--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When I was a child, I acted like child…" description: "\"When I was a child, I acted like child, but when I became a man, I put away childish things.\" — Shane Smith" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2c5/shane-smith-9533_childish-things_when-i-was-a-child-i-acted-like-child-bu_1860624.jpg" --- # When I was a child, I acted like child, but when I became… ![“When I was a child, I acted like child, but when I became a man, I put away childish things.” quote by Shane Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2c5/shane-smith-9533_childish-things_when-i-was-a-child-i-acted-like-child-bu_1860624.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2c5/shane-smith-9533_childish-things_when-i-was-a-child-i-acted-like-child-bu_1860624.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2c5/shane-smith-9533_childish-things_when-i-was-a-child-i-acted-like-child-bu_1860624.jpg) > “When I was a child, I acted like child, but when I became a man, I put away childish things.” [Shane Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-smith/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He reflects on growing up, urging adults to leave childish behavior behind and embrace maturity. **In simple terms:** Maturity means shedding childish habits. Key Takeaway Embrace adult responsibilities. Themes growth responsibility maturity self‑improvement Mood inspirational reflective Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - Career - relationships - parenting - personal development Key Concepts Developmental psychology life stages Questions to Reflect On - What childish habits do you still hold? - How can you foster maturity daily? A Different Perspective Maturity is a process, not a single event. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Childish things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/childish-things/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) ## Related quotes > [“When I was a child, I used to speak like a child, think like a child, reason like a child; when I became a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-i-was-a-child-i-used-to-speak-like-a-child-think-like-a-child/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Kids feel like they can approach me, which is nice. I've created this character who's like a child-man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noel-fielding/kids-feel-like-they-can-approach-me-which-is-nice-i-ve-created-this/) [Noel Fielding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noel-fielding/) > [Once I turned pro, so to speak, I put away childish things forever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenn-gould/once-i-turned-pro-so-to-speak-i-put-away-childish-things-forever/) [Glenn Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenn-gould/) > [The onset of adulthood is an organic, creeping process. No one wakes up one day and decides, 'Lo, on this day I shall forever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-carr/the-onset-of-adulthood-is-an-organic-creeping-process-no-one-wakes-up/) [David Carr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-carr/) > [I do think it's good to remember that childish things are made for children, and that, however pleasantly lurid the promise of a return…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-faust/i-do-think-it-s-good-to-remember-that-childish-things-are-made-for/) [Lauren Faust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-faust/) > [Art is a concrete and personal and rather childish thing after all - no matter what people do to graft it into science and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/art-is-a-concrete-and-personal-and-rather-childish-thing-after-all-no/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [“When I was a little girl, everything in the world fell into either of these two categories: wrong or right. Black or white. Now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-joybell-c/when-i-was-a-little-girl-everything-in-the-world-fell-into-either-of/) [C. JoyBell C](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-joybell-c/) > [“We were still children, for all that we thought we weren’t. We were in that in-between place, the twilight between childish things and grown-up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-henry/we-were-still-children-for-all-that-we-thought-we-weren-t-we-were-in/) [Christina Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-henry/) > [I do have a childlike enthusiasm at times. I certainly enjoy life and get pleasure sometimes in childish things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-baumgartner/i-do-have-a-childlike-enthusiasm-at-times-i-certainly-enjoy-life-and/) [Brian Baumgartner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-baumgartner/) > [Those who tread 'adult' as a term of approval cannot hope to be considered adult themselves. When I became a man I put away…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/those-who-tread-adult-as-a-term-of-approval-cannot-hope-to-be/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“The reluctance to put away childish things may be a requirement of genius.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-pepper-sinkler/the-reluctance-to-put-away-childish-things-may-be-a-requirement-of/) Rebecca Pepper Sinkler > [Its a time when you gotta push the childish things aside & realize it happened but its over now & keep right on living.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/its-a-time-when-you-gotta-push-the-childish-things-aside-realize-it/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If it seems a childish thing to do, do it in remembrance that you are a child.