--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Once people get a taste for whatever you…" description: "\"Once people get a taste for whatever you want to call it - economic independence, a better lifestyle, and a better life for their children - they grab ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97c/thomas-friedman-1784_better-life_once-people-get-a-taste-for-whatever-you_1167337.png" --- # Once people get a taste for whatever you want to call it… ![“Once people get a taste for whatever you want to call it - economic independence, a better lifestyle, and a better life for their children - they grab on to that and don't want to give it up.” quote by Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97c/thomas-friedman-1784_better-life_once-people-get-a-taste-for-whatever-you_1167337.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97c/thomas-friedman-1784_better-life_once-people-get-a-taste-for-whatever-you_1167337.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97c/thomas-friedman-1784_better-life_once-people-get-a-taste-for-whatever-you_1167337.png) > “Once people get a taste for whatever you want to call it - economic independence, a better lifestyle, and a better life for their children - they grab on to that and don't want to give it up.” [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Economic freedom creates a desire to maintain it, leading people to resist policies that threaten their newfound prosperity. **In simple terms:** People cling to economic independence once achieved. Key Takeaway Protect and nurture economic gains. Themes economics freedom policy social change intergenerational impact Mood optimistic concerned Type analytical policy‑oriented When to use this quote - urban development - public policy - family budgeting - education planning Key Concepts self‑determination incentive structures social stability Questions to Reflect On - How can societies ensure that economic gains benefit all generations? - What policies best sustain economic independence? A Different Perspective Economic gains can be fragile if not supported by inclusive institutions. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Economic independence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/economic-independence/) [Freedom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom/) [Giving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving/) [Independence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/independence/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Lifestyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lifestyle/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) ## Related quotes > [We're all working together; that's the secret. And we'll lower the cost of living for everyone, not just in America, but we'll give the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-walton/we-re-all-working-together-that-s-the-secret-and-we-ll-lower-the-cost/) [Sam Walton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-walton/) > [The kind of values for which I was supposed to kill, such as democracy and national independence, were better served, I thought, through non-violent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/torbjorn-tannsjo/the-kind-of-values-for-which-i-was-supposed-to-kill-such-as-democracy/) [Torbjorn Tannsjo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/torbjorn-tannsjo/) > [A free man can live on fish.Independence is better than meat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/halld-r-laxness/a-free-man-can-live-on-fish-independence-is-better-than-meat/) [Halldór Laxness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/halld-r-laxness/) > [It's your body and you're going to have a much better life, you are going to have a quality life, better lifestyle, you're going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-ditka/it-s-your-body-and-you-re-going-to-have-a-much-better-life-you-are/) [Mike Ditka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-ditka/) > [Social media is not going away and we're not all going to leave our phones for good. But we can make sure we don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-shetty/social-media-is-not-going-away-and-we-re-not-all-going-to-leave-our/) [Jay Shetty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-shetty/) > [It's our instinct to want to acquire a better lifestyle for ourselves and our families.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trish-regan/it-s-our-instinct-to-want-to-acquire-a-better-lifestyle-for-ourselves/) [Trish Regan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trish-regan/) > [Now is the time to get out there and give people a taste of 'Mondo Cozmo.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-ostrander/now-is-the-time-to-get-out-there-and-give-people-a-taste-of-mondo/) [Joshua Ostrander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-ostrander/) > [“Laura loved people to taste what she tasted.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/laura-loved-people-to-taste-what-she-tasted/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [“Thanks To Those People Who Give A Taste Of Right Ways.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zia-mustafa/thanks-to-those-people-who-give-a-taste-of-right-ways/) Zia Mustafa > [Indolent people, whatever taste they may have for society, seek eagerly for pleasure, and find nothing. They have an empty head and seared hearts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-georg-ritter-von-zimmermann/indolent-people-whatever-taste-they-may-have-for-society-seek-eagerly/) [Johann Georg Ritter von Zimmermann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-georg-ritter-von-zimmermann/) > [You have no control over other people's taste, so focus on staying true to your own.