--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: People are in a hurry to magnify…" description: "\"People are in a hurry to magnify themselves by imitating what is popular- and too lazy to think of anything better.\" — Thomas Merton" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8eb/thomas-merton-231_imitating_people-are-in-a-hurry-to-magnify-themsel_2727687.jpg" --- # People are in a hurry to magnify themselves by imitating… ![“People are in a hurry to magnify themselves by imitating what is popular- and too lazy to think of anything better.” quote by Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8eb/thomas-merton-231_imitating_people-are-in-a-hurry-to-magnify-themsel_2727687.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8eb/thomas-merton-231_imitating_people-are-in-a-hurry-to-magnify-themsel_2727687.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8eb/thomas-merton-231_imitating_people-are-in-a-hurry-to-magnify-themsel_2727687.jpg) > “People are in a hurry to magnify themselves by imitating what is popular- and too lazy to think of anything better.” [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People imitate popular trends instead of creating original ideas. **In simple terms:** Avoid copying trends. Key Takeaway Cultivate original thought. Themes originality conformity creativity social critique Mood critical inspirational Type philosophical creative When to use this quote - artistic creation - marketing - personal development Key Concepts innovation cultural pressure Questions to Reflect On - How can you foster originality? - When is imitation useful? A Different Perspective May ignore benefits of learning from others. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [The biggest problem within humanity is people get in too much of a hurry to have patience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-victor-paskavich/the-biggest-problem-within-humanity-is-people-get-in-too-much-of-a/) [Stanley Victor Paskavich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-victor-paskavich/) > [“That's the funny thing about old people: they never seem in a hurry. I think old people have figured out that being five minutes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shannon-wiersbitzky/that-s-the-funny-thing-about-old-people-they-never-seem-in-a-hurry-i/) [Shannon Wiersbitzky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shannon-wiersbitzky/) > [“All the people are in a hurry--and sometimes they look pale under those lights, then the girls' dresses look like they're not paid off…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irmgard-keun/all-the-people-are-in-a-hurry-and-sometimes-they-look-pale-under/) [Irmgard Keun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irmgard-keun/) > [People are in a hurry. They don't want to look at a long list of ingredients. Cooking is terribly hard work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruth-glick/people-are-in-a-hurry-they-don-t-want-to-look-at-a-long-list-of/) [Ruth Glick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruth-glick/) > [People are in such a hurry to launch their product or business that they seldom look at marketing from a bird's eye view and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-ramsey/people-are-in-such-a-hurry-to-launch-their-product-or-business-that/) [Dave Ramsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-ramsey/) > [People in a hurry cannot think, cannot grow, nor can they decay. They are preserved in a state of perpetual puerility.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/people-in-a-hurry-cannot-think-cannot-grow-nor-can-they-decay-they/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [“Paris . . . is loath to surrender itself to people who are in a hurry; it belongs to the dreamers, to those capable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-sciolino/paris-is-loath-to-surrender-itself-to-people-who-are-in-a-hurry-it/) Elaine Sciolino > [In observing the Sabbath, one is both giving a gift to God and imitating Him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-f-winner/in-observing-the-sabbath-one-is-both-giving-a-gift-to-god-and/) [Lauren F. Winner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-f-winner/) > [Whenever we show others the goodness of God, whenever we follow our Teacher by imitating His posture of humble and ready service, our actions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-held-evans/whenever-we-show-others-the-goodness-of-god-whenever-we-follow-our/) [Rachel Held Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-held-evans/) > [Voluntary poverty isn't going around with some burlap bag around you and imitating the poor. It means being indifferent to the material, doing as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-day/voluntary-poverty-isn-t-going-around-with-some-burlap-bag-around-you/) [Dorothy Day](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-day/) > [When life is rosy, we may slide by with knowing about Jesus, with imitating him and quoting him and speaking of him. But only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joni-eareckson-tada/when-life-is-rosy-we-may-slide-by-with-knowing-about-jesus-with/) [Joni Eareckson Tada](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joni-eareckson-tada/) > [They're stealing my ideas. They're imitating my shots.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-o-selznick/they-re-stealing-my-ideas-they-re-imitating-my-shots/) [David O. Selznick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-o-selznick/) > [I look at my first books and am glad they weren't published… You start writing by imitating your heroes, then you keep the heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-zusak/i-look-at-my-first-books-and-am-glad-they-weren-t-published-you-start/) [Markus Zusak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-zusak/) > [Who would dare assign to art the sterile function of imitating nature?