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/if-it-seems-a-childish-thing-to-do-do-it-in-remembrance-that-you-are/) [Frederick Buechner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/) > [When I became a man, I put away childish things and got more elaborate and expensive childish things from France and Japan.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/when-i-became-a-man-i-put-away-childish-things-and-got-more-elaborate/) [P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) > [“I am still every age that I have been. Because I was once a child, I am always a child. Because I was once…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeleine-l-engle/i-am-still-every-age-that-i-have-been-because-i-was-once-a-child-i-am/) [Madeleine L'Engle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeleine-l-engle/) ## More by Shane Smith > [I think there are so many problems in the world today, we have to figure out how to fix them rather than point fingers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-smith/i-think-there-are-so-many-problems-in-the-world-today-we-have-to/) [Shane Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-smith/) > [If you're big in Montreal, you're big in Quebec. If you're big in Toronto, you're big in Canada. But if you're big in New…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-smith/if-you-re-big-in-montreal-you-re-big-in-quebec-if-you-re-big-in/) [Shane Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-smith/) > [I never thought we had a chance of impacting anything. I am just starting to realize that we can change things - not just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-smith/i-never-thought-we-had-a-chance-of-impacting-anything-i-am-just/) [Shane Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-smith/) > [Whenever I view success, I'm dressed as Mozart on an island.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-smith/whenever-i-view-success-i-m-dressed-as-mozart-on-an-island/) [Shane Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-smith/) > [I don't care if I die - look, I'm old - but you want your kids to have good times and a good life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-smith/i-don-t-care-if-i-die-look-i-m-old-but-you-want-your-kids-to-have/) [Shane Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-smith/) > [American media has just become talk radio, incredibly partisan name-calling and op-eds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-smith/american-media-has-just-become-talk-radio-incredibly-partisan-name/) [Shane Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-smith/) > [I want to build the next CNN with 'VICE' - it's within my grasp.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-smith/i-want-to-build-the-next-cnn-with-vice-it-s-within-my-grasp/) [Shane Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-smith/) > [It's our job to get into the hardest-to-see places and bring back the best footage - we have the best footage of North Korea…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-smith/it-s-our-job-to-get-into-the-hardest-to-see-places-and-bring-back-the/) [Shane Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-smith/) > [Every generation has a changing of the guard in media. We do the same stuff that everybody else does, but we just do it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-smith/every-generation-has-a-changing-of-the-guard-in-media-we-do-the-same/) [Shane Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-smith/) > [I have a place in Costa Rica that is in the middle of the jungle. There's no Internet. There's no TV. Do I work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-smith/i-have-a-place-in-costa-rica-that-is-in-the-middle-of-the-jungle/) [Shane Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-smith/) > [When you're 18, 19, you want to live fast and leave a beautiful corpse behind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-smith/when-you-re-18-19-you-want-to-live-fast-and-leave-a-beautiful-corpse/) [Shane Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-smith/) > [If you're coming from America to Iraq, then how are you supposed to be objective? I mean, you could pay lip service to being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-smith/if-you-re-coming-from-america-to-iraq-then-how-are-you-supposed-to-be/) [Shane Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-smith/) > [You have to be dynamic. You have to be able to change. So a lot of times we'll go to a country or go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-smith/you-have-to-be-dynamic-you-have-to-be-able-to-change-so-a-lot-of/) [Shane Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-smith/) > [I woke up. I was like, "Look, you can do anything you want - and you want a lot of things, so you should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-smith/i-woke-up-i-was-like-look-you-can-do-anything-you-want-and-you-want-a/) [Shane Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-smith/) > [I want to be like Tom Freston. Tom just flies around everywhere, gets to make movies, gets to start TV shows, hang out with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-smith/i-want-to-be-like-tom-freston-tom-just-flies-around-everywhere-gets/) [Shane Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-smith/) [Explore all 72 Shane Smith quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-smith/) ## More Childish quotes > [I wasted my time on your childish games. But don't worry I will not even try to hate you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cynthia-f-b-mora/i-wasted-my-time-on-your-childish-games-but-don-t-worry-i-will-not/) Cynthia F B Mora > [Childish egocentrism is, in its essence, an inability to differentiate between the ego and the social environment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-piaget/childish-egocentrism-is-in-its-essence-an-inability-to-differentiate/) [Jean Piaget](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-piaget/) > [In a meat-eating world, wearing leather for shoes and clothes and even handbags, the discussion of fur is childish.