--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Well, normally I’m against big things. I…" description: "\"Well, normally I’m against big things. I think the world is going to be saved by millions of small things. Too many things can go wrong when they get b..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e63/pete-seeger-1942_bash_well-normally-i-m-against-big-things-i-t_2744233.png" --- # Well, normally I’m against big things. I think the world… ![“Well, normally I’m against big things. I think the world is going to be saved by millions of small things. Too many things can go wrong when they get big.” — Pete Seeger (on how he felt about attending his big 90th birthday bash last year)” quote by Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e63/pete-seeger-1942_bash_well-normally-i-m-against-big-things-i-t_2744233.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e63/pete-seeger-1942_bash_well-normally-i-m-against-big-things-i-t_2744233.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e63/pete-seeger-1942_bash_well-normally-i-m-against-big-things-i-t_2744233.png) > “Well, normally I’m against big things. I think the world is going to be saved by millions of small things. Too many things can go wrong when they get big.” — Pete Seeger (on how he felt about attending his big 90th birthday bash last year)” [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker prefers small, incremental actions over large, risky endeavors, suggesting many minor efforts can save the world. **In simple terms:** Small actions are safer and more effective than big ones. Key Takeaway Focus on many small contributions. Themes incrementalism risk collective action Mood motivational pragmatic Type inspirational practical When to use this quote - community projects - personal habits - policy advocacy Key Concepts environmentalism social change Questions to Reflect On - What small actions can you take today? - How do big projects risk failure? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Big things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/big-things/) [Small things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/small-things/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [The world will be solved by millions of small things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/the-world-will-be-solved-by-millions-of-small-things/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [I think the world is going to be saved by millions of small things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/i-think-the-world-is-going-to-be-saved-by-millions-of-small-things/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [For it is in the millions of small melodies that the truth of history is always found, for history only matters because of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/for-it-is-in-the-millions-of-small-melodies-that-the-truth-of-history/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [If you're going to do something wrong, do it big, because the punishment is the same either way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jayne-mansfield/if-you-re-going-to-do-something-wrong-do-it-big-because-the/) [Jayne Mansfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jayne-mansfield/) > [Whenever something is wrong, something is too big.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leopold-kohr/whenever-something-is-wrong-something-is-too-big/) Leopold Kohr > [I'm right and you're wrong, I'm big and you're small, and there's nothing you can do about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roald-dahl/i-m-right-and-you-re-wrong-i-m-big-and-you-re-small-and-there-s/) [Roald Dahl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roald-dahl/) > [I don't think it's wrong to have a big ego. Sometimes a big ego can help you also.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georginio-wijnaldum/i-don-t-think-it-s-wrong-to-have-a-big-ego-sometimes-a-big-ego-can/) [Georginio Wijnaldum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georginio-wijnaldum/) > [There is nothing wrong with a big bet, if a big bet is a good bet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-feeney/there-is-nothing-wrong-with-a-big-bet-if-a-big-bet-is-a-good-bet/) [Chuck Feeney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-feeney/) > [Be serious. Folk songs are serious. That's what Pete Seeger told me. Arlo, I only wanna tell you one thing. Folk songs are serious.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arlo-guthrie/be-serious-folk-songs-are-serious-that-s-what-pete-seeger-told-me/) [Arlo Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arlo-guthrie/) > [We all know the types who listen to Pete Seeger songs; even Pete admits they aren't interesting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/we-all-know-the-types-who-listen-to-pete-seeger-songs-even-pete/) [P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) > [I actually learned the guitar with the help of a Pete Seeger instructional record when I was 13 or 14.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-gilmour/i-actually-learned-the-guitar-with-the-help-of-a-pete-seeger/) [David Gilmour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-gilmour/) > [I've always loved the songs of the sea. I was first introduced to them back in 1957, at the Old Town School of Folk…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-mcguinn/i-ve-always-loved-the-songs-of-the-sea-i-was-first-introduced-to-them/) [Roger McGuinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-mcguinn/) > [My finger picking is sort of a cross between Pete Seeger, Earl Scruggs, and total incompetence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-page/my-finger-picking-is-sort-of-a-cross-between-pete-seeger-earl-scruggs/) [Jimmy Page](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-page/) > [“That's Pete Seeger,' Joy said, indicating the snake with a nod. 'Baker beaned 'im, Dad stuffed 'im, and I named 'im.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohja-kahf/that-s-pete-seeger-joy-said-indicating-the-snake-with-a-nod-baker/) [Mohja Kahf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohja-kahf/) > [Pete Seeger is a modest, unassuming, cheerful, and kind-natured man. He's a good folk singer, if you can stand folk singing. And he's such…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/pete-seeger-is-a-modest-unassuming-cheerful-and-kind-natured-man-he-s/) [P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) ## More by Pete Seeger > [Honest songs aren't written for money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/honest-songs-aren-t-written-for-money/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [My father, Charles Seeger, got me into the Communist movement. He backed out around '38. I drifted out in the 50's.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/my-father-charles-seeger-got-me-into-the-communist-movement-he-backed/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [In the sixties, during the Vietnam war, when anarchists and pacifists and socialists, Democrats and Republicans, decent-hearted Americans, all recoiled with horror at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/in-the-sixties-during-the-vietnam-war-when-anarchists-and-pacifists/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [Now somebody will ask me, Pete, how can you prove these songs really make a difference? And I have to confess I can't prove…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/now-somebody-will-ask-me-pete-how-can-you-prove-these-songs-really/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [The truth is a rabbit in a bramble patch. All you can do is circle around and say it's somewhere in there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/the-truth-is-a-rabbit-in-a-bramble-patch-all-you-can-do-is-circle/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [I was about 16 years old years when my father took me to a square dance festival in North Carolina. For the first time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/i-was-about-16-years-old-years-when-my-father-took-me-to-a-square/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [It was Rachel Carson's famous book 'Silent Spring' that got me involved with the environment. I read it in The New Yorker, in installments.