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-baudelaire/who-would-dare-assign-to-art-the-sterile-function-of-imitating-nature/) [Charles Baudelaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-baudelaire/) > [I think when people talk about art imitating life, you're in real time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-colter/i-think-when-people-talk-about-art-imitating-life-you-re-in-real-time/) [Mike Colter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-colter/) ## More by Thomas Merton > [“Let no one hope to find in contemplation an escape from conflict, from anguish or from doubt. On the contrary, the deep, inexpressible certitude…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/let-no-one-hope-to-find-in-contemplation-an-escape-from-conflict-from/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [If nothing that can be seen can either be God or represent Him to us as He is, then to find God we must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/if-nothing-that-can-be-seen-can-either-be-god-or-represent-him-to-us/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [It is almost impossible to overestimate the value of true humility and its power in the spiritual life. For the beginning of humility is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/it-is-almost-impossible-to-overestimate-the-value-of-true-humility/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [We are not perfectly free until we live in pure hope. For when our hope is pure, it no longer trusts exclusively in human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/we-are-not-perfectly-free-until-we-live-in-pure-hope-for-when-our/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [The desire to kill is like the desire to attack another with an ingot of red -hot iron: I have to pick up the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/the-desire-to-kill-is-like-the-desire-to-attack-another-with-an-ingot/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [To enter into the realm of contemplation one must in a certain sense die: but this death is in fact the entrance to a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/to-enter-into-the-realm-of-contemplation-one-must-in-a-certain-sense/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [The mission of Christian humility in social life is not merely to edify, but to keep minds open to many alternatives. The rigidity of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/the-mission-of-christian-humility-in-social-life-is-not-merely-to/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [Peace cannot be built on exclusivism, absolutism, and intolerance. But neither can it be built on vague liberal slogans and pious programs gestated in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/peace-cannot-be-built-on-exclusivism-absolutism-and-intolerance-but/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [Things that are good are good, and if one is responding to that goodness one is in contact with a truth from which one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/things-that-are-good-are-good-and-if-one-is-responding-to-that/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [Love winter when the plant says nothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/love-winter-when-the-plant-says-nothing/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [The logic of worldly success rests on a fallacy: the strange error that our perfection depends on the thoughts and opinions and applause of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/the-logic-of-worldly-success-rests-on-a-fallacy-the-strange-error/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [“The wisdom of the flesh is a judgement that the ordinary ends of our natural appetites are the goods to which the whole of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/the-wisdom-of-the-flesh-is-a-judgement-that-the-ordinary-ends-of-our/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [I will no longer wound myself with the thoughts and questions that have surrounded me like thorns: that is a penance You do not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/i-will-no-longer-wound-myself-with-the-thoughts-and-questions-that/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [If you write for God you will reach many men and bring them joy. If you write for men--you may make some money and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/if-you-write-for-god-you-will-reach-many-men-and-bring-them-joy-if/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [“Contemplation means rest, suspension of activity, withdrawal into the mysterious interior solitude in which the soul is absorbed in the immense and fruitful silence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/contemplation-means-rest-suspension-of-activity-withdrawal-into-the/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) [Explore all 851 Thomas Merton quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) ## More Imitating quotes > [I think when people talk about art imitating life, you're in real time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-colter/i-think-when-people-talk-about-art-imitating-life-you-re-in-real-time/) [Mike Colter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-colter/) > [Who would dare assign to art the sterile function of imitating nature?