--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: One of the great rules of design is do…" description: "\"One of the great rules of design is do something basic right. Then everything gets much more right of itself. But if you do something basic wrong - if ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aa9/bill-mollison-4213_design_one-of-the-great-rules-of-design-is-do-s_979256.png" --- # One of the great rules of design is do something basic… ![“One of the great rules of design is do something basic right. Then everything gets much more right of itself. But if you do something basic wrong - if you make what I call a Type 1 Error - you can get nothing else right.” quote by Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aa9/bill-mollison-4213_design_one-of-the-great-rules-of-design-is-do-s_979256.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aa9/bill-mollison-4213_design_one-of-the-great-rules-of-design-is-do-s_979256.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aa9/bill-mollison-4213_design_one-of-the-great-rules-of-design-is-do-s_979256.png) > “One of the great rules of design is do something basic right. Then everything gets much more right of itself. But if you do something basic wrong - if you make what I call a Type 1 Error - you can get nothing else right.” [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Fundamental design errors cascade, while basic correct actions amplify overall quality. **In simple terms:** Do basics right, avoid basic mistakes. Key Takeaway Master fundamentals before adding complexity. Themes design error management quality control Mood analytical cautious Type philosophical practical When to use this quote - architecture - software development - product design - education curricula Key Concepts systems thinking feedback loops Questions to Reflect On - What basic principles are most critical in your field? - How do you detect early basic mistakes? A Different Perspective Even small basic errors can derail complex systems. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Basic Wrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/basic-wrong-1932887/) [Design](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/design/) [Design Basic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/design-basic-1932888/) [Error Right](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/error-right-1932886/) [Errors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/errors/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Rules Design](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rules-design-1425443/) [Type](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/type/) [Type Error](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/type-error-297919/) ## Related quotes > [Nobody sets the rules but you. You can design your own life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-anne-moss/nobody-sets-the-rules-but-you-you-can-design-your-own-life/) [Carrie-Anne Moss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-anne-moss/) > ['Type one' error is thinking that something special is happening when nothing special really is happening. 'Type two' error is thinking that nothing special…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcello-truzzi/type-one-error-is-thinking-that-something-special-is-happening-when/) [Marcello Truzzi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcello-truzzi/) > [To avoid being drawn into error, keep a firm grip on the truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/to-avoid-being-drawn-into-error-keep-a-firm-grip-on-the-truth/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [It is not to everyone's taste that truth should be pronounced pleasant. But at least let no one believe that error becomes truth when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/it-is-not-to-everyone-s-taste-that-truth-should-be-pronounced/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [Tachyon OPC+ is a natural extension of our market-winning Tachyon platform, giving customers a clear path to minimizing the OPC error budget and producing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-vaughan/tachyon-opc-is-a-natural-extension-of-our-market-winning-tachyon/) [Bill Vaughan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-vaughan/) > [Developing fewer features allows you to conserve development resources and spend more time refining those features that users really need. Fewer features mean fewer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jakob-nielsen/developing-fewer-features-allows-you-to-conserve-development/) [Jakob Nielsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jakob-nielsen/) > [It is often sadly remarked that the bad economists present their errors to the public better than the good economists present their truths. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-hazlitt/it-is-often-sadly-remarked-that-the-bad-economists-present-their/) [Henry Hazlitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-hazlitt/) > [An important finding is that by determining the genome sequences of an entire family, one can identify many DNA sequencing errors and thus greatly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leroy-hood/an-important-finding-is-that-by-determining-the-genome-sequences-of/) [Leroy Hood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leroy-hood/) > [But a most pernicious error widely prevails that Scripture has only so much weight as is conceded to it by the consent of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-calvin/but-a-most-pernicious-error-widely-prevails-that-scripture-has-only/) [John Calvin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-calvin/) > [Truth is error burned up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-o-brown/truth-is-error-burned-up/) [Norman O. Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-o-brown/) > [It is an error common to many artists, who strive merely to avoid mistakes, when all our efforts should be to create positive and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-steichen/it-is-an-error-common-to-many-artists-who-strive-merely-to-avoid/) [Edward Steichen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-steichen/) > [Sometimes I envy painters, it is wonderful to remain in front of a bouquet of flowers a whole morning, or even longer. A photographer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edouard-boubat/sometimes-i-envy-painters-it-is-wonderful-to-remain-in-front-of-a/) [Edouard Boubat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edouard-boubat/) > [“I saw the errors I had made and assumed full responsibility for everything.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/i-saw-the-errors-i-had-made-and-assumed-full-responsibility-for/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [Effective leaders are made, not born. They learn from trial and error, and from experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-powell/effective-leaders-are-made-not-born-they-learn-from-trial-and-error/) [Colin Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-powell/) > [It is easier to perceive error than to find truth, for the former lies on the surface and is easily seen, while the latter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/it-is-easier-to-perceive-error-than-to-find-truth-for-the-former-lies/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) ## More by Bill Mollison > [There is one, and only one solution, and we have almost no time to try it. We must turn all our resources to repairing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/there-is-one-and-only-one-solution-and-we-have-almost-no-time-to-try/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [Women spend the money of society on its goods.