--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We'll know we've got it right when they…" description: "\"“We'll know we've got it right when they choose for themselves,\" he used to say. That doesn't make sense. 'That's what I thought too. I asked him what ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef8/david-wroblewski-14105_animal_we-ll-know-we-ve-got-it-right-when-they_2669452.png" --- # We'll know we've got it right when they choose for… ![“We'll know we've got it right when they choose for themselves," he used to say. That doesn't make sense. 'That's what I thought too. I asked him what he meant, but he just shrugged. I don't think he knew himself. But I keep thinking maybe that stray is making exactly the kind of choice he talked…” quote by David Wroblewski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef8/david-wroblewski-14105_animal_we-ll-know-we-ve-got-it-right-when-they_2669452.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef8/david-wroblewski-14105_animal_we-ll-know-we-ve-got-it-right-when-they_2669452.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef8/david-wroblewski-14105_animal_we-ll-know-we-ve-got-it-right-when-they_2669452.png) > ““We'll know we've got it right when they choose for themselves," he used to say. That doesn't make sense. 'That's what I thought too. I asked him what he meant, but he just shrugged. I don't think he knew himself. But I keep thinking maybe that stray is making exactly the kind of choice he talked about. We're talking about an adult dog, a dog that's been out in the woods for a long time, trying to decide whether or not we can be trusted. Whether this is his place. And it matters to him - he'd rather starve than make the wrong decision.”” [David Wroblewski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-wroblewski/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Choosing for oneself is ideal, but the dog’s indecision shows the difficulty of autonomy. **In simple terms:** Self-choice is ideal but hard for the uncertain. Key Takeaway Respect autonomy despite uncertainty. Themes choice autonomy trust uncertainty Mood thoughtful empathetic Type literary psychological When to use this quote - adoption decisions - personal growth - leadership training Key Concepts philosophy of free will animal cognition Questions to Reflect On - How do you support autonomous decisions? - What if the choice is harmful? A Different Perspective Indecision can lead to missed opportunities. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Adult Dog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adult-dog-2490842/) [Animal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal/) [Animals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animals/) [Choice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choice/) [Choice Talked](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choice-talked-2490844/) [Dogs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dogs/) [Fear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fear/) [Independence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/independence/) [Long time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long-time/) [Maybe Stray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/maybe-stray-2490840/) [Survival](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/survival/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Trust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trust/) [Trying Decide](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trying-decide-253088/) [Wrong decision](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wrong-decision/) ## Related quotes > [“Well, sometimes we don’t have any choice in how we’re talked about.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-dennison/well-sometimes-we-don-t-have-any-choice-in-how-we-re-talked-about/) [Brad Dennison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-dennison/) > [In March 2011 I'm trying to decide on a sermon series that I will preach in January 2012. 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We have to be better than this or we will struggle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-richt/i-m-trying-to-decide-whether-to-be-happy-or-sad-we-have-to-be-better/) [Mark Richt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-richt/) > [I'm trying to make the box, trying to be more ruthless, more clinical, and trying to decide games.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raheem-sterling/i-m-trying-to-make-the-box-trying-to-be-more-ruthless-more-clinical/) [Raheem Sterling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raheem-sterling/) ## More by David Wroblewski > [“Just when normal life felt almost possible--when the world held some kind of order, meaning, even loveliness (prismatic spray of light through an icicle;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-wroblewski/just-when-normal-life-felt-almost-possible-when-the-world-held-some/) [David Wroblewski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-wroblewski/) > [“He woke one morning tantalized by an idea: if he could catch the orchard trees motionless for one second -- for half of one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-wroblewski/he-woke-one-morning-tantalized-by-an-idea-if-he-could-catch-the/) [David Wroblewski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-wroblewski/) > [“You put yourself in front of the thing and waited for whatever was going to happen and that was all. 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You clung to the happiest accidents—the rest you let float by.