--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Maturity is doing whatever you want, even…" description: "\"Maturity is doing whatever you want, even if your parents want the same thing.\" — Werner Erhard" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b23/werner-erhard-8514_aging_maturity-is-doing-whatever-you-want-even_2410636.jpg" --- # Maturity is doing whatever you want, even if your parents… ![“Maturity is doing whatever you want, even if your parents want the same thing.” quote by Werner Erhard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b23/werner-erhard-8514_aging_maturity-is-doing-whatever-you-want-even_2410636.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b23/werner-erhard-8514_aging_maturity-is-doing-whatever-you-want-even_2410636.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b23/werner-erhard-8514_aging_maturity-is-doing-whatever-you-want-even_2410636.jpg) > “Maturity is doing whatever you want, even if your parents want the same thing.” [Werner Erhard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/werner-erhard/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Maturity means acting on personal values, even when they conflict with parental expectations. **In simple terms:** Act on your own choices despite family pressure. Key Takeaway Prioritize authentic decisions. Themes self‑reliance family dynamics personal growth Mood reflective determined Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - career decisions - living arrangements - relationship choices - financial independence Key Concepts autonomy boundary setting individualism Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance personal desires with family expectations? - What boundaries help maintain healthy relationships? A Different Perspective Family expectations may cause emotional strain and conflict. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Aging](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aging/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Maturity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/maturity/) [Maturity Doing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/maturity-doing-672165/) [Parent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parent/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) [Parents](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parents/) [Parents Want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parents-want/) [Want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want/) [Want Parents](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want-parents-817400/) ## Related quotes > [“I don't want what my parents have. I want the couple in the park.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/priscilla-glenn/i-don-t-want-what-my-parents-have-i-want-the-couple-in-the-park/) [Priscilla Glenn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/priscilla-glenn/) > [There are some forty thousand children in California, according to the red brief, that live with same-sex parents, and they want their parents to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-kennedy/there-are-some-forty-thousand-children-in-california-according-to-the/) [Anthony Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-kennedy/) > [I think, a lot of times, people don't want to do what their parents do because they want to be their own person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-qualley/i-think-a-lot-of-times-people-don-t-want-to-do-what-their-parents-do/) [Margaret Qualley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-qualley/) > [You don't want to do what your parents want you to do. You got your own things. And the whole idea of getting a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-bridges/you-don-t-want-to-do-what-your-parents-want-you-to-do-you-got-your/) [Jeff Bridges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-bridges/) > [Many girls struggle between the love for the partner and the love for their parents. They want to pursue their own happiness but at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kashmira-shah/many-girls-struggle-between-the-love-for-the-partner-and-the-love-for/) [Kashmira Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kashmira-shah/) > [“Be what you want to be,not what your parents want.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/faraz/be-what-you-want-to-be-not-what-your-parents-want/) [Faraz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/faraz/) > [Maturity is doing what you think is best, even when your mother thinks it's a good idea.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-watzlawick/maturity-is-doing-what-you-think-is-best-even-when-your-mother-thinks/) [Paul Watzlawick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-watzlawick/) > [How often I have found that we grow to maturity not by doing what we like, but by doing what we should. How true…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-rahner/how-often-i-have-found-that-we-grow-to-maturity-not-by-doing-what-we/) [Karl Rahner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-rahner/) > [I'm a Southerner. We dream of having the family and the kids, and the parents want grandkids, that's all they care about, give me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-bass/i-m-a-southerner-we-dream-of-having-the-family-and-the-kids-and-the/) [Lance Bass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-bass/) > [All teenagers want to rebel a little and break away. But I think you are always going to want to go back to your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saoirse-ronan/all-teenagers-want-to-rebel-a-little-and-break-away-but-i-think-you/) [Saoirse Ronan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saoirse-ronan/) > [My mom was the poster girl for the Marines. So she was in the poster saying, "I want you." My parents were both Marines.