---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Usually the wacky people have the…"
description: "\"Usually the wacky people have the breakthroughs. The smart people dont.\" — Burt Rutan"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/935/burt-rutan-12448_breakthrough_usually-the-wacky-people-have-the-breakt_3000529.jpg"
---

#  Usually the wacky people have the breakthroughs. The smart…

![“Usually the wacky people have the breakthroughs. The smart people dont.” quote by Burt Rutan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/935/burt-rutan-12448_breakthrough_usually-the-wacky-people-have-the-breakt_3000529.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/935/burt-rutan-12448_breakthrough_usually-the-wacky-people-have-the-breakt_3000529.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/935/burt-rutan-12448_breakthrough_usually-the-wacky-people-have-the-breakt_3000529.jpg)

> “Usually the wacky people have the breakthroughs. The smart people dont.”

[Burt Rutan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/burt-rutan/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Unconventional thinkers often generate breakthrough ideas, while conventional minds may stick to established patterns.

**In simple terms:** Crazy ideas can lead to breakthroughs; safe ideas may not.

Key Takeaway

Encourage unconventional thinking.

Themes

innovation creativity breakthroughs

Mood

playful critical

Type

inspirational cautionary

When to use this quote

- research
- product development
- entrepreneurship

Key Concepts

risk‑taking divergent thinking

Questions to Reflect On

- How can you balance wild ideas with practical testing?
- When should you trust intuition over data?

A Different Perspective

Unconventional ideas can fail without rigor.

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[Breakthrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/breakthrough/) [Innovation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/innovation/) [Intelligence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intelligence/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Smart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smart/) [Smart people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smart-people/) [Stupidity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stupidity/)

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> [You're never too old, too wacky, too wild, to pick up a book and read to a child.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-re-never-too-old-too-wacky-too-wild-to-pick-up-a-book-and-read-to/)

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> [I separate cartooning, which is fun and wacky and soulful, from illustration, which is very well-drawn and extremely uptight to look at. There's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-bakshi/i-separate-cartooning-which-is-fun-and-wacky-and-soulful-from/)

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> [We like existentially wacky characters who exist in existential crisis.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-russo/we-like-existentially-wacky-characters-who-exist-in-existential-crisis/)

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> [You can never have enough wacky in MMA.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ariel-helwani/you-can-never-have-enough-wacky-in-mma/)

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> [Not surprisingly, troubled economic times often beget proselytizers of wacky, extreme ideas.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-rattner/not-surprisingly-troubled-economic-times-often-beget-proselytizers-of/)

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## More by Burt Rutan

> [I like to call the difference between research and development. Some people use that interchangeably. They'll say R&D. They're two totally different things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/burt-rutan/i-like-to-call-the-difference-between-research-and-development-some/)

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> [Flight out of the atmosphere is a simple thing to do and should have been available to the public twenty years ago. Ten years…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/burt-rutan/flight-out-of-the-atmosphere-is-a-simple-thing-to-do-and-should-have/)

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> [Usually the wacky people have the breakthroughs. The 'smart' people don't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/burt-rutan/usually-the-wacky-people-have-the-breakthroughs-the-smart-people-don-t/)

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[Explore all 55 Burt Rutan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/burt-rutan/)

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> [Real breakthroughs are not found because you want to develop some new technology, but because you are curious and want to find out how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-zeilinger/real-breakthroughs-are-not-found-because-you-want-to-develop-some-new/)

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> [Just like the breakthroughs, the bad stuff always takes you by surprise. (121)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-giles/just-like-the-breakthroughs-the-bad-stuff-always-takes-you-by/)

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> [There are just moments when all the stars are aligned for breakthrough products.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-sculley/there-are-just-moments-when-all-the-stars-are-aligned-for/)

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> [“A reset isn't going backwards; it's clearing the path to move forward.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-rivera/a-reset-isn-t-going-backwards-it-s-clearing-the-path-to-move-forward/)

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