--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We cannot guess the outcome of our…" description: "\"We cannot guess the outcome of our actions... Which is why our actions must always be acceptable in themselves, and not as strategies.\" — Carolyn Heilbrun" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d76/carolyn-heilbrun-11912_acceptable_we-cannot-guess-the-outcome-of-our-actio_29390.jpg" --- # We cannot guess the outcome of our actions... Which is why… ![“We cannot guess the outcome of our actions... Which is why our actions must always be acceptable in themselves, and not as strategies.” quote by Carolyn Heilbrun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d76/carolyn-heilbrun-11912_acceptable_we-cannot-guess-the-outcome-of-our-actio_29390.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d76/carolyn-heilbrun-11912_acceptable_we-cannot-guess-the-outcome-of-our-actio_29390.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d76/carolyn-heilbrun-11912_acceptable_we-cannot-guess-the-outcome-of-our-actio_29390.jpg) > “We cannot guess the outcome of our actions... Which is why our actions must always be acceptable in themselves, and not as strategies.” [Carolyn Heilbrun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-heilbrun/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Actions should be judged by their intrinsic moral worth, not by their potential results. **In simple terms:** Judge actions by their own merit. Key Takeaway Ethics over outcomes. Themes ethics intentionality moral philosophy consequentialism integrity Mood thoughtful serious reflective Type aphorism philosophical statement When to use this quote - business strategy - personal relationships - political policy - legal judgments Key Concepts moral agency autonomy principle-based decision making Practical Applications - ethical training programs - leadership development Questions to Reflect On - What if an action's consequences are unknown? - How do we balance principle with practicality? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Acceptable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/acceptable/) [Acceptable Strategies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/acceptable-strategies-421897/) [Action](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/action/) [Actions Acceptable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actions-acceptable-421896/) [Guess Outcome](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/guess-outcome-421899/) [Our actions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/our-actions/) [Outcome Actions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/outcome-actions-421898/) [Outcomes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/outcomes/) [Strategies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strategies/) [Strategy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strategy/) ## Related quotes > [“We are responsible not only for our action, but also for the outcome of those actions.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-m-falcone/we-are-responsible-not-only-for-our-action-but-also-for-the-outcome/) [L. M. Falcone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-m-falcone/) > [I can’t count the times I have lagged seemingly hopelessly far behind, and nobody except myself thinks I can win. But I have pulled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/magnus-carlsen/i-can-t-count-the-times-i-have-lagged-seemingly-hopelessly-far-behind/) [Magnus Carlsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/magnus-carlsen/) > [Take male strategies for success in the world. If you've got all the advantages, if you're attractive and clever and all of that, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-blackmore/take-male-strategies-for-success-in-the-world-if-you-ve-got-all-the/) [Susan Blackmore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-blackmore/) > [For the future world-trading regime to mirror economic reality and to allow the use of modern business strategies, we need a single overarching multilateral…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-fung/for-the-future-world-trading-regime-to-mirror-economic-reality-and-to/) [Victor Fung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-fung/) > [The approach and strategies are very similar in that you gather all the information you can and then keep adding to that base of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-buffett/the-approach-and-strategies-are-very-similar-in-that-you-gather-all/) [Warren Buffett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-buffett/) > [Each of these strategies-get a little better at it, design a support system, use one of your strongest themes to overwhelm your weakness, find…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-o-clifton/each-of-these-strategies-get-a-little-better-at-it-design-a-support/) [Donald O. Clifton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-o-clifton/) > [More strategies fail because they are overripe than because they are premature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenichi-ohmae/more-strategies-fail-because-they-are-overripe-than-because-they-are/) [Kenichi Ohmae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenichi-ohmae/) > [If you look at the various strategies available for dealing with a new technology, sticking your head in the sand is not the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-merkle/if-you-look-at-the-various-strategies-available-for-dealing-with-a/) [Ralph Merkle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-merkle/) > [Wal-Mart's success strategies and tactics are easy to understand yet hard to duplicate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bergdahl/wal-mart-s-success-strategies-and-tactics-are-easy-to-understand-yet/) [Michael Bergdahl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bergdahl/) > [People believe that companies have always had strategies, dating back at least to likes of Henry Ford or Andrew Carnegie, maybe to the contractors…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kiechel/people-believe-that-companies-have-always-had-strategies-dating-back/) [Walter Kiechel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kiechel/) > [There are three processes every company has to have: Somehow you've got to set strategies; you've got to have a budget, so you need…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noel-tichy/there-are-three-processes-every-company-has-to-have-somehow-you-ve/) [Noel Tichy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noel-tichy/) > [I don't