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-bon-jovi/my-mom-was-the-poster-girl-for-the-marines-so-she-was-in-the-poster/) [Jon Bon Jovi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-bon-jovi/) > [“What must it be like to want your parents' happiness instead of resenting them for it?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-young/what-must-it-be-like-to-want-your-parents-happiness-instead-of/) [Samantha Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-young/) > ['Conservative' is a term that resonates differently with people. For us, Tae and I take that as being modest. The easiest way to put…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maddie-marlow/conservative-is-a-term-that-resonates-differently-with-people-for-us/) [Maddie Marlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maddie-marlow/) > [I'm missing home so much right now. I want my parents. I want my friends. I want my bed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-m-missing-home-so-much-right-now-i-want-my-parents-i-want-my/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“And what this is, I realize, is life. I don't want it. I want my parents and I have for weeks. I've been trying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/and-what-this-is-i-realize-is-life-i-don-t-want-it-i-want-my-parents/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) ## More by Werner Erhard > [What I recognized is that you can't put it together. It's already together, and what you have to do is experience it being together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-erhard/what-i-recognized-is-that-you-can-t-put-it-together-it-s-already/) [Werner Erhard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/werner-erhard/) > [Consider that all accomplishment is constituted by a series of resolved breakdowns.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-erhard/consider-that-all-accomplishment-is-constituted-by-a-series-of/) [Werner Erhard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/werner-erhard/) > [Your life works to the degree you keep your agreements.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-erhard/your-life-works-to-the-degree-you-keep-your-agreements/) [Werner Erhard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/werner-erhard/) > [Life is a game. In order to have a game, something has to be more important than something else. If what already is, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-erhard/life-is-a-game-in-order-to-have-a-game-something-has-to-be-more/) [Werner Erhard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/werner-erhard/) > [Man keeps looking for a truth that fits his reality. Given our reality, the truth doesn't fit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-erhard/man-keeps-looking-for-a-truth-that-fits-his-reality-given-our-reality/) [Werner Erhard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/werner-erhard/) > [The quickest way to be happy is to choose what you already have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-erhard/the-quickest-way-to-be-happy-is-to-choose-what-you-already-have/) [Werner Erhard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/werner-erhard/) > [Living is really pretty simple. Living happens right now; it doesn't happen back then, and it doesn't happen out there. Living is not the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-erhard/living-is-really-pretty-simple-living-happens-right-now-it-doesn-t/) [Werner Erhard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/werner-erhard/) > [What most people do is give space to people's quality and deal with their garbage. Actually, you should do it the other way around.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-erhard/what-most-people-do-is-give-space-to-people-s-quality-and-deal-with/) [Werner Erhard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/werner-erhard/) > [Self expression is a function of responsibility.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-erhard/self-expression-is-a-function-of-responsibility/) [Werner Erhard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/werner-erhard/) > [The world is perfect the way it is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-erhard/the-world-is-perfect-the-way-it-is/) [Werner Erhard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/werner-erhard/) > [If you could really accept that you weren't ok, you could stop proving you were ok. If you could stop proving that you were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-erhard/if-you-could-really-accept-that-you-weren-t-ok-you-could-stop-proving/) [Werner Erhard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/werner-erhard/) > [Pay no attention to critics. No one ever erected a statue to a critic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-erhard/pay-no-attention-to-critics-no-one-ever-erected-a-statue-to-a-critic/) [Werner Erhard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/werner-erhard/) > [You and I want our lives to matter. We want our lives to make a real difference - to be of genuine consequence in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-erhard/you-and-i-want-our-lives-to-matter-we-want-our-lives-to-make-a-real/) [Werner Erhard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/werner-erhard/) > [There is something I do not know, the knowing of which could change everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-erhard/there-is-something-i-do-not-know-the-knowing-of-which-could-change/) [Werner Erhard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/werner-erhard/) > [If you keep saying it the way it really is, eventually your word is law in the universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-erhard/if-you-keep-saying-it-the-way-it-really-is-eventually-your-word-is/) [Werner Erhard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/werner-erhard/) [Explore all 80 Werner Erhard quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/werner-erhard/) ## More Aging quotes > [While we've youth in our hearts, we can never grow old.