--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is not more bigness that should be our…" description: "\"It is not more bigness that should be our goal. We must attempt, rather, to bring people back to...the warmth of community, to the worth of individual ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d0/robert-kennedy-2083_children_it-is-not-more-bigness-that-should-be-ou_2005927.jpg" --- # It is not more bigness that should be our goal. We must… ![“It is not more bigness that should be our goal. We must attempt, rather, to bring people back to...the warmth of community, to the worth of individual effort and responsibility...and of individuals working together as a community, to better their lives and their children's future.” quote by Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d0/robert-kennedy-2083_children_it-is-not-more-bigness-that-should-be-ou_2005927.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d0/robert-kennedy-2083_children_it-is-not-more-bigness-that-should-be-ou_2005927.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d0/robert-kennedy-2083_children_it-is-not-more-bigness-that-should-be-ou_2005927.jpg) > “It is not more bigness that should be our goal. We must attempt, rather, to bring people back to...the warmth of community, to the worth of individual effort and responsibility...and of individuals working together as a community, to better their lives and their children's future.” [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. True progress lies in community, personal responsibility, and collaborative effort, not just size or grandeur. **In simple terms:** Focus on community and responsibility over size. Key Takeaway Prioritize collective well‑being and personal effort. Themes community responsibility collaboration Mood thoughtful optimistic Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - neighborhood projects - school initiatives - workplace teams Key Concepts social capital civic engagement Questions to Reflect On - How can individuals foster community in large societies? - What role does government play in supporting local effort? A Different Perspective Large institutions can still be effective. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bigness Goal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bigness-goal-3555724/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Community](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/community/) [Community Better](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/community-better-1572668/) [Effort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/effort/) [Goal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/goal/) [Goal Attempt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/goal-attempt-3555725/) [Goals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/goals/) [Individual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/individual/) [Individual effort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/individual-effort/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Responsibility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/responsibility/) [Should](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/should/) [Together](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/together/) [Warmth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/warmth/) [Working Community](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/working-community-2079298/) [Working together](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/working-together/) [Working Together As A Community](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/working-together-as-a-community-220681/) ## Related quotes > [A community is a small group working together. Community scales by adding groups, and building connections between them, not enlarging them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-reed/a-community-is-a-small-group-working-together-community-scales-by/) [Robert Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-reed/) > [In a community of human beings working together, the well-being of the community will be the greater, the less the individual claims for himself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolf-steiner/in-a-community-of-human-beings-working-together-the-well-being-of-the/) [Rudolf Steiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolf-steiner/) > [This is not just an agreement for the police department, this is an agreement that gets the police department working with the community and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-sharpton/this-is-not-just-an-agreement-for-the-police-department-this-is-an/) [Al Sharpton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-sharpton/) > [Every one of us must do something to contribute to transforming our community for the better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-i/every-one-of-us-must-do-something-to-contribute-to-transforming-our/) [T.I](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-i/) > [Do something to make your community a better place to live.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-white/do-something-to-make-your-community-a-better-place-to-live/) [Jesse White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-white/) > [I do think some older people in the gay community could be better influencers for gay youth, better educators. I made it a point…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tommy-dorfman/i-do-think-some-older-people-in-the-gay-community-could-be-better/) [Tommy Dorfman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tommy-dorfman/) > [I'm always telling people baseball needs to be more prominent in the African American community. What a better way to do so, going on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-kemp/i-m-always-telling-people-baseball-needs-to-be-more-prominent-in-the/) [Matt Kemp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-kemp/) > [I think that the more people who speak out, and say things and take stands on positions that will better our community, the better…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gil-scott-heron/i-think-that-the-more-people-who-speak-out-and-say-things-and-take/) [Gil Scott-Heron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gil-scott-heron/) > [“Be sure to volunteer to make your community a better place. We all win when everyone gives.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandra-swann/be-sure-to-volunteer-to-make-your-community-a-better-place-we-all-win/) [Alexandra Swann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandra-swann/) > [Our whole community is made better when students earn the credentials or degrees they need to find a better-paying job that will help them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-cooper/our-whole-community-is-made-better-when-students-earn-the-credentials/) [Roy Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-cooper/) > [When something happens - good, bad or ugly - you find a way to be able to do your part for your community. How…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patty-mills/when-something-happens-good-bad-or-ugly-you-find-a-way-to-be-able-to/) [Patty Mills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patty-mills/) > [We, as a wrestling community, better remember it is more than one individual that makes a winner.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-gable/we-as-a-wrestling-community-better-remember-it-is-more-than-one/) [Dan Gable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-gable/) > [Unions are for 'collective bargaining,' not individual bargaining. It follows that most of the achievements of a union, even if they were more impressive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mancur-olson/unions-are-for-collective-bargaining-not-individual-bargaining-it/) [Mancur Olson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mancur-olson/) > [It's the individual effort of everybody working together towards a collective goal that causes real, effective change in America and in the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hogg/it-s-the-individual-effort-of-everybody-working-together-towards-a/) [David Hogg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hogg/) > [In the Marine Corps there is no individual effort, we're all a big team.