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/it-was-rachel-carson-s-famous-book-silent-spring-that-got-me-involved/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [When you play the 12-string guitar, you spend half your life tuning the instrument and the other half playing it out of tune.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/when-you-play-the-12-string-guitar-you-spend-half-your-life-tuning/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [Folks out in the country couldn't afford to pay for anybody else to make music. They had to make their own. So the peasantry…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/folks-out-in-the-country-couldn-t-afford-to-pay-for-anybody-else-to/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [If there's something wrong, speak up!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/if-there-s-something-wrong-speak-up/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [This world is so full of hypocrisy, the only way you can be honest is to be a hermit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/this-world-is-so-full-of-hypocrisy-the-only-way-you-can-be-honest-is/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [There is a big, beautiful world that could be destroyed by selfishness and foolishness. We musicians have it within our power to help save…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/there-is-a-big-beautiful-world-that-could-be-destroyed-by-selfishness/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [And the people in the houses All went to the University And they got put in boxes Little boxes all the same, Little boxes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/and-the-people-in-the-houses-all-went-to-the-university-and-they-got/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [A good song reminds us what we're fighting for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/a-good-song-reminds-us-what-we-re-fighting-for/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [Most conservatives just want to turn back the clock to a time before the income tax - 100 years or so. I would like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/most-conservatives-just-want-to-turn-back-the-clock-to-a-time-before/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) [Explore all 196 Pete Seeger quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) ## More Bash quotes > [Once ye made up yer mind to do somethin', 'tis better t'stumble o'er the small hillock of jump-ahead than t'bash yer head on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-hawkins/once-ye-made-up-yer-mind-to-do-somethin-tis-better-t-stumble-o-er-the/) [Karen Hawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-hawkins/) > [As long as music of mine is not used to preach hate, or to bash women, it's okay for me. If it doesn't promote…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angelique-kidjo/as-long-as-music-of-mine-is-not-used-to-preach-hate-or-to-bash-women/) [Angelique Kidjo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angelique-kidjo/) > [There are sexual things that I do that aren’t for a man. I feel empowered sometimes by being sexy and being comfortable enough to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicki-minaj/there-are-sexual-things-that-i-do-that-aren-t-for-a-man-i-feel/) [Nicki Minaj](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicki-minaj/) > [I have to say that Adam Levine is truly a daring young man to go on Twitter to bash Fox News. He's so rebellious,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-gutfeld/i-have-to-say-that-adam-levine-is-truly-a-daring-young-man-to-go-on/) [Greg Gutfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-gutfeld/) > [Actually, I came because I have a last-minute invitation. My friend Erika Gill is having a big party tomorrow night, one of those all-out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-chandler/actually-i-came-because-i-have-a-last-minute-invitation-my-friend/) [Elizabeth Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-chandler/) > [Most of my life, I read what is said on IMDB. The fans on the Raw is War board make the most sense of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-vaughan/most-of-my-life-i-read-what-is-said-on-imdb-the-fans-on-the-raw-is/) [Bill Vaughan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-vaughan/) > [Let me just say that it is super wierd throwing your own bash at a conference instead of just leaching off everyone else's, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-malda/let-me-just-say-that-it-is-super-wierd-throwing-your-own-bash-at-a/) Rob Malda > [People are going to bash you while you're alive, and they're going to bash you when you're gone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-hamilton/people-are-going-to-bash-you-while-you-re-alive-and-they-re-going-to/) [Anthony Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-hamilton/) > [“You had my heart for all these years — you still have it, Bash.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-johnson/you-had-my-heart-for-all-these-years-you-still-have-it-bash/) [Julie Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-johnson/) > [A lot of people bash me, but at the end of the day they don't know how much I have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-mena/a-lot-of-people-bash-me-but-at-the-end-of-the-day-they-don-t-know-how/) [Erica Mena](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-mena/) > [When you grow up, you tend to get told that the world is the way it is, and your life is just to live…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/when-you-grow-up-you-tend-to-get-told-that-the-world-is-the-way-it-is/) [Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/) > [Want to depose the government of a poor country with resources? Want to bash Muslims? Want to build support for American military interventions around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-kinzer/want-to-depose-the-government-of-a-poor-country-with-resources-want/) [Stephen Kinzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-kinzer/) > [ I never have \[suffered writer’s block\], although I’ve had books that didn’t work out. I had to stop writing them. I just abandoned them.… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/i-never-have-suffered-writer-s-block-although-i-ve-had-books-that/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [Can it be that action is active resignation? Something is trying to develop; it moves ever so slightly, and there comes your man of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gunter-grass/can-it-be-that-action-is-active-resignation-something-is-trying-to/) [Gunter Grass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gunter-grass/) > [I'm sure that is a reason why young people occasionally bash up old people - because the ages don't mix any more.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penelope-keith/i-m-sure-that-is-a-reason-why-young-people-occasionally-bash-up-old/) [Penelope Keith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penelope-keith/) Browse all 88 Bash quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Well, normally I’m against big things. I think the world is going to be saved by millions of small things. 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