believe in strategies. I love what I am doing; that's the main thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aamir-khan/i-don-t-believe-in-strategies-i-love-what-i-am-doing-that-s-the-main/) [Aamir Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aamir-khan/) > [I've seen people be effective, even among local teams, by offering something that improves wellbeing in a small way - people who get passionate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-rath/i-ve-seen-people-be-effective-even-among-local-teams-by-offering/) [Tom Rath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-rath/) > [I'm a strategist, not a motivator. I'm obsessed with finding strategies that create real results in the shortest period of time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-robbins/i-m-a-strategist-not-a-motivator-i-m-obsessed-with-finding-strategies/) [Tony Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-robbins/) > [Writing that flirts with incoherence can just as readily flounder as writing characterized by simplicity and composure. There is no reliable formula for originality,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanna-scott/writing-that-flirts-with-incoherence-can-just-as-readily-flounder-as/) [Joanna Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanna-scott/) ## More by Carolyn Heilbrun > [I don't know why togetherness was ever held up as an ideal of marriage. Away from home for both, then together, that's much better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-heilbrun/i-don-t-know-why-togetherness-was-ever-held-up-as-an-ideal-of/) [Carolyn Heilbrun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-heilbrun/) > [In former days, everyone found the assumption of innocence so easy; today we find fatally easy the assumption of guilt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-heilbrun/in-former-days-everyone-found-the-assumption-of-innocence-so-easy/) [Carolyn Heilbrun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-heilbrun/) > [“. . . the less androgynous the person, the likelier he or she was to be incapable of action if the appropriate action was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-heilbrun/the-less-androgynous-the-person-the-likelier-he-or-she-was-to-be/) [Carolyn Heilbrun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-heilbrun/) > [“But will anyone again look at that tree, read that poem, love a dog in quite my way? I am a particular and, despite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-heilbrun/but-will-anyone-again-look-at-that-tree-read-that-poem-love-a-dog-in/) [Carolyn Heilbrun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-heilbrun/) > [maturity ... is letting things happen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-heilbrun/maturity-is-letting-things-happen/) [Carolyn Heilbrun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-heilbrun/) > [one sank into the ancient sin of anomie when challenges failed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-heilbrun/one-sank-into-the-ancient-sin-of-anomie-when-challenges-failed/) [Carolyn Heilbrun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-heilbrun/) > [Ardent, intelligent, sweet, sensitive, cultivated, erudite. These are the adjectives of praise in an androgynous world. Those who consider them epithets of shame or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-heilbrun/ardent-intelligent-sweet-sensitive-cultivated-erudite-these-are-the/) [Carolyn Heilbrun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-heilbrun/) > [Quoting, like smoking, ... is a dirty habit to which I am devoted. But then ... I am a professor of English literature; it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-heilbrun/quoting-like-smoking-is-a-dirty-habit-to-which-i-am-devoted-but-then/) [Carolyn Heilbrun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-heilbrun/) > [That is the point of quotations. One can use another's words to be insulting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-heilbrun/that-is-the-point-of-quotations-one-can-use-another-s-words-to-be/) [Carolyn Heilbrun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-heilbrun/) > [ a revolutionary marriage ... \[is\] one in which both partners have work at the center of their lives and must find a delicate balance… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-heilbrun/a-revolutionary-marriage-is-one-in-which-both-partners-have-work-at/) [Carolyn Heilbrun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-heilbrun/) > [The rare, delicate flavor of a life after retiring in one's sixties, whatever one has "retired" from, the pleasure I experienced beyond my job…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-heilbrun/the-rare-delicate-flavor-of-a-life-after-retiring-in-one-s-sixties/) [Carolyn Heilbrun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-heilbrun/) > [What marks a writer is this: until she - or he, of course - writes down whatever happened, turns it into a story, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-heilbrun/what-marks-a-writer-is-this-until-she-or-he-of-course-writes-down/) [Carolyn Heilbrun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-heilbrun/) > [Whether deliberately, unconsciously or accidentally, she seems to have composed her own life so that its fitful, rudderless, and self-doubting first half was alchemized…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-heilbrun/whether-deliberately-unconsciously-or-accidentally-she-seems-to-have/) [Carolyn Heilbrun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-heilbrun/) > [Upon becoming fifty the one thing you can't afford is habit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-heilbrun/upon-becoming-fifty-the-one-thing-you-can-t-afford-is-habit/) [Carolyn Heilbrun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-heilbrun/) > [Why do long marriages occasionally endow their inhabitants with a rare kind of equilibrium otherwise almost unknown in human relations? My guess is that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-heilbrun/why-do-long-marriages-occasionally-endow-their-inhabitants-with-a/) [Carolyn Heilbrun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-heilbrun/) [Explore all 57 Carolyn Heilbrun quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-heilbrun/) ## More Acceptable quotes > [The inner defenses are unconscious. They consist of a kind of magic aura which the mind builds around cherished belief. Arguments which penetrate into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-koestler/the-inner-defenses-are-unconscious-they-consist-of-a-kind-of-magic/) [Arthur