--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Bad choices or good, if you never take…" description: "\"Bad choices or good, if you never take chances, someone else will build your life for you.\" — Ellen Hopkins" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c49/ellen-hopkins-475_bad-choices_bad-choices-or-good-if-you-never-take-ch_336847.png" --- # Bad choices or good, if you never take chances, someone… ![“Bad choices or good, if you never take chances, someone else will build your life for you.” quote by Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c49/ellen-hopkins-475_bad-choices_bad-choices-or-good-if-you-never-take-ch_336847.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c49/ellen-hopkins-475_bad-choices_bad-choices-or-good-if-you-never-take-ch_336847.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c49/ellen-hopkins-475_bad-choices_bad-choices-or-good-if-you-never-take-ch_336847.png) > “Bad choices or good, if you never take chances, someone else will build your life for you.” [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Avoiding risk leads others to dictate your path; taking chances is essential for self‑determination. **In simple terms:** Take risks to control your own life. Key Takeaway Embrace uncertainty to shape your destiny. Themes risk choice autonomy growth Mood cautious hopeful Type motivational philosophical When to use this quote - career decisions - relationships - entrepreneurship - personal development Key Concepts self‑determination agency consequences Questions to Reflect On - What risks have you avoided? - How might taking a chance change your future? A Different Perspective Risk can result in failure or regret if not managed wisely. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bad choices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bad-choices/) [Chance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chance/) [Choices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choices/) [Decision making](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decision-making/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Luck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/luck/) [Take a chance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/take-a-chance/) ## Related quotes > [Good choices or bad, if you never take chances, someone else will build your life for you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bakare/good-choices-or-bad-if-you-never-take-chances-someone-else-will-build/) [Bakare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bakare/) > [I tend to learn from mistakes that I've made. Even though it sucks to make bad choices, sometimes it's good to fail.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mo/i-tend-to-learn-from-mistakes-that-i-ve-made-even-though-it-sucks-to/) MO > [“Don't go around saying y.o.l.o. You need to live life to the fullest not going around making bad choices make good choices. Have good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jaylynn-cameron/don-t-go-around-saying-y-o-l-o-you-need-to-live-life-to-the-fullest/) Jaylynn Cameron > [I think life is a matter of choices and that wherever we are, good or bad, is because of choices we make.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-holtz/i-think-life-is-a-matter-of-choices-and-that-wherever-we-are-good-or/) [Lou Holtz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-holtz/) > [In my own life, I'm pretty good at choosing between good and bad. It's the choices between good and good I find the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ally-condie/in-my-own-life-i-m-pretty-good-at-choosing-between-good-and-bad-it-s/) [Ally Condie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ally-condie/) > [My chances of being PM are about as good as the chances of finding Elvis on Mars, or my being reincarnated as an olive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boris-johnson/my-chances-of-being-pm-are-about-as-good-as-the-chances-of-finding/) [Boris Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boris-johnson/) > [“In retrospect, their best chance of doing it this way was against Arsenal, in the game they won 8–2. They only needed another nine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-hornby/in-retrospect-their-best-chance-of-doing-it-this-way-was-against/) [Nick Hornby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-hornby/) > [There's good chances and bad chances, and nobody's luck is pulled only by one string.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/there-s-good-chances-and-bad-chances-and-nobody-s-luck-is-pulled-only/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) > [“Henry was right—I let everyone else's feelings affect my decisions. Screw that. I'm taking the ball and running with it. Maybe they're not my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-kenneally/henry-was-right-i-let-everyone-else-s-feelings-affect-my-decisions/) [Miranda Kenneally](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-kenneally/) > [Living means taking chances. Risks. Playing safe all the time is being dead inside, even if you happen to still be breathing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/living-means-taking-chances-risks-playing-safe-all-the-time-is-being/) [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) > [Hoping all my students make wise decisions every day, but especially tonight when so many bad choices will be present. Be Wise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/hoping-all-my-students-make-wise-decisions-every-day-but-especially/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I am the result of the good choices I've made and the bad choices.