--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Ideas are unpredictable and unreliable…" description: "\"Ideas are unpredictable and unreliable. You need to grab them while you can, whenever they present themselves.\" — Angela Scanlon" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d33/angela-scanlon-6852_ideas_ideas-are-unpredictable-and-unreliable-y_999270.jpg" --- # Ideas are unpredictable and unreliable. You need to grab… ![“Ideas are unpredictable and unreliable. You need to grab them while you can, whenever they present themselves.” quote by Angela Scanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d33/angela-scanlon-6852_ideas_ideas-are-unpredictable-and-unreliable-y_999270.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d33/angela-scanlon-6852_ideas_ideas-are-unpredictable-and-unreliable-y_999270.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d33/angela-scanlon-6852_ideas_ideas-are-unpredictable-and-unreliable-y_999270.jpg) > “Ideas are unpredictable and unreliable. You need to grab them while you can, whenever they present themselves.” [Angela Scanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-scanlon/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Creative ideas are fleeting and must be captured quickly; they are unreliable and can disappear if not acted upon. **In simple terms:** Ideas are fleeting; grab them fast. Key Takeaway Act quickly on emerging ideas. Themes creativity timing opportunity uncertainty productivity Mood energetic optimistic Type motivational practical When to use this quote - brainstorming sessions - writing - design projects Key Concepts idea generation focus execution Questions to Reflect On - How do you ensure you capture spontaneous ideas? - What habits help turn ideas into results? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Ideas Unpredictable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas-unpredictable-2098671/) [Need](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/need/) [Unpredictable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unpredictable/) [Unpredictable Unreliable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unpredictable-unreliable-2098672/) [Unreliable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unreliable/) [Unreliable Need](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unreliable-need-2098673/) ## Related quotes > [There's no other major item most of us own that is as confusing, unpredictable and unreliable as our personal computers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-mossberg/there-s-no-other-major-item-most-of-us-own-that-is-as-confusing/) [Walt Mossberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-mossberg/) > [Torture gives you reliable and unreliable information. That's the reason why most people in the world don't do it. So this idea that you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mccain/torture-gives-you-reliable-and-unreliable-information-that-s-the/) [John McCain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mccain/) > [I'd like to use IMAX. The problem with IMAX is that it's a very loud camera. It's a very unreliable camera. Only so much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-j-abrams/i-d-like-to-use-imax-the-problem-with-imax-is-that-it-s-a-very-loud/) [J. J. Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-j-abrams/) > [I would argue that search has made the world a better place. It has done so for reasons that arbitrarily could completely change that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathon-keats/i-would-argue-that-search-has-made-the-world-a-better-place-it-has/) [Jonathon Keats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathon-keats/) > [My heart was a hysterical unreliable organ.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-nabokov/my-heart-was-a-hysterical-unreliable-organ/) [Vladimir Nabokov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-nabokov/) > [But instead, Democrats are so bent on seeing Republicans as a bunch of angry, right wing, intolerant, unreliable extremists that they have a track…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ari-fleischer/but-instead-democrats-are-so-bent-on-seeing-republicans-as-a-bunch-of/) [Ari Fleischer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ari-fleischer/) > [“Or, rather, you irritate everyone, Curdle. Because you're so unreliable.' 'I'm not always unreliable, Telorast.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-erikson/or-rather-you-irritate-everyone-curdle-because-you-re-so-unreliable-i/) [Steven Erikson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-erikson/) > [I know I love a novel with an unreliable narrator, and I think many readers do as well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fiona-barton/i-know-i-love-a-novel-with-an-unreliable-narrator-and-i-think-many/) [Fiona Barton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fiona-barton/) > [No organization can depend on genius; the supply is always scarce and unreliable. It is the test of an organization to make ordinary people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-drucker/no-organization-can-depend-on-genius-the-supply-is-always-scarce-and/) [Peter Drucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-drucker/) > [I very much like the idea of the unreliable narrator. Shaping my fictions as monologues - by introducing the "I" - allows me