---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Growing up is one thing, being honest to…"
description: "\"Growing up is one thing, being honest to yourself is another, I would rather become a person who excels slowly but honest to himself than to grow up fa..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f47/niel-bernardino-90770_growing-up_growing-up-is-one-thing-being-honest-to_2483607.jpg"
---

#  Growing up is one thing, being honest to yourself is…

![“Growing up is one thing, being honest to yourself is another, I would rather become a person who excels slowly but honest to himself than to grow up fast and become some thing that I'm not.” quote by Niel Bernardino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f47/niel-bernardino-90770_growing-up_growing-up-is-one-thing-being-honest-to_2483607.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f47/niel-bernardino-90770_growing-up_growing-up-is-one-thing-being-honest-to_2483607.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f47/niel-bernardino-90770_growing-up_growing-up-is-one-thing-being-honest-to_2483607.jpg)

> “Growing up is one thing, being honest to yourself is another, I would rather become a person who excels slowly but honest to himself than to grow up fast and become some thing that I'm not.”

[Niel Bernardino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/niel-bernardino/)

## About This Quote

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

True self‑honesty outweighs rapid, superficial growth; better to develop slowly with integrity than to mature quickly and become inauthentic.

**In simple terms:** Honesty beats fast, false growth.

Key Takeaway

Choose slow, honest development.

Themes

self‑growth integrity authenticity personal development

Mood

reflective determined thoughtful

Type

Growing up:1 Honest:1 Honest person:1 Honesty:1 Truth:1 Grow Fast:0 Slowly Honest:1 Thing Honest:0

When to use this quote

- career planning
- personal relationships
- self‑improvement
- mental health
- social expectations

Key Concepts

self‑awareness integrity long‑term fulfillment

Questions to Reflect On

- What aspects of yourself are you neglecting for speed?
- How can you measure honest progress?

A Different Perspective

Fast growth can lead to loss of identity and burnout.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Grow Fast](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grow-fast/) [Growing up](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growing-up/) [Honest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/honest/) [Honest person](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/honest-person/) [Honesty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/honesty/) [Slowly Honest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/slowly-honest-890110/) [Thing Honest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thing-honest-890111/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/)

## Related quotes

> [Honesty is always the best policy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-washington/honesty-is-always-the-best-policy/)

[George Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-washington/)

> [In the long run, I believe that honesty is definitely the best policy. One can get away by being dishonest for a short term,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kapil-dev/in-the-long-run-i-believe-that-honesty-is-definitely-the-best-policy/)

[Kapil Dev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kapil-dev/)

> [I'm an honest person and don't lead my life on other people's terms.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anushka-sharma/i-m-an-honest-person-and-don-t-lead-my-life-on-other-people-s-terms/)

[Anushka Sharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anushka-sharma/)

> [I'm actually a very honest person, and sometimes I end up like, 'Man, I said too much.' It's hard for me not to tell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drake/i-m-actually-a-very-honest-person-and-sometimes-i-end-up-like-man-i/)

[Drake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drake/)

> [I would describe myself as a very plain but very honest person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taeyang/i-would-describe-myself-as-a-very-plain-but-very-honest-person/)

[Taeyang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taeyang/)

> [You have to be OK with your own fears. If you're an honest person, you'll make mistakes, but that's when the most interesting things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristen-stewart/you-have-to-be-ok-with-your-own-fears-if-you-re-an-honest-person-you/)

[Kristen Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristen-stewart/)

> [Usually sociopaths will look down upon us for that very reason - that we're gullible. We're weak. One person told me that he thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-stout/usually-sociopaths-will-look-down-upon-us-for-that-very-reason-that/)

[Martha Stout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-stout/)

> [“Also, I’m not going to be devastated or anything either way. I’m not that kind of person. I just think if you don’t say…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green-david-levithan/also-i-m-not-going-to-be-devastated-or-anything-either-way-i-m-not/)

[John Green David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green-david-levithan/)

> [Sometimes we have to lie so that we do not needlessly hurt others. The important thing is that we are honest with ourselves. That…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-sionil-jos/sometimes-we-have-to-lie-so-that-we-do-not-needlessly-hurt-others-the/)

[F. Sionil José](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-sionil-jos/)

> [He who says there is no such thing as an honest man, you may be sure is himself a knave.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-berkeley/he-who-says-there-is-no-such-thing-as-an-honest-man-you-may-be-sure/)

[George Berkeley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-berkeley/)

> [Everybody makes honest mistakes, but there's no such thing as an honest cover-up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/price-pritchett/everybody-makes-honest-mistakes-but-there-s-no-such-thing-as-an/)

[Price Pritchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/price-pritchett/)

> [“I just think if you don't say the honest thing, sometimes the honest thing never becomes true, you know, and I-”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-just-think-if-you-don-t-say-the-honest-thing-sometimes-the-honest/)

[John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/)

> [“I have often wondered whether it is really a good thing to be honest by nature and upbringing; certainly it is not a good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-pym/i-have-often-wondered-whether-it-is-really-a-good-thing-to-be-honest/)

[Barbara Pym](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-pym/)

> [The good thing is that I'm always honest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-linney/the-good-thing-is-that-i-m-always-honest/)

[Laura Linney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-linney/)

> [The thing about us is we're honest. If we're asked whether we take drugs, we say yes. I was brought up by my mom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noel-gallagher/the-thing-about-us-is-we-re-honest-if-we-re-asked-whether-we-take/)