Koestler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-koestler/) > [I remember being a kid and seeing the 'National Inquirer' at the grocery store checkout line. When somebody actually picked up a copy, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rashida-jones/i-remember-being-a-kid-and-seeing-the-national-inquirer-at-the/) [Rashida Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rashida-jones/) > [Finally, the scariest thing about abuse of any shape or form, is, in my opinion, not the abuse itself, but that if it continues…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-cumming/finally-the-scariest-thing-about-abuse-of-any-shape-or-form-is-in-my/) [Alan Cumming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-cumming/) > [You cannot have 300-some million Americans - and really, right, the global citizenry be at risk of having their phone conversations intercepted with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-lieu/you-cannot-have-300-some-million-americans-and-really-right-the/) [Ted Lieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-lieu/) > [THE REAL PURPOSE OF HOLOCAUST REVISIONISM IS TO MAKE NATIONAL SOCIALISM AN ACCEPTABLE POLITICAL ALTERNATIVE AGAIN.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-covington/the-real-purpose-of-holocaust-revisionism-is-to-make-national/) [Harold Covington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-covington/) > [The government has once again made the right socially acceptable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elfriede-jelinek/the-government-has-once-again-made-the-right-socially-acceptable/) [Elfriede Jelinek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elfriede-jelinek/) > [The study of Freemasonry is the study of man as a candidate for a blessed eternity. It furnishes examples of holy living, and displays…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-howard-taft/the-study-of-freemasonry-is-the-study-of-man-as-a-candidate-for-a/) [William Howard Taft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-howard-taft/) > [Or why it is acceptable to train fast runners and high jumpers but not to breed them. I can think of some answers, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/or-why-it-is-acceptable-to-train-fast-runners-and-high-jumpers-but/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [As the future is never known with certainty, the evaluation of the prospective benefits requires the formation of expectations. An acceptable house, partner or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-t-mortensen/as-the-future-is-never-known-with-certainty-the-evaluation-of-the/) [Dale T. Mortensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-t-mortensen/) > [If a man is pictured chopping off a woman's breast, it only gets an R rating; but if, God forbid, a man is pictured…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sally-struthers/if-a-man-is-pictured-chopping-off-a-woman-s-breast-it-only-gets-an-r/) [Sally Struthers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sally-struthers/) > [In any case, open-seat presidential elections like 2008 just are different in character from incumbent reelects, and I think that's the most important thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kristol/in-any-case-open-seat-presidential-elections-like-2008-just-are/) [William Kristol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kristol/) > [It's horrible how money and fame can make you acceptable while, if you're not famous or rich, you're not acceptable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruno-tonioli/it-s-horrible-how-money-and-fame-can-make-you-acceptable-while-if-you/) [Bruno Tonioli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruno-tonioli/) > [I disagree with the prevailing point of view of some black leaders that special treatment for blacks is acceptable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-thomas/i-disagree-with-the-prevailing-point-of-view-of-some-black-leaders/) [Clarence Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-thomas/) > [We get used to a certain kind of colour of form or format, and it's acceptable. And to puncture that is sticking your neck…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-krasner/we-get-used-to-a-certain-kind-of-colour-of-form-or-format-and-it-s/) [Lee Krasner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-krasner/) > [Inanimate objects are sometimes parties to litigation. A ship has a legal personality, a fiction found useful for maritime purposes. The corporation sole -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-o-douglas/inanimate-objects-are-sometimes-parties-to-litigation-a-ship-has-a/) [William O. Douglas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-o-douglas/) [Browse all 750 Acceptable quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/acceptable/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We cannot guess the outcome of our actions... Which is why our actions must always be acceptable in themselves, and not as strategies.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Carolyn Heilbrun" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-heilbrun/we-cannot-guess-the-outcome-of-our-actions-which-is-why-our-actions/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Acceptable" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-heilbrun/we-cannot-guess-the-outcome-of-our-actions-which-is-why-our-actions/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d76/carolyn-heilbrun-11912_acceptable_we-cannot-guess-the-outcome-of-our-actio_29390.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d76/carolyn-heilbrun-11912_acceptable_we-cannot-guess-the-outcome-of-our-actio_29390.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d76/carolyn-heilbrun-11912_acceptable_we-cannot-guess-the-outcome-of-our-actio_29390.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We cannot guess the outcome of our actions... Which is why our actions must always be acceptable in…” — Carolyn Heilbrun", "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": "Carolyn Heilbrun", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-heilbrun/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "We cannot guess the outcome of...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-heilbrun/we-cannot-guess-the-outcome-of-our-actions-which-is-why-our-actions/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-heilbrun/we-cannot-guess-the-outcome-of-our-actions-which-is-why-our-actions/#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 } } ] } ```