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-lagerfeld/in-a-meat-eating-world-wearing-leather-for-shoes-and-clothes-and-even/) [Karl Lagerfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-lagerfeld/) > [“KINGDOM OF THE WOMB From her thighs, she gives you life And how you treat she who gives you life Shows how much you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzy-kassem/kingdom-of-the-womb-from-her-thighs-she-gives-you-life-and-how-you/) [Suzy Kassem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzy-kassem/) > [“Age doesn’t make us childish, as they say, It finds that we’re still children.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/age-doesn-t-make-us-childish-as-they-say-it-finds-that-we-re-still/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [When we're in that kind of childish space, we're more genuine and feel more comfortable with our friends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evan-spiegel/when-we-re-in-that-kind-of-childish-space-we-re-more-genuine-and-feel/) [Evan Spiegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evan-spiegel/) > [“Mockery is childish, Beatrice,' She says. 'It does not become you'. 'Mockery is childish, Beatric,' I repeat in my best imitation of her voice.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/mockery-is-childish-beatrice-she-says-it-does-not-become-you-mockery/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [The naive is what is or appears to be natural, individual, or classical to the point of irony or to the point of continuous…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-wilhelm-friedrich-schlegel/the-naive-is-what-is-or-appears-to-be-natural-individual-or-classical/) [Karl Wilhelm Friedrich Schlegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-wilhelm-friedrich-schlegel/) > [The most powerful men were those who most effectively used the power of adult competence to enforce childish agreements.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-s-trow/the-most-powerful-men-were-those-who-most-effectively-used-the-power/) [George W. S. Trow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-s-trow/) > [“Growing up is childish.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mokokoma-mokhonoana/growing-up-is-childish/) [Mokokoma Mokhonoana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mokokoma-mokhonoana/) > [It was childish to feel disappointed, but childishness comes almost as naturally to a man as to a child.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/it-was-childish-to-feel-disappointed-but-childishness-comes-almost-as/) [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) > [Don't you understand that we need to be childish in order to understand? Only a child sees things with perfect clarity, because it hasn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/don-t-you-understand-that-we-need-to-be-childish-in-order-to/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [I think it is important to learn to distinguish between being childlike and being childish.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-think-it-is-important-to-learn-to-distinguish-between-being/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I don't respect thinking that is dangerous, prejudicial, childish, and could get me killed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-maher/i-don-t-respect-thinking-that-is-dangerous-prejudicial-childish-and/) [Bill Maher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-maher/) > [“In a meat-eating world, wearing leather for shoes and even clothes, the discussion of fur is childish.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-lagerfeld/in-a-meat-eating-world-wearing-leather-for-shoes-and-even-clothes-the/) [Karl Lagerfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-lagerfeld/) Browse all 299 Childish quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "When I was a child, I acted like child, but when I became a man, I put away childish things.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Shane Smith" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-smith/when-i-was-a-child-i-acted-like-child-but-when-i-became-a-man-i-put/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Childish" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-smith/when-i-was-a-child-i-acted-like-child-but-when-i-became-a-man-i-put/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2c5/shane-smith-9533_childish-things_when-i-was-a-child-i-acted-like-child-bu_1860624.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2c5/shane-smith-9533_childish-things_when-i-was-a-child-i-acted-like-child-bu_1860624.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2c5/shane-smith-9533_childish-things_when-i-was-a-child-i-acted-like-child-bu_1860624.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“When I was a child, I acted like child, but when I became a man, I put away childish things.” — Shane Smith", "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": "Shane Smith", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-smith/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "When I was a child, I...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-smith/when-i-was-a-child-i-acted-like-child-but-when-i-became-a-man-i-put/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-smith/when-i-was-a-child-i-acted-like-child-but-when-i-became-a-man-i-put/#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 } } ] } ```