--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Fate cannot be sidestepped or outrun." description: "\"Fate cannot be sidestepped or outrun.\" — Dean Koontz" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/45d/dean-koontz-118_destiny_fate-cannot-be-sidestepped-or-outrun-917_917320.jpg" --- # Fate cannot be sidestepped or outrun. ![“Fate cannot be sidestepped or outrun.” quote by Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/45d/dean-koontz-118_destiny_fate-cannot-be-sidestepped-or-outrun-917_917320.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/45d/dean-koontz-118_destiny_fate-cannot-be-sidestepped-or-outrun-917_917320.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/45d/dean-koontz-118_destiny_fate-cannot-be-sidestepped-or-outrun-917_917320.jpg) > “Fate cannot be sidestepped or outrun.” [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Fate is unavoidable; attempts to escape it are futile. **In simple terms:** You cannot outrun destiny. Key Takeaway Accept what you cannot change. Themes destiny inevitability acceptance Mood reflective serious Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - life planning - career choices - relationship decisions - crisis management Key Concepts determinism free will resilience Questions to Reflect On - Do you believe fate controls your life? - How can you act within perceived destiny? A Different Perspective May discourage proactive effort. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Destiny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/destiny/) [Fate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fate/) [Fate Sidestepped](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fate-sidestepped-1391546/) [Outrun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/outrun/) [Sidestepped](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sidestepped-1391548/) [Sidestepped Outrun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sidestepped-outrun-1391547/) ## Related quotes > [“I ducked again as her Hellfire sword whistled over my head, and sidestepped so quickly I tripped over a chair. I was in such…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maryjanice-davidson/i-ducked-again-as-her-hellfire-sword-whistled-over-my-head-and/) [MaryJanice Davidson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maryjanice-davidson/) > [“I sidestepped the vampire's rush, and drove my half of the former blasting rod down at its back, Buffy-like. Maybe it works better on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-butcher/i-sidestepped-the-vampire-s-rush-and-drove-my-half-of-the-former/) [Jim Butcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-butcher/) > [“No matter how far I ran, I couldn’t seem to outrun myself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dosher/no-matter-how-far-i-ran-i-couldn-t-seem-to-outrun-myself/) [Sarah Dosher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dosher/) > [“You can't outrun the history train”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-simon/you-can-t-outrun-the-history-train/) [Paul Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-simon/) > [The number of people that can reason well is much smaller than those that can reason badly. If reasoning were like hauling rocks, then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/galileo-galilei/the-number-of-people-that-can-reason-well-is-much-smaller-than-those/) [Galileo Galilei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/galileo-galilei/) > [It can't be outmatched, It can't be outrun...No](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linkin-park/it-can-t-be-outmatched-it-can-t-be-outrun-no/) [Linkin Park](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linkin-park/) > [We can outrun the wind and the storm, but we cannot outrun the demon of hurry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-burroughs/we-can-outrun-the-wind-and-the-storm-but-we-cannot-outrun-the-demon/) [John Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-burroughs/) > [For more than twenty-five years my mind had been deeply troubled by the fact that these mechanical and scientific achievements ofman had outrun his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-gildersleeve/for-more-than-twenty-five-years-my-mind-had-been-deeply-troubled-by/) [Virginia Gildersleeve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-gildersleeve/) > [No one can outrun death. 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I would not be able to outrun Indominus Rex,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-pratt/i-surprised-myself-with-my-ability-to-run-it-s-kind-of-like-tippy-toe/) [Chris Pratt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-pratt/) > [The means by which we live have outdistanced the ends for which we live.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/the-means-by-which-we-live-have-outdistanced-the-ends-for-which-we/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [Gail Anderson-Dargatz has a noticing eye, a voice as unique as the countryside she writes about, and a heart large enough to love her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-hodgins/gail-anderson-dargatz-has-a-noticing-eye-a-voice-as-unique-as-the/) [Jack Hodgins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-hodgins/) > [Local and state governments have outrun the federal government. The EPA has served notice that it will enact a rule requiring CO2 reductions by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-gore/local-and-state-governments-have-outrun-the-federal-government-the/) [Al Gore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-gore/) ## More by Dean Koontz > [“This kind of derangement is emblematic of humankind. Grave faults are said to be only eccentricities, and imperfections are routinely celebrated as mere differences…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/this-kind-of-derangement-is-emblematic-of-humankind-grave-faults-are/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“He often remembered his dad's admonition that envy was mental theft. If you coveted another man's possessions, Dad said, then you should be willing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/he-often-remembered-his-dad-s-admonition-that-envy-was-mental-theft/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [But victimhood was seductive, a release from responsibility and caring. Fear would be transmuted into weary resignation; failure would no longer generate guilt but,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/but-victimhood-was-seductive-a-release-from-responsibility-and-caring/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [What really holds their marriage together are mutual respect of an awesome depth, a shared sense of humor, faith that they were brought together…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/what-really-holds-their-marriage-together-are-mutual-respect-of-an/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“Her mother said that three great powers kept the universe going. The first and the strongest was God. Each of the two additional powers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/her-mother-said-that-three-great-powers-kept-the-universe-going-the/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“I stopped keeping an eye out for Santa Claus on Christmas Eve because, when I was five, my mother told me that Santa was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/i-stopped-keeping-an-eye-out-for-santa-claus-on-christmas-eve-because/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“To one degree or another, I have been happy most of my life, in part because the world has infinite charms if you wish…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/to-one-degree-or-another-i-have-been-happy-most-of-my-life-in-part/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“This life is just a bootcamp, to test and toughen us, to prepare us for the next life of service in some great adventure.