--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Don’t do what you know on a gut level to…" description: "\"Don’t do what you know on a gut level to be the wrong thing to doI don’t think there’s a single dumbass thing I’ve done in my adult life that I didn’t ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/594/cheryl-strayed-605_adult-life_don-t-do-what-you-know-on-a-gut-level-to_2624957.png" --- # Don’t do what you know on a gut level to be the wrong… ![“Don’t do what you know on a gut level to be the wrong thing to doI don’t think there’s a single dumbass thing I’ve done in my adult life that I didn’t know was a dumbass thing to do while I was doing it. Even when I justified it to myself—as I did every damn time—the truest part of me knew I was…” quote by Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/594/cheryl-strayed-605_adult-life_don-t-do-what-you-know-on-a-gut-level-to_2624957.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/594/cheryl-strayed-605_adult-life_don-t-do-what-you-know-on-a-gut-level-to_2624957.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/594/cheryl-strayed-605_adult-life_don-t-do-what-you-know-on-a-gut-level-to_2624957.png) > “Don’t do what you know on a gut level to be the wrong thing to doI don’t think there’s a single dumbass thing I’ve done in my adult life that I didn’t know was a dumbass thing to do while I was doing it. Even when I justified it to myself—as I did every damn time—the truest part of me knew I was doing the wrong thing. Always. As the years pass, I’m learning how to better trust my gut and not do the wrong thing, but every so often I get a harsh reminder that I’ve still got work to do.” [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Gut instincts warn against harmful actions; listening to them prevents repeated mistakes. **In simple terms:** Trust your gut. Key Takeaway Heed intuition, avoid regret. Themes self-awareness intuition personal growth Mood reflective encouraging Type self‑help philosophical When to use this quote - career choices - relationship decisions - health habits Key Concepts cognitive dissonance ethical decision‑making Questions to Reflect On - When have you ignored your gut? - What helped you trust it later? A Different Perspective Gut feelings can be clouded by fear or bias. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Adult life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adult-life/) [Adults](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adults/) [Damn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/damn/) [Done](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/done/) [Dumbasses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dumbasses/) [Gut Wrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gut-wrong-2048998/) [Guts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/guts/) [Harsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/harsh/) [Justified](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/justified/) [Knew Doing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knew-doing/) [Know Dumbass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/know-dumbass-2142767/) [Know Gut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/know-gut-2142766/) [Knows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knows/) [Levels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/levels/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Reminders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reminders/) [Stills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stills/) [Things to do](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/things-to-do/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Truest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truest/) [Trust Gut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trust-gut/) [Wrong things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wrong-things/) [Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years/) ## Related quotes > [Managers used to say, 'I have a gut feeling.' 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