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-gunn/you-have-no-control-over-other-people-s-taste-so-focus-on-staying/) [Tim Gunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-gunn/) > [Taste tends to develop very unevenly. It's rare that the same person has good visual taste and good taste in people and taste in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-sontag/taste-tends-to-develop-very-unevenly-it-s-rare-that-the-same-person/) [Susan Sontag](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-sontag/) > [There are some Christian people who taste and see and enjoy religion in their own souls, and who get at a deeper knowledge of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-spurgeon/there-are-some-christian-people-who-taste-and-see-and-enjoy-religion/) [Charles Spurgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-spurgeon/) > [I suppose all we can really share with people is a taste for the same kinds of weather.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zelda-fitzgerald/i-suppose-all-we-can-really-share-with-people-is-a-taste-for-the-same/) [Zelda Fitzgerald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zelda-fitzgerald/) > [I want to give people a taste of the Caribbean, and show them the fun side of me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rihanna/i-want-to-give-people-a-taste-of-the-caribbean-and-show-them-the-fun/) [Rihanna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rihanna/) ## More by Thomas Friedman > [I'm pretty much an open book. I am a fanatic golfer and golf nut. If I have three free hours any day, my first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/i-m-pretty-much-an-open-book-i-am-a-fanatic-golfer-and-golf-nut-if-i/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [The financial crisis just made the hole deeper, which is why our stimulus needs to be both big and smart, both financially and educationally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/the-financial-crisis-just-made-the-hole-deeper-which-is-why-our/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [Many jobs at Google require math, computing, and coding skills, so if your good grades truly reflect skills in those areas that you can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/many-jobs-at-google-require-math-computing-and-coding-skills-so-if/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [Never before in the history of the planet have so many people, on their own, had the ability to find so much information about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/never-before-in-the-history-of-the-planet-have-so-many-people-on/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [When I was growing up, my parents told me, 'Finish your dinner. People in China and India are starving.' I tell my daughters, 'Finish…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/when-i-was-growing-up-my-parents-told-me-finish-your-dinner-people-in/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [Hillary Clinton has decided to line up with John McCain in pushing to suspend the federal excise tax on gasoline, 18.4 cents a gallon,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/hillary-clinton-has-decided-to-line-up-with-john-mccain-in-pushing-to/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [Two things are going on at the same time with the flattening of the world: The relentless quest for efficiency is squeezing some of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/two-things-are-going-on-at-the-same-time-with-the-flattening-of-the/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [Our president's latest energy initiative was to go to Saudi Arabia and beg King Abdullah to give us a little relief on gasoline prices.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/our-president-s-latest-energy-initiative-was-to-go-to-saudi-arabia/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [I don't think the Arab Spring had much to do with energy. I think it was just the opposite, in fact. I think the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/i-don-t-think-the-arab-spring-had-much-to-do-with-energy-i-think-it/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [Until we fully understand what turned two brothers who allegedly perpetrated the Boston Marathon bombings into murderers, it is hard to make any policy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/until-we-fully-understand-what-turned-two-brothers-who-allegedly/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [Geopolitics is all about leverage. We cannot make ourselves safer abroad unless we change our behavior at home.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/geopolitics-is-all-about-leverage-we-cannot-make-ourselves-safer/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [Big breakthroughs happen when what is suddenly possible meets what is desperately needed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/big-breakthroughs-happen-when-what-is-suddenly-possible-meets-what-is/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [That's right-the striking thing about greenhouse gases is the diversity of sources that emit them. A herd of cattle belching can be worse than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/that-s-right-the-striking-thing-about-greenhouse-gases-is-the/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [There is something more severe than the problem with Thomas Friedman, which can be generalized to represent someone causing action while being completely unaccountable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/there-is-something-more-severe-than-the-problem-with-thomas-friedman/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [Pessimists are usually right and optimists are usually wrong but all the great changes have been accomplished by optimists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/pessimists-are-usually-right-and-optimists-are-usually-wrong-but-all/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) [Explore all 208 Thomas Friedman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) ## More Better life quotes > [My father longed for a better life for us, and when I was nine he got a job as a heart surgeon in Belfast.