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/women-spend-the-money-of-society-on-its-goods/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [Wealth is a deep understanding of the natural world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/wealth-is-a-deep-understanding-of-the-natural-world/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [That we don't design agriculture to be sustainable is totally eerie. We design it to be a disaster, and of course, we get a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/that-we-don-t-design-agriculture-to-be-sustainable-is-totally-eerie/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [Why is it that we don't build human settlements that will feed themselves, and fuel themselves, and catch their own water, when any human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/why-is-it-that-we-don-t-build-human-settlements-that-will-feed/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [Anything that's left that's remotely like wilderness should be left strictly alone. We have no business there any more. It's not going to save…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/anything-that-s-left-that-s-remotely-like-wilderness-should-be-left/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [The important thing is not to do any agriculture whatsoever, and particularly to make the modern agricultural sciences a forbidden area - they're worse…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/the-important-thing-is-not-to-do-any-agriculture-whatsoever-and/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [The tragic reality is that very few sustainable systems are designed or applied by those who hold power, and the reason for this is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/the-tragic-reality-is-that-very-few-sustainable-systems-are-designed/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [We are surrounded by insurmountable opportunities](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/we-are-surrounded-by-insurmountable-opportunities/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [Though the problems of the world are increasingly complex, the solutions remain embarrassingly simple.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/though-the-problems-of-the-world-are-increasingly-complex-the/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [I can easily teach people to be gardeners, and from them, once they know how to garden, you'll get a philosopher.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/i-can-easily-teach-people-to-be-gardeners-and-from-them-once-they/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [If you get someone who looks after himself and those around him, that's a deep ecologist. He can talk philosophy that I understand. People…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/if-you-get-someone-who-looks-after-himself-and-those-around-him-that/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [You can't cooperate by knocking something about or bossing it or forcing it to do things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/you-can-t-cooperate-by-knocking-something-about-or-bossing-it-or/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [Women are the holders of all knowledge, everything a man knows he stole from a woman.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/women-are-the-holders-of-all-knowledge-everything-a-man-knows-he/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [Another thing I find extremely eerie is that when people build a house, they almost exactly get it wrong. They don't just get it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/another-thing-i-find-extremely-eerie-is-that-when-people-build-a/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) [Explore all 114 Bill Mollison quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) ## More Design quotes > [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/) > [Plenty of white space and generous line spacing,and don't make the type size too miserly. Then you will be assured of a product fit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giambattista-bodoni/plenty-of-white-space-and-generous-line-spacing-and-don-t-make-the/) [Giambattista Bodoni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giambattista-bodoni/) > [Designers shouldn’t design for museums any more than mummies should die for them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-caplan/designers-shouldn-t-design-for-museums-any-more-than-mummies-should/) [Ralph Caplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-caplan/) > [The market may never coalesce around one basic design, or even around two or three dominant devices.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-peters/the-market-may-never-coalesce-around-one-basic-design-or-even-around/) [Tom Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-peters/) > [The display is the computer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jen-hsun-huang/the-display-is-the-computer/) [Jen-Hsun Huang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jen-hsun-huang/) > [Design is not making beauty, beauty emerges from selection, affinities, integration, love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-kahn/design-is-not-making-beauty-beauty-emerges-from-selection-affinities/) [Louis Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-kahn/) > [The beauty of New York is unintentional; it arose independent of human design, like a stalagmite cavern.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/the-beauty-of-new-york-is-unintentional-it-arose-independent-of-human/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [Like many other scientists who hold the Catholic faith, I see the Creator's plan and purpose fulfilled in our universe. I see a planet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-r-miller/like-many-other-scientists-who-hold-the-catholic-faith-i-see-the/) [Kenneth R. Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-r-miller/) > [I design some of my own clothes now.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiernan-shipka/i-design-some-of-my-own-clothes-now/) [Kiernan Shipka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiernan-shipka/) > [Programmers are always surrounded by complexity; we cannot avoid it… If our basic tool, the language in which we design and code our programs,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-hoare/programmers-are-always-surrounded-by-complexity-we-cannot-avoid-it-if/) [Tony Hoare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-hoare/) > [Design is a very personal thing. It's like art. Your personal choice plays a big role.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gauri-khan/design-is-a-very-personal-thing-it-s-like-art-your-personal-choice/) [Gauri Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gauri-khan/) > [“Designing posters, for me, is not only a commercial pursuit but also a philosophical endeavor.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fang-chen/designing-posters-for-me-is-not-only-a-commercial-pursuit-but-also-a/) [Fang Chen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fang-chen/) > [I am not a great believer in dialectical struggle. I am much more of a fusion person. I see it as a dialogue, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marina-warner/i-am-not-a-great-believer-in-dialectical-struggle-i-am-much-more-of-a/) [Marina Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marina-warner/) > [Users are not designers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jakob-nielsen/users-are-not-designers/) [Jakob Nielsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jakob-nielsen/) > [I write the way you might arrange flowers. Not every try works, but each one launches another. Every constraint, even dullness, frees up a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-powers/i-write-the-way-you-might-arrange-flowers-not-every-try-works-but/) [Richard Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-powers/) [Browse all 5,563 Design quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/design/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "One of the great rules of design is do something basic right. Then everything gets much more right of itself. 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