--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In proportion as man approaches the outer…" description: "\"In proportion as man approaches the outer rim, he becomes lost in details, and the more he is preoccupied with details, the less he can understand them..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/95b/richard-m-weaver-7447_approach_in-proportion-as-man-approaches-the-oute_1473689.jpg" --- # In proportion as man approaches the outer rim, he becomes… ![“In proportion as man approaches the outer rim, he becomes lost in details, and the more he is preoccupied with details, the less he can understand them.” quote by Richard M. Weaver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/95b/richard-m-weaver-7447_approach_in-proportion-as-man-approaches-the-oute_1473689.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/95b/richard-m-weaver-7447_approach_in-proportion-as-man-approaches-the-oute_1473689.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/95b/richard-m-weaver-7447_approach_in-proportion-as-man-approaches-the-oute_1473689.jpg) > “In proportion as man approaches the outer rim, he becomes lost in details, and the more he is preoccupied with details, the less he can understand them.” [Richard M. Weaver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-m-weaver/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Focusing on minutiae blinds us to the broader picture, reducing true comprehension. **In simple terms:** Detail obsession hinders understanding. Key Takeaway Zoom out to see the whole. Themes focus understanding perspective Mood thoughtful analytical Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - work projects - academic research - personal planning - strategic decision making Key Concepts philosophy cognitive bias Questions to Reflect On - How can you balance detail with big‑picture thinking? - What details are essential versus decorative? A Different Perspective Too much detail can cause analysis paralysis. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Approach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/approach/) [Details](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/details/) [Details Preoccupied](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/details-preoccupied-5354358/) [Lost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lost/) [Lost Details](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lost-details-5354361/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Outer Rim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/outer-rim-302147/) [Preoccupied Details](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/preoccupied-details-5354359/) [Proportion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/proportion/) [Rim Lost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rim-lost-5354360/) [Rims](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rims/) ## Related quotes > [“The following evening as they rode up onto the western rim they lost one of the mules. It went skittering off down the canyon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/the-following-evening-as-they-rode-up-onto-the-western-rim-they-lost/) [Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/) > [“It was his idea, this run. Somehow, the remaining factions of the Empire are still fueling their war effort even months after the destruction…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-wendig/it-was-his-idea-this-run-somehow-the-remaining-factions-of-the-empire/) [Chuck Wendig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-wendig/) > [“A desert planet on he Outer Rim, Tatooine is dusty, gritty, and grim. Everything's parched and thirsty and dry, From the searing earth to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/calliope-glass/a-desert-planet-on-he-outer-rim-tatooine-is-dusty-gritty-and-grim/) [Calliope Glass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/calliope-glass/) > [Murray sounds like a blindfolded man riding a unicycle on the rim of the pit of doom, the men actually facing the danger are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-james/murray-sounds-like-a-blindfolded-man-riding-a-unicycle-on-the-rim-of/) [Clive James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-james/) > [And o'er the hills, and far away Beyond their utmost purple rim, Beyond the night, across the day, Thro' all the world she follow'd…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-lord-tennyson/and-o-er-the-hills-and-far-away-beyond-their-utmost-purple-rim-beyond/) [Alfred Lord Tennyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-lord-tennyson/) > [If animals are no longer quite outside the moral sphere, they are still in a special section near the outer rim. Their interests are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/if-animals-are-no-longer-quite-outside-the-moral-sphere-they-are/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [When our cup runs over, we let others drink the drops that fall, but not a drop from within the rim, and call it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/when-our-cup-runs-over-we-let-others-drink-the-drops-that-fall-but/) [Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) > [A long time ago a very powerful race of Indians lived here. They were from another cycle; their being was of another composition. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/a-long-time-ago-a-very-powerful-race-of-indians-lived-here-they-were/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [I took it upon myself to be more aggressive. I wanted the ball. Coach gave me the ball and I just tried to attack…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwyane-wade/i-took-it-upon-myself-to-be-more-aggressive-i-wanted-the-ball-coach/) [Dwyane Wade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwyane-wade/) > [The sun's rim dips; the stars rush out: At one stride comes the dark; With far-heard whisper o'er the sea, Off shot the spectre-bark.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-taylor-coleridge/the-sun-s-rim-dips-the-stars-rush-out-at-one-stride-comes-the-dark/) [Samuel Taylor Coleridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-taylor-coleridge/) > [If I ventured in the slipstream between the viaducts of your dreams, where immobile steel rims crack and the ditch in the back roads…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/van-morrison/if-i-ventured-in-the-slipstream-between-the-viaducts-of-your-dreams/) [Van Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/van-morrison/) > [The afternoon is bright, with spring in the air, a mild March afternoon, with the breath of April stirring, I am alone in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-machado/the-afternoon-is-bright-with-spring-in-the-air-a-mild-march-afternoon/) [Antonio Machado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-machado/) > [The grossest form of this injury of the body to ornament it, is in tattooing. Next, the piercing the ear all around its rim,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-mcnair-wright/the-grossest-form-of-this-injury-of-the-body-to-ornament-it-is-in/) [Julia McNair Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-mcnair-wright/) > [Got my rims from Afghanistan. Bout to wrap it up, Pakistan. Might jump ship with 400 grand. I can cop some ice, avalanche.