--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A real decision makes one humble, one…" description: "\"“A real decision makes one humble, one knows that it is at the mercy of more things that can be named.”\" — James Baldwin" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac9/james-baldwin-995_compassion_a-real-decision-makes-one-humble-one-kno_1526315.jpg" --- # A real decision makes one humble, one knows that it is at… ![“A real decision makes one humble, one knows that it is at the mercy of more things that can be named.” quote by James Baldwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac9/james-baldwin-995_compassion_a-real-decision-makes-one-humble-one-kno_1526315.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac9/james-baldwin-995_compassion_a-real-decision-makes-one-humble-one-kno_1526315.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac9/james-baldwin-995_compassion_a-real-decision-makes-one-humble-one-kno_1526315.jpg) > ““A real decision makes one humble, one knows that it is at the mercy of more things that can be named.”” [James Baldwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-baldwin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A true decision reveals our dependence on many unseen forces, fostering humility. **In simple terms:** Decisions show we rely on many factors. Key Takeaway Embrace humility after making choices. Themes humility decision-making dependence Mood reflective thoughtful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - leadership - personal growth - ethical choices Key Concepts philosophy self-awareness Questions to Reflect On - How does humility affect future decisions? - What unseen factors influence your choices? A Different Perspective Decisions can be constrained by limited information. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Compassion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/compassion/) [Decision](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decision/) [Decision making](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decision-making/) [Humble](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humble/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Mercy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mercy/) ## Related quotes > [Praise makes me humble, but when I am abused, I know that I have touched the stars.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gyles-brandreth/praise-makes-me-humble-but-when-i-am-abused-i-know-that-i-have/) [Gyles Brandreth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gyles-brandreth/) > [The big, strong, tough guy goes to class, and he keeps getting tapped by the skinny, technical guy. It begins to change him. 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Don't put on the breaks.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryl-sandberg/anyone-lucky-enough-to-have-options-should-keep-them-open-don-t-enter/) [Sheryl Sandberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-sandberg/) ## More by James Baldwin > [“In any case, white people, who had robbed black people of their liberty and who profited by this theft every hour that they lived,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-baldwin/in-any-case-white-people-who-had-robbed-black-people-of-their-liberty/) [James Baldwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-baldwin/) > [“The South is very beautiful but its beauty makes one sad because the lives that people live, and have lived here, are so ugly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-baldwin/the-south-is-very-beautiful-but-its-beauty-makes-one-sad-because-the/) [James Baldwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-baldwin/) > [“All cultures have, furthermore, an economic, social, and political base, and no culture can continue to live if its political destiny is not in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-baldwin/all-cultures-have-furthermore-an-economic-social-and-political-base/) [James Baldwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-baldwin/) > [“I remembered that life in that room seemed to be occuring beneath the sea, time flowed past indiffrently above us, hours and days had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-baldwin/i-remembered-that-life-in-that-room-seemed-to-be-occuring-beneath-the/) [James Baldwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-baldwin/) > [“No. It would help if I were able to feel guilty.But the end of innocence is also the end of guilt”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-baldwin/no-it-would-help-if-i-were-able-to-feel-guilty-but-the-end-of/) [James Baldwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-baldwin/) > [“Perhaps now, though, he had hit bottom. 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But I am also concerned for their dignity,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-baldwin/i-am-very-much-concerned-that-american-negroes-achieve-their-freedom/) [James Baldwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-baldwin/) > [“The paradox—and a fearful paradox it is—is that the American Negro can have no future anywhere, on any continent, as long as he is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-baldwin/the-paradox-and-a-fearful-paradox-it-is-is-that-the-american-negro/) [James Baldwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-baldwin/) [Explore all 312 James Baldwin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-baldwin/) ## More Compassion quotes > [Half the misery of human life might be extinguished if men would alleviate the general curse they lie under by mutual offices of compassion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/half-the-misery-of-human-life-might-be-extinguished-if-men-would/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [“I fight with love and kindness as my weapons and compassion as my defense.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debasish-mridha/i-fight-with-love-and-kindness-as-my-weapons-and-compassion-as-my/) [Debasish Mridha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debasish-mridha/) > [I really enjoy making people laugh; I've discovered that's a great technique. 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If we are harsh, we believe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geneen-roth/for-some-reason-we-are-truly-convinced-that-if-we-criticize-ourselves/) [Geneen Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geneen-roth/) > [I could not have slept tonight if I had left that helpless little creature to perish on the ground.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/i-could-not-have-slept-tonight-if-i-had-left-that-helpless-little/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [We are puzzled and bewildered whenever we see suffering in this world because we have become accustomed to the mercy and the long-suffering of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-c-sproul/we-are-puzzled-and-bewildered-whenever-we-see-suffering-in-this-world/) [R. C. Sproul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-c-sproul/) > [“Helpers in every corner, helpers in every hood. That's how we'll make the move, to reform from rude.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/helpers-in-every-corner-helpers-in-every-hood-that-s-how-we-ll-make/) [Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/) > [There are a number of qualities which are important for mental peace, but from the little experience I have, I believe that one of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dalai-lama/there-are-a-number-of-qualities-which-are-important-for-mental-peace/) [Dalai Lama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dalai-lama/) > [May the gods have mercy on whoever pisses them off, because Zarek and Jericho will have none for them. 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