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr/while-we-ve-youth-in-our-hearts-we-can-never-grow-old/) [Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr/) > [In the past 40 years, the United States lost more than a million farmers and ranchers. Many of our farmers are aging. Today, only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-vilsack/in-the-past-40-years-the-united-states-lost-more-than-a-million/) [Tom Vilsack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-vilsack/) > [We'll never be as young as we are tonight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/we-ll-never-be-as-young-as-we-are-tonight/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [“Prayer of an Anonymous Abbess: Lord, thou knowest better than myself that I am growing older and will soon be old. Keep me from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/prayer-of-an-anonymous-abbess-lord-thou-knowest-better-than-myself/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The more I produce, the less I am certain. On the road along which the artist walks, night falls ever more densely. Finally, he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/the-more-i-produce-the-less-i-am-certain-on-the-road-along-which-the/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [So often do you see collegians enter life with high resolve and lofty purpose and then watch them shrink and shrink to sordid, selfish,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-e-b-du-bois/so-often-do-you-see-collegians-enter-life-with-high-resolve-and-lofty/) [W. E. B. Du Bois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-e-b-du-bois/) > [Aging is like enlightenment at gunpoint. Before I had cancer, I lived my life for my art. After I had cancer, I lived my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-halprin/aging-is-like-enlightenment-at-gunpoint-before-i-had-cancer-i-lived/) [Anna Halprin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-halprin/) > [All the dangers in our world are like a blessed wake up call. They tell us to live life NOW... not tomorrow, not when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-jeffers/all-the-dangers-in-our-world-are-like-a-blessed-wake-up-call-they/) [Susan Jeffers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-jeffers/) > [“You could see the signs of female aging as diseased, especially if you had a vested interest in making women too see them your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/you-could-see-the-signs-of-female-aging-as-diseased-especially-if-you/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [“It takes maturity to be able to laugh like a child again.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moffat-machingura/it-takes-maturity-to-be-able-to-laugh-like-a-child-again/) [Moffat Machingura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moffat-machingura/) > [Seek ye counsel of the aged for their eyes have looked on the faces of the years and their ears have hardened to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khalil-gibran/seek-ye-counsel-of-the-aged-for-their-eyes-have-looked-on-the-faces/) [Khalil Gibran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khalil-gibran/) > [Growing old-it's not nice, but it's interesting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/august-strindberg/growing-old-it-s-not-nice-but-it-s-interesting/) [August Strindberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/august-strindberg/) > [Anything is possible in the life of a man if he lives long enough. Even maturity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howell-raines/anything-is-possible-in-the-life-of-a-man-if-he-lives-long-enough/) [Howell Raines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howell-raines/) > [I just want to be Patty McCormack. I want to spend every year aging the way she has.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-varney/i-just-want-to-be-patty-mccormack-i-want-to-spend-every-year-aging/) [Janet Varney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-varney/) > [Maturity is reached the day we don't need to be lied to about anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-yerby/maturity-is-reached-the-day-we-don-t-need-to-be-lied-to-about-anything/) [Frank Yerby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-yerby/) [Browse all 2,792 Aging quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aging/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Maturity is doing whatever you want, even if your parents want the same thing.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Werner Erhard" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-erhard/maturity-is-doing-whatever-you-want-even-if-your-parents-want-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Aging" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-erhard/maturity-is-doing-whatever-you-want-even-if-your-parents-want-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b23/werner-erhard-8514_aging_maturity-is-doing-whatever-you-want-even_2410636.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b23/werner-erhard-8514_aging_maturity-is-doing-whatever-you-want-even_2410636.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b23/werner-erhard-8514_aging_maturity-is-doing-whatever-you-want-even_2410636.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Maturity is doing whatever you want, even if your parents want the same thing.” — Werner Erhard", "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": "Werner Erhard", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/werner-erhard/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Maturity is doing whatever you want,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-erhard/maturity-is-doing-whatever-you-want-even-if-your-parents-want-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-erhard/maturity-is-doing-whatever-you-want-even-if-your-parents-want-the/#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 } } ] } ```