--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: New information muddies the picture. Once…" description: "\"“New information muddies the picture. Once we finally reach a decision, we are relieved to have the uncertainty of decision making behind us. And now s..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e22/dietrich-d-rner-64037_decision-making_new-information-muddies-the-picture-once_3211720.jpg" --- # New information muddies the picture. Once we finally reach… ![“New information muddies the picture. Once we finally reach a decision, we are relieved to have the uncertainty of decision making behind us. And now somebody turns up and tells us things that call the wisdom of that decision into question again. So we prefer not to listen.” quote by Dietrich Dörner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e22/dietrich-d-rner-64037_decision-making_new-information-muddies-the-picture-once_3211720.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e22/dietrich-d-rner-64037_decision-making_new-information-muddies-the-picture-once_3211720.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e22/dietrich-d-rner-64037_decision-making_new-information-muddies-the-picture-once_3211720.jpg) > ““New information muddies the picture. Once we finally reach a decision, we are relieved to have the uncertainty of decision making behind us. And now somebody turns up and tells us things that call the wisdom of that decision into question again. So we prefer not to listen.”” [Dietrich Dörner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-d-rner/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People avoid new information after a decision because it threatens the comfort of certainty, leading to selective hearing. **In simple terms:** People ignore new facts that challenge their choices. Key Takeaway Stay open to revisiting decisions when new data appear. Themes decision‑making uncertainty information overload Mood cautious reflective Type explanatory advisory When to use this quote - business strategy - personal choices - policy making - research Key Concepts cognitive bias confidence feedback loops Questions to Reflect On - What would happen if you welcomed contrary evidence? - How can you balance certainty with openness? A Different Perspective Avoiding new data can lock in errors. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Decision making](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decision-making/) [Uncertainty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/uncertainty/) ## Related quotes > [“A good decision cannot guarantee a good outcome. All real decisions are made under uncertainty. 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Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells/) > [Your actions followed your feelings instead of wisdom, and it's a decision that may lead to results you're not happy with later.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-williams/your-actions-followed-your-feelings-instead-of-wisdom-and-it-s-a/) [Craig Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-williams/) > [The superpowers often behave like two heavily armed blind men feeling their way around a room, each believing himself in mortal peril from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-superpowers-often-behave-like-two-heavily-armed-blind-men-feeling/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Uncertainty will always be part of the taking charge process.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/uncertainty-will-always-be-part-of-the-taking-charge-process/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Uncertainty that comes from knowledge (knowing what you don't know) is different from uncertainty coming from ignorance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/uncertainty-that-comes-from-knowledge-knowing-what-you-don-t-know-is/) [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) > [We don't always know the details of our future. We do not know what lies ahead. We live in a time of uncertainty. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dieter-f-uchtdorf/we-don-t-always-know-the-details-of-our-future-we-do-not-know-what/) [Dieter F. Uchtdorf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dieter-f-uchtdorf/) > [Marriages are always moving from one season to another. Sometimes we find ourselves in winter--discouraged, detached, and dissatisfied; other times we experience springtime, with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-chapman/marriages-are-always-moving-from-one-season-to-another-sometimes-we/) [Gary Chapman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-chapman/) > [Moses became America's true founding father because he evangelized action; he justified risk. He gave ordinary people the courage to live with uncertainty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-feiler/moses-became-america-s-true-founding-father-because-he-evangelized/) [Bruce Feiler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-feiler/) > [“She's sure, absolutely sure, that what she's waiting for will happen, just the way she wants it to; and I'm so uncertain, so fearful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-lowry/she-s-sure-absolutely-sure-that-what-she-s-waiting-for-will-happen/) [Lois Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-lowry/) > [I don't think we should tell them what we're going to do in advance. Let them think. Worry. Wonder. Uncertainty is the most chilling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vernon-a-walters/i-don-t-think-we-should-tell-them-what-we-re-going-to-do-in-advance/) [Vernon A. Walters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vernon-a-walters/) > [Here today, may be gone tomorrow! Never take anyone or nothing for granted! Be sure to count your blessing daily because tomorrow isn't promised.