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-melua/my-father-longed-for-a-better-life-for-us-and-when-i-was-nine-he-got/) [Katie Melua](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-melua/) > [A faithfully kept program of savings and conservative investments can give you more money and a better life than that of your neighbors who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-bryant-quinn/a-faithfully-kept-program-of-savings-and-conservative-investments-can/) [Jane Bryant Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-bryant-quinn/) > [“There is no greater force for change than people inspired to live a better life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-maraboli/there-is-no-greater-force-for-change-than-people-inspired-to-live-a/) [Steve Maraboli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-maraboli/) > [If you want to live a meaningfully better life, you're going to have to make the dangerous choice to dissent. A life lived meaningfully…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umair-haque/if-you-want-to-live-a-meaningfully-better-life-you-re-going-to-have/) [Umair Haque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umair-haque/) > [“I've know Bruce Wayne for over 50 years, and Ive kept an eye on you your whole life. You're not Bruce's clone, you're his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-timm/i-ve-know-bruce-wayne-for-over-50-years-and-ive-kept-an-eye-on-you/) [Bruce Timm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-timm/) > [TIPS FOR A BETTER LIFE.. 1. Live without pretending. 2. Love without depending. 3. Listen without defending. 4. Speak without offending.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/tips-for-a-better-life-1-live-without-pretending-2-love-without/) [Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/) > [There is always the possibility of a better life with every change that we face, but sometimes we have to look hard for it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bowick/there-is-always-the-possibility-of-a-better-life-with-every-change/) [David Bowick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bowick/) > [So in the near future, two or three years, people in Kyrgyzstan will experience a better life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurmanbek-bakiyev/so-in-the-near-future-two-or-three-years-people-in-kyrgyzstan-will/) Kurmanbek Bakiyev > [I want to make sure that I fulfill the aspirations of the Gabonese people: to have access to a better life, job opportunities, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ali-bongo-ondimba/i-want-to-make-sure-that-i-fulfill-the-aspirations-of-the-gabonese/) [Ali Bongo Ondimba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ali-bongo-ondimba/) > [We will strive to make Taiwan a better place and enable our people to live better lives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chen-shui-bian/we-will-strive-to-make-taiwan-a-better-place-and-enable-our-people-to/) [Chen Shui-bian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chen-shui-bian/) > [The slums are not a place of despair. Its inhabitants are all working towards a better life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikas-swarup/the-slums-are-not-a-place-of-despair-its-inhabitants-are-all-working/) [Vikas Swarup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikas-swarup/) > [I see history as really cyclical in terms of the intense idealism, and the desire to create a better life outside of societal norms.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-groff/i-see-history-as-really-cyclical-in-terms-of-the-intense-idealism-and/) [Lauren Groff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-groff/) > [If I died Some people will be soo happy and though a party,Other will regret what they had said to me,and people who really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jasmine/if-i-died-some-people-will-be-soo-happy-and-though-a-party-other-will/) [Jasmine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jasmine/) > [There is no more important task in a democracy than resolving the differences among people and finding a course of action that will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-mcnamara/there-is-no-more-important-task-in-a-democracy-than-resolving-the/) [Robert McNamara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-mcnamara/) > [There isn't any wall, however high, however wide or however big, whatever it is made from, that can bar you from achieving a better…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-luis-rodriguez-zapatero/there-isn-t-any-wall-however-high-however-wide-or-however-big/) [Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-luis-rodriguez-zapatero/) Browse all 925 Better life quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Once people get a taste for whatever you want to call it - economic independence, a better lifestyle, and a better life for their children - they grab on to that and don't want to give it up.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Thomas Friedman" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/once-people-get-a-taste-for-whatever-you-want-to-call-it-economic/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Better life" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/once-people-get-a-taste-for-whatever-you-want-to-call-it-economic/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97c/thomas-friedman-1784_better-life_once-people-get-a-taste-for-whatever-you_1167337.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97c/thomas-friedman-1784_better-life_once-people-get-a-taste-for-whatever-you_1167337.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97c/thomas-friedman-1784_better-life_once-people-get-a-taste-for-whatever-you_1167337.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Once people get a taste for whatever you want to call it - economic independence, a better lifestyle, and a…” — Thomas Friedman", "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": "Thomas Friedman", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Once people get a taste for...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/once-people-get-a-taste-for-whatever-you-want-to-call-it-economic/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/once-people-get-a-taste-for-whatever-you-want-to-call-it-economic/#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 } } ] } ```