[Noel Gallagher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noel-gallagher/)

## More by Niel Bernardino

> [Cartoons and anime are two different things but to me cartoons are created by adults in order not just give the kids and teens…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/niel-bernardino/cartoons-and-anime-are-two-different-things-but-to-me-cartoons-are/)

[Niel Bernardino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/niel-bernardino/)

[Explore all 2 Niel Bernardino quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/niel-bernardino/)

## More Growing up quotes

> [Well, I've been politically involved for a really long time. Growing up in the segregated South, it was a very painful experience for me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cybill-shepherd/well-i-ve-been-politically-involved-for-a-really-long-time-growing-up/)

[Cybill Shepherd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cybill-shepherd/)

> [I've long believed one of the mainsprings of our own liberty has been the widespread ownership of property among our people and the expectation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/i-ve-long-believed-one-of-the-mainsprings-of-our-own-liberty-has-been/)

[Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/)

> [I always feel like I'm struggling to become someone else. Like I'm trying to find a new place, grab hold of a new life,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/i-always-feel-like-i-m-struggling-to-become-someone-else-like-i-m/)

[Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/)

> [ I failed, I think, seven \[or\] eight times before I finally got my first \[championship\]. It was just, you know, just about me growing… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shaquille-o-neal/i-failed-i-think-seven-or-eight-times-before-i-finally-got-my-first/)

[Shaquille O'Neal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shaquille-o-neal/)

> [I think kids growing up, if they were picked on and feeling inferior at 12, they're going to feel that way at 72. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvester-stallone/i-think-kids-growing-up-if-they-were-picked-on-and-feeling-inferior/)

[Sylvester Stallone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvester-stallone/)

> [We all got driven out of Manhattan. It was a very conducive place for artists when I was growing up, and now it's definitely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaby-hoffmann/we-all-got-driven-out-of-manhattan-it-was-a-very-conducive-place-for/)

[Gaby Hoffmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaby-hoffmann/)

> [I felt pretty good growing up. I didnt feel a lot of prejudice or racism. But I do remember, if there was going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-henry-hwang/i-felt-pretty-good-growing-up-i-didnt-feel-a-lot-of-prejudice-or/)

[David Henry Hwang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-henry-hwang/)

> [Love changes people, for better or for worse. You could look at it as a chance for you to change. The best kind of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/love-changes-people-for-better-or-for-worse-you-could-look-at-it-as-a/)

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

> [I wasn't a kid growing up thinking, 'One day I'll get an Oscar and make a speech.' That wasn't on my mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-sandler/i-wasn-t-a-kid-growing-up-thinking-one-day-i-ll-get-an-oscar-and-make/)

[Adam Sandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-sandler/)

> [I was young, but to me that was underground music. I had never heard anything like Venom or any of that stuff growing up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-pajo/i-was-young-but-to-me-that-was-underground-music-i-had-never-heard/)

[David Pajo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-pajo/)

> [I didn't grow up thinking of movies as film, or art, but as movies, something to do on a Saturday afternoon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-pollack/i-didn-t-grow-up-thinking-of-movies-as-film-or-art-but-as-movies/)

[Sydney Pollack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-pollack/)

> [Growing up I did commercials and things like that, but nothing serious. As I got older, my family is really hardcore into academics. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/portia-doubleday/growing-up-i-did-commercials-and-things-like-that-but-nothing-serious/)

[Portia Doubleday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/portia-doubleday/)

> [How am I supposed to make life choices when I still use my fingers to count and sing the whole alphabet to see what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/how-am-i-supposed-to-make-life-choices-when-i-still-use-my-fingers-to/)

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

> [Grow up? Get herself straightened out? Her mind reeled from the verbal battering. No matter what she did, her father would tell her she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-dekker/grow-up-get-herself-straightened-out-her-mind-reeled-from-the-verbal/)

[Ted Dekker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-dekker/)

> [“The whole idea of it makes me feel Like I’m coming down with something, Something worse than any stomach ache Or the headaches I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-collins/the-whole-idea-of-it-makes-me-feel-like-i-m-coming-down-with/)

[Billy Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-collins/)

[Browse all 7,738 Growing up quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growing-up/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Growing up is one thing, being honest to yourself is another, I would rather become a person who excels slowly but honest to himself than to grow up fast and become some thing that I'm not.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Niel Bernardino"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/niel-bernardino/growing-up-is-one-thing-being-honest-to-yourself-is-another-i-would/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Growing up"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/niel-bernardino/growing-up-is-one-thing-being-honest-to-yourself-is-another-i-would/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f47/niel-bernardino-90770_growing-up_growing-up-is-one-thing-being-honest-to_2483607.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f47/niel-bernardino-90770_growing-up_growing-up-is-one-thing-being-honest-to_2483607.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f47/niel-bernardino-90770_growing-up_growing-up-is-one-thing-being-honest-to_2483607.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Growing up is one thing, being honest to yourself is another, I would rather become a person who excels…” — Niel Bernardino",
                "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": "Niel Bernardino",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/niel-bernardino/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Growing up is one thing, being...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/niel-bernardino/growing-up-is-one-thing-being-honest-to-yourself-is-another-i-would/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/niel-bernardino/growing-up-is-one-thing-being-honest-to-yourself-is-another-i-would/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