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/surgeo-bell/here-today-may-be-gone-tomorrow-never-take-anyone-or-nothing-for/) [Surgeo Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/surgeo-bell/) > [The dream of coming back is becoming a reality. A lot of the uncertainty about the future has been cleared up. A lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-tagliabue/the-dream-of-coming-back-is-becoming-a-reality-a-lot-of-the/) [Paul Tagliabue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-tagliabue/) > [I have lifted my plane . . . for perhaps a thousand flights and I have never felt her wheels glide from the Earth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beryl-markham/i-have-lifted-my-plane-for-perhaps-a-thousand-flights-and-i-have/) [Beryl Markham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beryl-markham/) ## More by Dietrich Dörner > [“We have a tendency, under time pressure, to apply overdoses of established measures.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-d-rner/we-have-a-tendency-under-time-pressure-to-apply-overdoses-of/) [Dietrich Dörner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-d-rner/) > [“If we want to solve problems effectively...we must keep in mind not only many features but also the influences among them. Complexity is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-d-rner/if-we-want-to-solve-problems-effectively-we-must-keep-in-mind-not/) [Dietrich Dorner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-d-rner/) > [“When we set out to change things, we don't pay enough attention to what we want to leave unchanged.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-d-rner/when-we-set-out-to-change-things-we-don-t-pay-enough-attention-to/) [Dietrich Dörner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-d-rner/) > [“We find a tendency, under time pressure, to apply overdoses of established measures.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-d-rner/we-find-a-tendency-under-time-pressure-to-apply-overdoses-of/) [Dietrich Dorner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-d-rner/) [Explore all 5 Dietrich Dörner quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-d-rner/) ## More Decision making quotes > [Making the right decision is hard,telling someone your decision is even harder.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhishek-tiwari/making-the-right-decision-is-hard-telling-someone-your-decision-is/) [Abhishek Tiwari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhishek-tiwari/) > [It is said that history turns on small hinges. 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That way, no matter how hard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josephine-angelini/exactly-so-what-can-t-you-take-decide-which-of-the-two-options-is/) [Josephine Angelini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josephine-angelini/) > [“How can you make an informed decision about whether to save the world if you never leave your tiny part of it?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shaun-david-hutchinson/how-can-you-make-an-informed-decision-about-whether-to-save-the-world/) [Shaun David Hutchinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shaun-david-hutchinson/) > [Indecision becomes decision with time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/indecision-becomes-decision-with-time/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If you think of people as making decisions actively, every time we think about the cup of coffee, we say, "How much will I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-ariely/if-you-think-of-people-as-making-decisions-actively-every-time-we/) [Dan Ariely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-ariely/) > [Decision is a risk rooted in the courage of being free.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-tillich/decision-is-a-risk-rooted-in-the-courage-of-being-free/) [Paul Tillich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-tillich/) > [I never think of things rationally or intellectually. 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My worst was compromising on certain aspects of a deal for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ziggy-marley/my-best-business-decision-was-to-be-independent-as-a-musician-and/) [Ziggy Marley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ziggy-marley/) > [“Making a decision takes a moment, living a decision takes a life-time.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherif-a-el-mawardy/making-a-decision-takes-a-moment-living-a-decision-takes-a-life-time/) [Sherif A. El-Mawardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherif-a-el-mawardy/) > [Cheshvan starts tonight," Rixon said, "What are you doing arsing around in a graveyard?" "Thinking." "Thinking?" "A process by which I use my brain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/becca-fitzpatrick/cheshvan-starts-tonight-rixon-said-what-are-you-doing-arsing-around/) [Becca Fitzpatrick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/becca-fitzpatrick/) > [The right decision is the wrong decision if it's made too late.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/the-right-decision-is-the-wrong-decision-if-it-s-made-too-late/) [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) > [“The decisions we take reflects our belief and our charachter”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajnish-borah/the-decisions-we-take-reflects-our-belief-and-our-charachter/) Rajnish Borah > [I think most of us are raised with preconceived notions of the choices we're supposed to make. We waste so much time making decisions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-bullock/i-think-most-of-us-are-raised-with-preconceived-notions-of-the/) [Sandra Bullock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-bullock/) [Browse all 4,912 Decision making quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decision-making/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“New information muddies the picture. Once we finally reach a decision, we are relieved to have the uncertainty of decision making behind us. And now somebody turns up and tells us things that call the wisdom of that decision into question again. 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