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madonna-ciccone/i-am-the-result-of-the-good-choices-i-ve-made-and-the-bad-choices/) [Madonna Ciccone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madonna-ciccone/) > [For good-intentioned people making decisions, there's no such thing as a bad choice. So it doesn't matter what you choose. Choose something, then deliberately…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-hicks/for-good-intentioned-people-making-decisions-there-s-no-such-thing-as/) [Esther Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-hicks/) > [Your life is like credit. If you make bad choices and decisions its gonna effect everything in your life as well as yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/your-life-is-like-credit-if-you-make-bad-choices-and-decisions-its/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You make choices and sometimes they're good and sometimes they backfire. The most important thing is to be brave, forgive yourself when you do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiersey-clemons/you-make-choices-and-sometimes-they-re-good-and-sometimes-they/) [Kiersey Clemons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiersey-clemons/) ## More by Ellen Hopkins > [“I've been alone since my mom met Scott. He sucked the nectar from her heart like a famished butterfly. No nurture, no nourishment left…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/i-ve-been-alone-since-my-mom-met-scott-he-sucked-the-nectar-from-her/) [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) > [I wonder how long it would take him to realize I'm right as sin - it's the rest of the world that's wrong. I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/i-wonder-how-long-it-would-take-him-to-realize-i-m-right-as-sin-it-s/) [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) > [Do you know how beautiful you are?' I shook my head 'I'm not. But you make me fell like I am.' I wanted to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/do-you-know-how-beautiful-you-are-i-shook-my-head-i-m-not-but-you/) [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) > [That's what I'll be. A silhouette, rarely seen, and yet believed in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/that-s-what-i-ll-be-a-silhouette-rarely-seen-and-yet-believed-in/) [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) > [One foot in front of the other, counting tiles on the floor so I don't have to focus the blur of painted smiles, fake…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/one-foot-in-front-of-the-other-counting-tiles-on-the-floor-so-i-don-t/) [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) > [...life is all about chances. You might be safer not taking any. But playing it totally safe means you're only existing. Not living. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/life-is-all-about-chances-you-might-be-safer-not-taking-any-but/) [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) > [The truth is, I don't have a real clue what love is - how to find it, how to give it. Once upon a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/the-truth-is-i-don-t-have-a-real-clue-what-love-is-how-to-find-it-how/) [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) > [But death doesn't scare me. To know exactly when I might expect it, up close and in my face, would actually be a comfort.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/but-death-doesn-t-scare-me-to-know-exactly-when-i-might-expect-it-up/) [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) > [So You Want to Know All about her. Who she really is. (Was?) Why she swerved off the high road. Hard left to nowhere,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/so-you-want-to-know-all-about-her-who-she-really-is-was-why-she/) [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) > [“I don’t belong here. I know that. But I don’t belong anywhere else, either. And that is at the heart of the black depression…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/i-don-t-belong-here-i-know-that-but-i-don-t-belong-anywhere-else/) [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) > [Six months since we met up again we are inseparable, an intricate weave. No longer do I believe this is a temporary fling. More…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/six-months-since-we-met-up-again-we-are-inseparable-an-intricate/) [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) > [“But who ever said the easiest path is the one you should choose?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/but-who-ever-said-the-easiest-path-is-the-one-you-should-choose/) [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) > [Afraid to Die Loveless Because I think if you die without knowing love in this life, that's how you'll spend eternity. Alone. Frozen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/afraid-to-die-loveless-because-i-think-if-you-die-without-knowing/) [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) > [Every high has an equal, measurable low.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/every-high-has-an-equal-measurable-low/) [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) > [Don't Stop ...down, ...Down there ...down where ...monsters, ...Run!