are already plenty of good ones out there, ours for the taking. 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