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/riff-raff/got-my-rims-from-afghanistan-bout-to-wrap-it-up-pakistan-might-jump/) [Riff Raff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/riff-raff/) > [ \[Apple and RIM\] are probably restricted, in some sense, to a certain maximum. ... If you want to reach more people than that, you… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-ballmer/apple-and-rim-are-probably-restricted-in-some-sense-to-a-certain/) [Steve Ballmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-ballmer/) ## More by Richard M. Weaver > [Drill in exact translation is an excellent way of disposing the mind against that looseness and exaggeration with which the sensationalists have corrupted our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-m-weaver/drill-in-exact-translation-is-an-excellent-way-of-disposing-the-mind/) [Richard M. Weaver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-m-weaver/) > [Piety is a discipline of the will through respect. It admits the right to exist of things larger than the ego, of things different…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-m-weaver/piety-is-a-discipline-of-the-will-through-respect-it-admits-the-right/) [Richard M. Weaver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-m-weaver/) > [The most important thing about the gentleman was that he was an idealist. ... He was bred up to a code of self-restraint which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-m-weaver/the-most-important-thing-about-the-gentleman-was-that-he-was-an/) [Richard M. 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Weaver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-m-weaver/) > [Man is constantly being assured that he has more power than ever before in history, but his daily experience is one of powerlessness. ...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-m-weaver/man-is-constantly-being-assured-that-he-has-more-power-than-ever/) [Richard M. Weaver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-m-weaver/) > [The remark has been made that in the Civil War the North reaped the victory and the South the glory.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-m-weaver/the-remark-has-been-made-that-in-the-civil-war-the-north-reaped-the/) [Richard M. Weaver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-m-weaver/) > [No one can take culture seriously if he believes that it is only the uppermost of several layers of epiphenomena resting on a primary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-m-weaver/no-one-can-take-culture-seriously-if-he-believes-that-it-is-only-the/) [Richard M. Weaver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-m-weaver/) > [“It will be found that every attack upon religion, or upon characteristic ideas inherited from religion, when its assumptions are laid bare, turns out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-m-weaver/it-will-be-found-that-every-attack-upon-religion-or-upon/) [Richard M. Weaver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-m-weaver/) > [ Progress never defines its ultimate objective but thrusts its victims at once into an infinite series,' Mr. \[John Crowe\] Ransom said' 'Industrialism,' he declared,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-m-weaver/progress-never-defines-its-ultimate-objective-but-thrusts-its-victims/) [Richard M. Weaver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-m-weaver/) > [Until the world perceives that "good" cannot be applied to a thing because it is our own, and "bad" because it is another's, there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-m-weaver/until-the-world-perceives-that-good-cannot-be-applied-to-a-thing/) [Richard M. Weaver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-m-weaver/) > [Any utterance is a major assumption of responsibility, and the assumption that one can avoid that responsibility by doing something to language itself is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-m-weaver/any-utterance-is-a-major-assumption-of-responsibility-and-the/) [Richard M. Weaver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-m-weaver/) > [ A prejudice may be an unreasoned judgment, he \[Hibben\] pointed out, but an unreasoned judgment is not necessarily an illogical judgment. ... First, there… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-m-weaver/a-prejudice-may-be-an-unreasoned-judgment-he-hibben-pointed-out-but/) [Richard M. Weaver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-m-weaver/) > [That it does not matter what a man believes is a statement heard on every side today. ... What he believes tells him what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-m-weaver/that-it-does-not-matter-what-a-man-believes-is-a-statement-heard-on/) [Richard M. Weaver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-m-weaver/) > [The most likely way to kill a tradition is to over-formalize it, which is to carry it on in the same way after everyone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-m-weaver/the-most-likely-way-to-kill-a-tradition-is-to-over-formalize-it-which/) [Richard M. Weaver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-m-weaver/) [Explore all 91 Richard M. Weaver quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-m-weaver/) ## More Approach quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [I'm in a business where there's complete anarchy. You can't control it - you can only react to it. The control that people traditionally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-sorrell/i-m-in-a-business-where-there-s-complete-anarchy-you-can-t-control-it/) [Martin Sorrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-sorrell/) > [When you approach something to photograph it, first be still with yourself until the object of your attention affirms your presence. Then don't leave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/minor-white/when-you-approach-something-to-photograph-it-first-be-still-with/) [Minor White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/minor-white/) > [We do not want to be reminded that it is we, the indigenous people, who are poor and exploited in the land of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-biko/we-do-not-want-to-be-reminded-that-it-is-we-the-indigenous-people-who/) [Steven Biko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-biko/) > [One of the things I regret about not putting in that book or I think it's there but I didn't really elaborate on it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-warner/one-of-the-things-i-regret-about-not-putting-in-that-book-or-i-think/) [Brad Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-warner/) > [Ideal for the child and society in the best of times, Rudolf Steiner's brilliant process of education is critically needed and profoundly relevant now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-chilton-pearce/ideal-for-the-child-and-society-in-the-best-of-times-rudolf-steiner-s/) [Joseph Chilton Pearce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-chilton-pearce/) > [I don't have any particular method, my approach is very simple. 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