to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lock/i-very-much-like-the-idea-of-the-unreliable-narrator-shaping-my/) [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) > [Eyewitness testimony is notoriously unreliable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-french/eyewitness-testimony-is-notoriously-unreliable/) [Chris French](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-french/) > [The Term Paper Artist' represents two models of writing, one of the little boy bouncing his ball, generating stories for the sheer pleasure of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-leavitt/the-term-paper-artist-represents-two-models-of-writing-one-of-the/) [David Leavitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-leavitt/) > [Rehearsals and screening rooms are often unreliable because they can't provide the chemistry between an audience and what appears on the stage or screen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-tierney/rehearsals-and-screening-rooms-are-often-unreliable-because-they-can/) [Gene Tierney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-tierney/) > [“I argue that the Jesus of the Gospels is essentially a myth. The Gospels are largely fiction. They were created around the turn of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alvar-elleg-rd/i-argue-that-the-jesus-of-the-gospels-is-essentially-a-myth-the/) [Alvar Ellegård](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alvar-elleg-rd/) > [I don't like working all hours of the night and having an unreliable working pattern.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-giacchino/i-don-t-like-working-all-hours-of-the-night-and-having-an-unreliable/) [Michael Giacchino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-giacchino/) ## More by Angela Scanlon > [We regenerate as we sleep, it's why your skin looks better after a good kip and why you work better after a full eight…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-scanlon/we-regenerate-as-we-sleep-it-s-why-your-skin-looks-better-after-a/) [Angela Scanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-scanlon/) > [Al Pacino and Jeff Bridges do it for me in a big way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-scanlon/al-pacino-and-jeff-bridges-do-it-for-me-in-a-big-way/) [Angela Scanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-scanlon/) > [Listening to the soundtrack of other people's lives and learning from them is a pretty perfect way to spend hours that are generally written…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-scanlon/listening-to-the-soundtrack-of-other-people-s-lives-and-learning-from/) [Angela Scanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-scanlon/) > [Giving birth to my daughter was certainly memorable, like a slap in the face. I arrived at the hospital in total denial, having not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-scanlon/giving-birth-to-my-daughter-was-certainly-memorable-like-a-slap-in/) [Angela Scanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-scanlon/) > [My sole goal in life is to look like a foetus, well not the sole one, but it's up there. I spend quite a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-scanlon/my-sole-goal-in-life-is-to-look-like-a-foetus-well-not-the-sole-one/) [Angela Scanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-scanlon/) > [I suppose with work, I tend to have to wear make-up quite a bit and so when I'm away its completely bare, I chuck…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-scanlon/i-suppose-with-work-i-tend-to-have-to-wear-make-up-quite-a-bit-and-so/) [Angela Scanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-scanlon/) > [The likes of Zoe Ball, Claudia Winkleman, Emma Willis, strong, smart women who have built a great career, they are liked by audiences and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-scanlon/the-likes-of-zoe-ball-claudia-winkleman-emma-willis-strong-smart/) [Angela Scanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-scanlon/) > [Dublin to London is a commute.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-scanlon/dublin-to-london-is-a-commute/) [Angela Scanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-scanlon/) > [I'm obsessed with mushrooms, they're beautiful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-scanlon/i-m-obsessed-with-mushrooms-they-re-beautiful/) [Angela Scanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-scanlon/) > [We want to see 'real' women. Women who represent us, who are the same as us, who look and feel and seem like us.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-scanlon/we-want-to-see-real-women-women-who-represent-us-who-are-the-same-as/) [Angela Scanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-scanlon/) > [You get out of life what you put into it' was the saying most often heard in my house growing up, and a sentiment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-scanlon/you-get-out-of-life-what-you-put-into-it-was-the-saying-most-often/) [Angela Scanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-scanlon/) > [Double denim is a combination that has stood the test of time. Classic and unconventional at once, the workingman's fabric that has infiltrated the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-scanlon/double-denim-is-a-combination-that-has-stood-the-test-of-time-classic/) [Angela Scanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-scanlon/) > [It's hard sometimes - to shake yourself off, say out loud the things you dream