--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Don't ask me for promises until I know…" description: "\"Don't ask me for promises until I know what I am promising.\" — George Bernard Shaw" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e2/george-bernard-shaw-68_ask-me_don-t-ask-me-for-promises-until-i-know-w_1407513.png" --- # Don't ask me for promises until I know what I am promising. ![“Don't ask me for promises until I know what I am promising.” quote by George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e2/george-bernard-shaw-68_ask-me_don-t-ask-me-for-promises-until-i-know-w_1407513.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e2/george-bernard-shaw-68_ask-me_don-t-ask-me-for-promises-until-i-know-w_1407513.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e2/george-bernard-shaw-68_ask-me_don-t-ask-me-for-promises-until-i-know-w_1407513.png) > “Don't ask me for promises until I know what I am promising.” [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. One should not make promises until fully understanding what is being promised. **In simple terms:** Know what you promise before committing. Key Takeaway Clarify commitments first. Themes integrity communication responsibility Mood thoughtful cautious Type ethical philosophical When to use this quote - business contracts - personal relationships - team projects - legal agreements Key Concepts promise management self‑awareness Questions to Reflect On - What promises have you made without clarity? - How can you ensure understanding before promising? A Different Perspective People may see this as overly cautious. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Promise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/promise/) [Promises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/promises/) ## Related quotes > [I won't ask for promises.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-seals/i-won-t-ask-for-promises/) [Dan Seals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-seals/) > [Our promising lives are full of empty promises. ?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/our-promising-lives-are-full-of-empty-promises/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Stop a bit and think it over. There do be some knots mighty aisy to tie but the untying is a cat of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-m-montgomery/stop-a-bit-and-think-it-over-there-do-be-some-knots-mighty-aisy-to/) [L.M. Montgomery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-m-montgomery/) > [When you don't know what to do, go back to the places, the people and the promises where you know you last heard God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-farrel/when-you-don-t-know-what-to-do-go-back-to-the-places-the-people-and/) [Pam Farrel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-farrel/) > [I make promises because I know I won't break them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-make-promises-because-i-know-i-won-t-break-them/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [We are always making promises we know we can't accomplish, just to see someone smile...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bella-mutolo/we-are-always-making-promises-we-know-we-can-t-accomplish-just-to-see/) [Bella Mutolo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bella-mutolo/) > [“Higher Power makes promises we all know they can't back up, but anybody ever go and slap an old malpractice suit on God? Or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-erdrich/higher-power-makes-promises-we-all-know-they-can-t-back-up-but/) [Louise Erdrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-erdrich/) > [And I'm so tired of you pacifying me. With promises you know that you'll never keep. Round and round it goes...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vivian-green/and-i-m-so-tired-of-you-pacifying-me-with-promises-you-know-that-you/) [Vivian Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vivian-green/) > [My generation will put it right, we're just not making promises that we know we'll never keep.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/genesis/my-generation-will-put-it-right-we-re-just-not-making-promises-that/) [Genesis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/genesis/) > [I build on Christ, the rock of ages; on his sure mercies described in his word, and on his promises, all which I know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wesley/i-build-on-christ-the-rock-of-ages-on-his-sure-mercies-described-in/) [John Wesley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wesley/) > [Don't lie, don't cheat, and don't make promises you know you can't keep.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/don-t-lie-don-t-cheat-and-don-t-make-promises-you-know-you-can-t-keep/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“The stars- they hear us. They keep their promises. They know our hearts most secret desires," he said breathlessly. "I wished for you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-groulx/the-stars-they-hear-us-they-keep-their-promises-they-know-our-hearts/) [Kristin Groulx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristin-groulx/) > [You cannot make promises because you never know what your next project will be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-villeneuve/you-cannot-make-promises-because-you-never-know-what-your-next/) [Denis Villeneuve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-villeneuve/) > [Oh, come! That boot is on the other leg. Why should you call me to account for eating decently? If I battened on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/oh-come-that-boot-is-on-the-other-leg-why-should-you-call-me-to/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [“Love is promising to give someone everything and not expect anything in return.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-hart/love-is-promising-to-give-someone-everything-and-not-expect-anything/) [Emma Hart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-hart/) ## More by George Bernard Shaw > [I love little children too but I don't cut off their heads and stick them in vases.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/i-love-little-children-too-but-i-don-t-cut-off-their-heads-and-stick/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [Blasphemy and sedition (meaning the truth about Church and State).](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/blasphemy-and-sedition-meaning-the-truth-about-church-and-state/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [In the arts of life, man invents nothing; but in the arts of death he outdoes Nature herself, and produces by chemistry and machinery…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/in-the-arts-of-life-man-invents-nothing-but-in-the-arts-of-death-he/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [“My religious convictions and scientific views cannot at present be more specifically defined than as those of a believer in creative evolution. I desire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/my-religious-convictions-and-scientific-views-cannot-at-present-be/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [What a man believes may be ascertained, not from his creed, but from the assumptions on which he habitually acts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/what-a-man-believes-may-be-ascertained-not-from-his-creed-but-from/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [You are my inspiration and my folly. You are my light across the sea, my million nameless joys, and my day's wage. You are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/you-are-my-inspiration-and-my-folly-you-are-my-light-across-the-sea/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [Men have to do some awfully mean things to keep up their respectability.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/men-have-to-do-some-awfully-mean-things-to-keep-up-their/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [The schoolmaster is the person who takes the children off the parents' hands for a consideration. That is to say, he establishes a child…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-schoolmaster-is-the-person-who-takes-the-children-off-the-parents/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [As long as I have a want, I have a reason for living. Satisfaction is death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/as-long-as-i-have-a-want-i-have-a-reason-for-living-satisfaction-is/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [The camera can represent flesh so superbly that, if I dared, I would never photograph a figure without asking that figure to take its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-camera-can-represent-flesh-so-superbly-that-if-i-dared-i-would/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [A man who is not a communist at the age of twenty is a fool. Any man who is still communist at the age…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/a-man-who-is-not-a-communist-at-the-age-of-twenty-is-a-fool-any-man/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [But to admire a strong person and to live under that strong person’s thumb are two different things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/but-to-admire-a-strong-person-and-to-live-under-that-strong-person-s/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [Socialism is the same as Communism, only better English.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/socialism-is-the-same-as-communism-only-better-english/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [The person who is ignorant enough to believe that his nourishment depends on meat is in a horrible dilemma.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-person-who-is-ignorant-enough-to-believe-that-his-nourishment/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [In the arts of peace Man is a bungler.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/in-the-arts-of-peace-man-is-a-bungler/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) [Explore all 1,640 George Bernard Shaw quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) ## More Ask me quotes > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! 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Don't ask me why, it just is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-yorke/space-jam-is-my-favorite-movie-don-t-ask-me-why-it-just-is/) [Thom Yorke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-yorke/) > [If I had lost a leg, I would tell them, instead of a boy, no one would ever ask me if I was 'over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-edwards/if-i-had-lost-a-leg-i-would-tell-them-instead-of-a-boy-no-one-would/) [Elizabeth Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-edwards/) > [It is very hard to tell when I started to be a spiritual teacher. 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