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-baudelaire/who-would-dare-assign-to-art-the-sterile-function-of-imitating-nature/) [Charles Baudelaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-baudelaire/) > [I look at my first books and am glad they weren't published… You start writing by imitating your heroes, then you keep the heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-zusak/i-look-at-my-first-books-and-am-glad-they-weren-t-published-you-start/) [Markus Zusak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-zusak/) > [They're stealing my ideas. They're imitating my shots.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-o-selznick/they-re-stealing-my-ideas-they-re-imitating-my-shots/) [David O. Selznick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-o-selznick/) > [When life is rosy, we may slide by with knowing about Jesus, with imitating him and quoting him and speaking of him. But only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joni-eareckson-tada/when-life-is-rosy-we-may-slide-by-with-knowing-about-jesus-with/) [Joni Eareckson Tada](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joni-eareckson-tada/) > [Voluntary poverty isn't going around with some burlap bag around you and imitating the poor. It means being indifferent to the material, doing as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-day/voluntary-poverty-isn-t-going-around-with-some-burlap-bag-around-you/) [Dorothy Day](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-day/) > [Whenever we show others the goodness of God, whenever we follow our Teacher by imitating His posture of humble and ready service, our actions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-held-evans/whenever-we-show-others-the-goodness-of-god-whenever-we-follow-our/) [Rachel Held Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-held-evans/) > [In observing the Sabbath, one is both giving a gift to God and imitating Him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-f-winner/in-observing-the-sabbath-one-is-both-giving-a-gift-to-god-and/) [Lauren F. Winner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-f-winner/) > [The very word "secrecy" is repugnant in a free and open society; and we are as a people inherently and historically opposed to secret…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kennedy/the-very-word-secrecy-is-repugnant-in-a-free-and-open-society-and-we/) [John F. Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kennedy/) > [“I tried imitating him a few times. But I was too self-conscious, like someone trying to feel natural while walking about naked in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-aciman/i-tried-imitating-him-a-few-times-but-i-was-too-self-conscious-like/) [André Aciman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-aciman/) > [The true smoker abstains from imitating Vesuvius.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/auguste-marseille-barthelemy/the-true-smoker-abstains-from-imitating-vesuvius/) Auguste-Marseille Barthelemy > [Every writer knows that when you're imitating somebody - you know, you're sounding like Faulkner - you're doing pretty good, but your life in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-saunders/every-writer-knows-that-when-you-re-imitating-somebody-you-know-you/) [George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/) > [My parents had a pub and each Sunday there was an accordionist. They have told me that when I was in my cradle, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toots-thielemans/my-parents-had-a-pub-and-each-sunday-there-was-an-accordionist-they/) [Toots Thielemans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toots-thielemans/) > [“Imitating someone is a conscious reminder to your subconscious that you don't exist.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/goitsemang-mvula/imitating-someone-is-a-conscious-reminder-to-your-subconscious-that/) [Goitsemang Mvula](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/goitsemang-mvula/) > [You must understand the feeling of originating as opposed to imitating.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sailor-jerry/you-must-understand-the-feeling-of-originating-as-opposed-to-imitating/) [Sailor Jerry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sailor-jerry/) Browse all 173 Imitating quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "People are in a hurry to magnify themselves by imitating what is popular- and too lazy to think of anything better.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Thomas Merton" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/people-are-in-a-hurry-to-magnify-themselves-by-imitating-what-is/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Imitating" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/people-are-in-a-hurry-to-magnify-themselves-by-imitating-what-is/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8eb/thomas-merton-231_imitating_people-are-in-a-hurry-to-magnify-themsel_2727687.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8eb/thomas-merton-231_imitating_people-are-in-a-hurry-to-magnify-themsel_2727687.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8eb/thomas-merton-231_imitating_people-are-in-a-hurry-to-magnify-themsel_2727687.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“People are in a hurry to magnify themselves by imitating what is popular- and too lazy to think of anything…” — Thomas Merton", "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 Merton", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "People are in a hurry to...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/people-are-in-a-hurry-to-magnify-themselves-by-imitating-what-is/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/people-are-in-a-hurry-to-magnify-themselves-by-imitating-what-is/#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 } } ] } ```