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/don-t-stop-down-down-there-down-where-monsters-run/) [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) [Explore all 534 Ellen Hopkins quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) ## More Bad choices quotes > [I can't let fear kill my creative brain. Fear is the killer. Your bad choices come from fear. And I'm constantly combating fear. I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-m-chu/i-can-t-let-fear-kill-my-creative-brain-fear-is-the-killer-your-bad/) [Jon M. Chu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-m-chu/) > [“What would you think if I told you that, yes, your bad choices and decisions have had a part in your ending up under…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-andrews/what-would-you-think-if-i-told-you-that-yes-your-bad-choices-and/) [Andy Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-andrews/) > [ Loneliness is something we \[all people\] go through. We go through mourning and longing. We make some bad choices sometimes because we're desperate for… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-lee/loneliness-is-something-we-all-people-go-through-we-go-through/) [Jennifer Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-lee/) > [“Do More. Be More. You were made for more! Take all the chances and leaps. Every single step of the journey is a maze…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chinonye-j-chidolue/do-more-be-more-you-were-made-for-more-take-all-the-chances-and-leaps/) [Chinonye J. Chidolue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chinonye-j-chidolue/) > [In Lullabies, I wanted to capture what I remembered of the drunken babbling of unfortunate twelve-year-olds: their illusions, their ludicrously bad choices, their lack…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heather-o-neill/in-lullabies-i-wanted-to-capture-what-i-remembered-of-the-drunken/) [Heather O'Neill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heather-o-neill/) > [ Britney and I wore matching denim outfits \[to the 2001 American Music Awards\]. Yeah, another bad choice. I’d probably pay good money to get… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-timberlake/britney-and-i-wore-matching-denim-outfits-to-the-2001-american-music/) [Justin Timberlake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-timberlake/) > [Your life is like credit. If you make bad choices and decisions its gonna effect everything in your life as well as yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/your-life-is-like-credit-if-you-make-bad-choices-and-decisions-its/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I love painting. I love drawing. I’m never let down, even when the picture isn’t exactly what I want. I can keep working on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kayla-cagan/i-love-painting-i-love-drawing-i-m-never-let-down-even-when-the/) Kayla Cagan > [Everyone makes mistakes in life, but that doesnt mean they have to pay for them the rest of their life sometimes good people make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vvn/everyone-makes-mistakes-in-life-but-that-doesnt-mean-they-have-to-pay/) VVN > [Sometimes, good people make bad choices. It doesn't mean they're bad…it means they're human](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/sometimes-good-people-make-bad-choices-it-doesn-t-mean-they-re-bad-it/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [For good-intentioned people making decisions, there's no such thing as a bad choice. So it doesn't matter what you choose. Choose something, then deliberately…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-hicks/for-good-intentioned-people-making-decisions-there-s-no-such-thing-as/) [Esther Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-hicks/) > [Love is too strong and life is too short. You have to love with your heart and live with your faith; you have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abby-wainwright/love-is-too-strong-and-life-is-too-short-you-have-to-love-with-your/) [Abby Wainwright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abby-wainwright/) > [I am the result of the good choices I've made and the bad choices.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madonna-ciccone/i-am-the-result-of-the-good-choices-i-ve-made-and-the-bad-choices/) [Madonna Ciccone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madonna-ciccone/) > [“Sometimes, when I read, it's not just fiction while I'm between the pages. It’s real. My heart races when they kiss, and I get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-hart/sometimes-when-i-read-it-s-not-just-fiction-while-i-m-between-the/) [Emma Hart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-hart/) > [I've lost a bunch of friends - some of them in jail, some of them made bad choices, some of them aren't where they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trombone-shorty/i-ve-lost-a-bunch-of-friends-some-of-them-in-jail-some-of-them-made/) [Trombone Shorty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trombone-shorty/) [Browse all 202 Bad choices quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bad-choices/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Bad choices or good, if you never take chances, someone else will build your life for you.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ellen Hopkins" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/bad-choices-or-good-if-you-never-take-chances-someone-else-will-build/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Bad choices" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/bad-choices-or-good-if-you-never-take-chances-someone-else-will-build/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c49/ellen-hopkins-475_bad-choices_bad-choices-or-good-if-you-never-take-ch_336847.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c49/ellen-hopkins-475_bad-choices_bad-choices-or-good-if-you-never-take-ch_336847.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c49/ellen-hopkins-475_bad-choices_bad-choices-or-good-if-you-never-take-ch_336847.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Bad choices or good, if you never take chances, someone else will build your life for you.” — Ellen Hopkins", "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": "Ellen Hopkins", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Bad choices or good, if you...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/bad-choices-or-good-if-you-never-take-chances-someone-else-will-build/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/bad-choices-or-good-if-you-never-take-chances-someone-else-will-build/#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 } } ] } ```