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kyle-carpenter/in-the-marine-corps-there-is-no-individual-effort-we-re-all-a-big-team/) [Kyle Carpenter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kyle-carpenter/) ## More by Robert Kennedy > [Wars of any magnitude release powerful social and economic forces which can change the whole face of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/wars-of-any-magnitude-release-powerful-social-and-economic-forces/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) > [If freedom makes social progress possible, so social progress strengthens and enlarges freedom. The two are inseparable partners in the great adventure of humanity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/if-freedom-makes-social-progress-possible-so-social-progress/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) > [Goethe tells us in his greatest poem that Faust lost the liberty of his soul when he said to the passing moment, 'Stay, thou…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/goethe-tells-us-in-his-greatest-poem-that-faust-lost-the-liberty-of/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) > [The intolerant man will not rely on persuasion, or on the worth of the idea. He would deny to others the very freedom of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/the-intolerant-man-will-not-rely-on-persuasion-or-on-the-worth-of-the/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) > [Let us dedicate ourselves to what the Greeks wrote so many years ago: to tame the savageness of man and make gentle the life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/let-us-dedicate-ourselves-to-what-the-greeks-wrote-so-many-years-ago/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) > [President Kennedy's election was such an enlargement. It expanded religious freedom to include the highest office in the land. President Kennedy's administration was such…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/president-kennedy-s-election-was-such-an-enlargement-it-expanded/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) > [Men and women with freed minds may often be mistaken, but they are seldom fooled. They may be influenced, but they cannot be intimidated.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/men-and-women-with-freed-minds-may-often-be-mistaken-but-they-are/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) > [Prejudice exists and probably will continue to 'but we have tried to make progress and we are making progress. We are not going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/prejudice-exists-and-probably-will-continue-to-but-we-have-tried-to/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) > [Too much and too long, we seem to have surrendered community excellence and community values in the mere accumulation of material things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/too-much-and-too-long-we-seem-to-have-surrendered-community/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) > [In the final analysis, poverty is a condition of helplessness - of inability to cope with the conditions of existence in our complex society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/in-the-final-analysis-poverty-is-a-condition-of-helplessness-of/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) > [We know that we cannot live together without rules which tell us what is right and what is wrong, what is permitted and what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/we-know-that-we-cannot-live-together-without-rules-which-tell-us-what/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) > [Punishment is not prevention. History offers cold comfort to those who think grievance and despair can be subdued by force.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/punishment-is-not-prevention-history-offers-cold-comfort-to-those-who/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) > [The travail of freedom and justice is not easy, but nothing serious and important in life is easy. The history of humanity has been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/the-travail-of-freedom-and-justice-is-not-easy-but-nothing-serious/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) > [The Gross National Product measures neither our wit nor our courage, neither our wisdom nor our learning, neither our compassion nor our devotion to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/the-gross-national-product-measures-neither-our-wit-nor-our-courage/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) > [Our future may lie beyond our vision, but it is not completely beyond our control. It is the shaping impulse of America that neither…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/our-future-may-lie-beyond-our-vision-but-it-is-not-completely-beyond/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) [Explore all 186 Robert Kennedy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) ## More Children quotes > [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/) [Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/) > [Behind every successful child is an adult who believed in him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-warren/behind-every-successful-child-is-an-adult-who-believed-in-him/) [Rick Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-warren/) > [I believe in freedom to do what you want if you aren't hurting others, but pictures of obese protesters giving their children big gulps.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-defranco/i-believe-in-freedom-to-do-what-you-want-if-you-aren-t-hurting-others/) [Philip DeFranco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-defranco/) > [If the audience likes your work, if they like you, they don't think whether you are married or have children or not. I made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dimple-kapadia/if-the-audience-likes-your-work-if-they-like-you-they-don-t-think/) [Dimple Kapadia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dimple-kapadia/) > [It doesnt seem to me strange that children should like the macabre, the sensational, and the forbidden.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-hecht/it-doesnt-seem-to-me-strange-that-children-should-like-the-macabre/) [Anthony Hecht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-hecht/) > [Let children support their parents or be imprisoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-children-support-their-parents-or-be-imprisoned/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Gratitude isn't just a feeling, it's an action. Expressing gratitude by writing in a journal, taking a photo, or shooting a video creates a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janice-kaplan/gratitude-isn-t-just-a-feeling-it-s-an-action-expressing-gratitude-by/) [Janice Kaplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janice-kaplan/) > [My embarrassing confession is that my father is a 'Camelot: The Musical' obsessive. So as a child, when we were going to visit relatives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-chibnall/my-embarrassing-confession-is-that-my-father-is-a-camelot-the-musical/) [Chris Chibnall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-chibnall/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [My school was one of the most beautiful places a child can grow up in. You are surrounded by nature - cats, dogs, birds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amala-akkineni/my-school-was-one-of-the-most-beautiful-places-a-child-can-grow-up-in/) [Amala Akkineni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amala-akkineni/) > [A lesser complaint: hair extensions. There are moments on 'All My Children' when half the women actors, young and old, seem to be afflicted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camille-paglia/a-lesser-complaint-hair-extensions-there-are-moments-on-all-my/) [Camille Paglia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camille-paglia/) > [As a child, I had a lot of older gay men taking care of me. There's a trust there. I feel like little girls…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-cho/as-a-child-i-had-a-lot-of-older-gay-men-taking-care-of-me-there-s-a/) [Margaret Cho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-cho/) > [If my child had prejudice in his head, I'd be ashamed. I would see it as my failure as a parent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/if-my-child-had-prejudice-in-his-head-i-d-be-ashamed-i-would-see-it/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [“Children's lives are always beginning and adults' lives are always ending. Or is it the opposite? Your childhood is always ending and your adult…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-espach/children-s-lives-are-always-beginning-and-adults-lives-are-always/) [Alison Espach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-espach/) > [As a child I was very involved with sports and I knew at age 9 that I wanted to be an Olympic champion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-jones/as-a-child-i-was-very-involved-with-sports-and-i-knew-at-age-9-that-i/) [Marion Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-jones/) [Browse all 62,396 Children quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It is not more bigness that should be our goal. 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