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-wroblewski/you-swam-in-a-river-of-chance-and-coincidence-you-clung-to-the/) [David Wroblewski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-wroblewski/) > [“Henry turned to give Edgar a look—a meaningful look—though Edgar couldn’t be sure exactly what its meaning was. It struck him again how there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-wroblewski/henry-turned-to-give-edgar-a-look-a-meaningful-look-though-edgar/) [David Wroblewski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-wroblewski/) > [“He had also been demonstrative and intelligent from the very beginning, his questions startlingly insightful. She would watch him absorb a new idea and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-wroblewski/he-had-also-been-demonstrative-and-intelligent-from-the-very/) [David Wroblewski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-wroblewski/) > [I set writing aside when I went into theater, and then I set theater aside and subsequently had about a 25-year career in software…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-wroblewski/i-set-writing-aside-when-i-went-into-theater-and-then-i-set-theater/) [David Wroblewski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-wroblewski/) > [“Edgar, do you actually think that how long a person grieves is a measure of how much they loved someone? There's no rule book…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-wroblewski/edgar-do-you-actually-think-that-how-long-a-person-grieves-is-a/) [David Wroblewski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-wroblewski/) > [When she walked through the woods (infrequently now) she picked her way along the path, making way for the boy inside to run along…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-wroblewski/when-she-walked-through-the-woods-infrequently-now-she-picked-her-way/) [David Wroblewski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-wroblewski/) > [No one can say if you are that person who, given good paint, good brushes, and a fine canvas, can produce something better than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-wroblewski/no-one-can-say-if-you-are-that-person-who-given-good-paint-good/) [David Wroblewski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-wroblewski/) > [“It was one thing to live in a world where death stood a distant figure, quite another to hold it in your hands.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-wroblewski/it-was-one-thing-to-live-in-a-world-where-death-stood-a-distant/) [David Wroblewski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-wroblewski/) [Explore all 48 David Wroblewski quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-wroblewski/) ## More Animal quotes > [I was 3-years-old - to this day it is a vivid memory. My family and I were on a boat, catching fish. As one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-phoenix/i-was-3-years-old-to-this-day-it-is-a-vivid-memory-my-family-and-i/) [Joaquin Phoenix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-phoenix/) > [Animals know nothing of themselves, and they also know nothing of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/animals-know-nothing-of-themselves-and-they-also-know-nothing-of-the/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [Humans are animals too, but some do not like to work from expectations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mak-786/humans-are-animals-too-but-some-do-not-like-to-work-from-expectations/) [Mak\_786](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mak-786/) > [When grubbing for necessities man is still an animal. He becomes uniquely human when he reaches out for the superfluous and extravagant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/when-grubbing-for-necessities-man-is-still-an-animal-he-becomes/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [I'm 38 and I'm single, and I'm having my most intense and gratifying relationship with a dog. But we all learn about love in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-knapp/i-m-38-and-i-m-single-and-i-m-having-my-most-intense-and-gratifying/) [Caroline Knapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-knapp/) > [Practically all animals which move fast in a homogeneous medium have found means of giving their body a streamlined shape, thereby reducing friction to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/konrad-lorenz/practically-all-animals-which-move-fast-in-a-homogeneous-medium-have/) [Konrad Lorenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/konrad-lorenz/) > [A horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/a-horse-a-horse-my-kingdom-for-a-horse/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [“it is a federal system of sadistic torture, vivisection, and animal genocide, which has been carried on for decades under the fraudulent guise of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-tobias/it-is-a-federal-system-of-sadistic-torture-vivisection-and-animal/) [Michael Tobias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-tobias/) > [“What does it mean to be a self-conscious animal? 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It makes no sense. None whatsoever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-l-francione/animal-rights-without-veganism-is-like-human-rights-with-slavery-it/) [Gary L. Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/) [Browse all 13,456 Animal quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“We'll know we've got it right when they choose for themselves,\" he used to say. That doesn't make sense. 'That's what I thought too. I asked him what he meant, but he just shrugged. I don't think he knew himself. But I keep thinking maybe that stray is making exactly the kind of choice he talked about. We're talking about an adult dog, a dog that's been out in the woods for a long time, trying to decide whether or not we can be trusted. Whether this is his place. 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