of - but taking that chance, that leap of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-scanlon/it-s-hard-sometimes-to-shake-yourself-off-say-out-loud-the-things-you/) [Angela Scanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-scanlon/) > [I like to think I'm an early adopter but sometimes my mind moves faster than my body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-scanlon/i-like-to-think-i-m-an-early-adopter-but-sometimes-my-mind-moves/) [Angela Scanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-scanlon/) > [I think people fall into one of two camps: you're either a dog or a cat. Dogs want to be liked - they jump…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-scanlon/i-think-people-fall-into-one-of-two-camps-you-re-either-a-dog-or-a/) [Angela Scanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-scanlon/) [Explore all 97 Angela Scanlon quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-scanlon/) ## More Ideas quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [Companies with cultures that celebrate diverse opinions and encourage the exchange of ideas have an advantage when solving difficult problems. A company that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doug-mcmillon/companies-with-cultures-that-celebrate-diverse-opinions-and-encourage/) [Doug McMillon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doug-mcmillon/) > [You'd be surprised how hard it can often be to translate an action into an idea.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-kraus/you-d-be-surprised-how-hard-it-can-often-be-to-translate-an-action/) [Karl Kraus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-kraus/) > [I know for my wife and I, we always loved the idea of being young parents. It is an incredibly inspiring and challenging job…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-hanson/i-know-for-my-wife-and-i-we-always-loved-the-idea-of-being-young/) [Taylor Hanson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-hanson/) > [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [I've always been fascinated by the idea that there's no such thing as evil; it's all in your point of view. To one group…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eli-roth/i-ve-always-been-fascinated-by-the-idea-that-there-s-no-such-thing-as/) [Eli Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eli-roth/) > [The image of blacks usually is one of people who are suffering from hunger, unemployment, and poverty. The idea of them as agents and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-lee-boggs/the-image-of-blacks-usually-is-one-of-people-who-are-suffering-from/) [Grace Lee Boggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-lee-boggs/) > [It revealed a cruelty that really made one wonder if the universe was such a good idea after all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-lindsay/it-revealed-a-cruelty-that-really-made-one-wonder-if-the-universe-was/) [Jeff Lindsay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-lindsay/) > [Sometimes it's just enough for me to have the idea. I don't need to see it through to the end. When it actually happens,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-sedaris/sometimes-it-s-just-enough-for-me-to-have-the-idea-i-don-t-need-to/) [Amy Sedaris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-sedaris/) > [Love is like that, fragile and light. No wonder it rests upon our hearts in intangible moments, bids us follow fleeting thoughts and ideas…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/love-is-like-that-fragile-and-light-no-wonder-it-rests-upon-our/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [But I already saw no great difference between the psyche and spirituality. To amass knowledge without becoming wise is not my idea of progress…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-scott-peck/but-i-already-saw-no-great-difference-between-the-psyche-and/) [M. Scott Peck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-scott-peck/) > [Making movies seemed so impossible as far as getting my ideas funded.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boots-riley/making-movies-seemed-so-impossible-as-far-as-getting-my-ideas-funded/) [Boots Riley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boots-riley/) > [I am not the avant-garde. I am the artist who comes after the advancing guard. I am more concerned with continuity of ideas and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-oliveira/i-am-not-the-avant-garde-i-am-the-artist-who-comes-after-the/) [Nathan Oliveira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-oliveira/) > [What is music? Music is language. A human being wants to express ideas in this language, but not ideas that can be translated into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-webern/what-is-music-music-is-language-a-human-being-wants-to-express-ideas/) [Anton Webern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anton-webern/) > [“What does it mean to be a self-conscious animal? The idea is ludicrous, if it is not monstrous. It means to know that one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-becker/what-does-it-mean-to-be-a-self-conscious-animal-the-idea-is-ludicrous/) [Ernest Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-becker/) [Browse all 24,908 Ideas quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Ideas are unpredictable and unreliable. 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