Growth quotes
2.2K quotes on this topic — from poets, philosophers, and thinkers across history.
Explore further
Browse quotes that often appear alongside growth — connected by shared ideas and recurring themes.
Quote collection
Follow a thought to its author, or read the full quote page.
"An elephant is vastly more efficient, metabolically, than a mouse. It's the same for a megacity as opposed to a village. But an elephant can break a leg very easily, whereas you can toss a mouse out of a window and it'll be fine. Size makes you fragile."
"The systems that fail are those that rely on the permanency of human nature, and not its growth and development."
"We are sometimes as different from ourselves as we are from others."
"I'm in favor of personal growth as long as it doesn't include malignant tumors."
"If we spend the time we waste in sighing for the perfect golden fruit in fulfilling the conditions of its growth, happiness will come, must come. It is guaranteed in the very laws of the universe. If it involves some chastening and renunciation, well, the fruit will be all the sweeter for this touch of holiness."
"We must not only cease our present desire for the growth of the state, but we must desire its decrease, its weakening."
"The EPA's greenhouse gas regulations, along with a host of other onerous regulations, are unnecessarily driving out conventional fuels as part of America's energy mix. The consequences are higher energy prices for families and a contraction of our nation's economic growth."
"If you put yourself in a position where you have to stretch outside your comfort zone, then you are forced to expand your consciousness."
"All of us need to grow continuously in our lives."
"For even as love crowns you so shall he crucify you. Even as he is for your growth so is he for your pruning. Even as he ascends to your height and caresses your tenderest branches that quiver in the sun, so shall he descend to your roots and shake them in their clinging to the earth."
"I would be remiss, as a scientist who studied this, if I didn't mention the following two things: The first is that, most importantly, we need to do, as a society, in this country and globally, whatever we can to reduce population"....."Our whole economic system is based on growth, and growth of our population, and this economic madness has to end."
"Wisdom born of experience should tell us that war is obsolete. There may have been a time when war served as a negative good by preventing the spread and growth of an evil force If we assume that life is worth living, if we assume that mankind has the right to survive, then we must find an alternative to war."
"Yoga is firstly for individual growth, but through individual growth, society and community develop."
"Energy is the golden thread that connects economic growth, increased social equity, and an environment that allows the world to thrive."
"It is important to combine structural reforms and good fiscal stewardship with a growth strategy, because when your economy's growing and more revenue's coming in, that helps relieve debt."
"Here's the problem if you keep raising tax rates: You slow down economic growth."
"It is clear that a temporary increase in the cap is needed to ensure high-tech companies can hire the specialized personnel they need to continue to help fuel California's economic growth."
"The raging monster upon the land is population growth. In its presence, sustainability is but a fragile theoretical construct. To say, as many do, that the difficulties of nations are not due to people, but to poor ideology and land-use management is sophistic."
"When the business grows, the person who founded it is incredibly busy. Rapid growth puts an enormous strain on a business. You outgrow your production facilities. You outgrow your management capabilities."
"To be successful you have to be lucky, or a little mad, or very talented, or find yourself in a rapid growth field."