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/this-life-is-just-a-bootcamp-to-test-and-toughen-us-to-prepare-us-for/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“A madman should have a madman’s laugh, not the warm chuckle of a favorite uncle.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/a-madman-should-have-a-madman-s-laugh-not-the-warm-chuckle-of-a/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“Anger was a reliable defense, but one that allowed no chance of final victory. Anger was a medicine but never a cure, briefly numbing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/anger-was-a-reliable-defense-but-one-that-allowed-no-chance-of-final/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“Nothing is predetermined for us, and yet all our possible choices are threads in the vast weave of things, so that we have free…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/nothing-is-predetermined-for-us-and-yet-all-our-possible-choices-are/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“In fact, time teaches us that the musical score of life oscillates between that of Psycho and that of The Sound of Music, with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/in-fact-time-teaches-us-that-the-musical-score-of-life-oscillates/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“Some will accuse me of being judgmental. Thank you. And proud of it. You wreck a kid's life, I have no pity for you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/some-will-accuse-me-of-being-judgmental-thank-you-and-proud-of-it-you/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“Waiting is one of the things that humans beings cannot do well, though it is one of the essential things we must do successfully…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/waiting-is-one-of-the-things-that-humans-beings-cannot-do-well-though/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“Dogs know we need to give affection as much as they need to receive it. They were the first therapists; they've been in practice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/dogs-know-we-need-to-give-affection-as-much-as-they-need-to-receive/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) [Explore all 1,233 Dean Koontz quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) ## More Destiny quotes > [... War on the destiny of man! Doom on the sun! Before death takes you, O take back this.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/war-on-the-destiny-of-man-doom-on-the-sun-before-death-takes-you-o/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Anatomy is destiny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/anatomy-is-destiny/) [Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/) > [“You are destiny for greatness. Your future is in the hands of the Lord.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/you-are-destiny-for-greatness-your-future-is-in-the-hands-of-the-lord/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [“To be a Sufi is to detach from fixed ideas and from preconceptions; and not to try to avoid what is your lot.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/idries-shah/to-be-a-sufi-is-to-detach-from-fixed-ideas-and-from-preconceptions/) [Idries Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/idries-shah/) > [ Man blindly works the will of fate. \[Ger., Blindlings that er blos den Willen des Geschickes.\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christoph-martin-wieland/man-blindly-works-the-will-of-fate-ger-blindlings-that-er-blos-den/) [Christoph Martin Wieland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christoph-martin-wieland/) > [There are times when we can feel destiny close around us like a fist around a doorknob. Sure, we can resist. But a knob…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/there-are-times-when-we-can-feel-destiny-close-around-us-like-a-fist/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [“It's morning now, and I miss the soft rasp of her voice already. Ugh. I'm in trouble, aren't I?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-shand/it-s-morning-now-and-i-miss-the-soft-rasp-of-her-voice-already-ugh-i/) [Pat Shand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-shand/) > [You can't choose what stays and what stays away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/florence-welch/you-can-t-choose-what-stays-and-what-stays-away/) [Florence Welch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/florence-welch/) > [“Failing to meet your true destiny is a tragic act of free will.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthon-st-maarten/failing-to-meet-your-true-destiny-is-a-tragic-act-of-free-will/) [Anthon St. Maarten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthon-st-maarten/) > [Somehow destiny comes into play. These children end up with you and you end up with them. It's something quite magical.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-kidman/somehow-destiny-comes-into-play-these-children-end-up-with-you-and/) [Nicole Kidman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-kidman/) > [“In that instant it all seemed to come clear to him- it came in a grisly flash of light, and he realized that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/in-that-instant-it-all-seemed-to-come-clear-to-him-it-came-in-a/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“Destiny is the ordained intention God has sacredly prepared with your name on it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-s-lynch/destiny-is-the-ordained-intention-god-has-sacredly-prepared-with-your/) [John S. Lynch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-s-lynch/) > [“There is no interaction without God with interaction with men”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunday-adelaja/there-is-no-interaction-without-god-with-interaction-with-men/) [Sunday Adelaja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunday-adelaja/) > [We are somehow the children of the planet, we are somehow its finest hour; we bind time, we bind the past, we anticipate the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/we-are-somehow-the-children-of-the-planet-we-are-somehow-its-finest/) [Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/) > [“Fate and future both are servant to the determined, for they are nothing but creation of human determination.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/fate-and-future-both-are-servant-to-the-determined-for-they-are/) [Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/) [Browse all 7,925 Destiny quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/destiny/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Fate cannot be sidestepped or outrun.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Dean Koontz" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/fate-cannot-be-sidestepped-or-outrun/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Destiny" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/fate-cannot-be-sidestepped-or-outrun/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/45d/dean-koontz-118_destiny_fate-cannot-be-sidestepped-or-outrun-917_917320.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/45d/dean-koontz-118_destiny_fate-cannot-be-sidestepped-or-outrun-917_917320.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/45d/dean-koontz-118_destiny_fate-cannot-be-sidestepped-or-outrun-917_917320.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Fate cannot be sidestepped or outrun.” — Dean Koontz", "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": "Dean Koontz", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Fate cannot be sidestepped or outrun.", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/fate-cannot-be-sidestepped-or-outrun/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/fate-cannot-be-sidestepped-or-outrun/#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 } } ] } ```