--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The problem with abstractions (like…" description: "\"“The problem with abstractions (like reports and documents) is that they create illusions of agreement. A hundred people can read the same words, but i..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/861/jason-fried-david-heinemeier-h_kindlehighlight_the-problem-with-abstractions-like-repor_1942782.jpg" --- # The problem with abstractions (like reports and documents)… ![“The problem with abstractions (like reports and documents) is that they create illusions of agreement. A hundred people can read the same words, but in their heads, they’re imagining a hundred different things.” quote by Jason Fried, David Heinemeier Hansson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/861/jason-fried-david-heinemeier-h_kindlehighlight_the-problem-with-abstractions-like-repor_1942782.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/861/jason-fried-david-heinemeier-h_kindlehighlight_the-problem-with-abstractions-like-repor_1942782.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/861/jason-fried-david-heinemeier-h_kindlehighlight_the-problem-with-abstractions-like-repor_1942782.jpg) > ““The problem with abstractions (like reports and documents) is that they create illusions of agreement. A hundred people can read the same words, but in their heads, they’re imagining a hundred different things.”” [Jason Fried, David Heinemeier Hansson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-fried-david-heinemeier-hansson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Abstractions like reports give a false sense of consensus, while readers interpret them differently in their minds. **In simple terms:** Reports seem to agree but mean different things. Key Takeaway Clarify intent, not just wording. Themes communication interpretation clarity Mood reflective critical Type advisory practical When to use this quote - team meetings - project documentation - client proposals Key Concepts cognitive bias semantic variance Questions to Reflect On - How do you ensure shared understanding? - What checks can verify true agreement? A Different Perspective Different interpretations can still cause misaligned actions. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Abstraction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstraction/) [Abstractions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstractions/) [Heads Imagining](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heads-imagining-3106525/) [Illusions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/illusions/) [Illusions Agreement](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/illusions-agreement-3106524/) [Imagining](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imagining/) [Kindlehighlight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kindlehighlight/) ## Related quotes > [In 'Self Comes to Mind' I pay a lot of attention to simple creatures without brains or minds, because those 'cartooned abstractions of who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-damasio/in-self-comes-to-mind-i-pay-a-lot-of-attention-to-simple-creatures/) [Antonio Damasio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-damasio/) > [“I don't know which is finally sicker -- specifics or engulfing abstractions.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-lutz/i-don-t-know-which-is-finally-sicker-specifics-or-engulfing/) [Gary Lutz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-lutz/) > [My father painted, well into his 80s, what he called hard edge abstractions. It's really cool.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-black/my-father-painted-well-into-his-80s-what-he-called-hard-edge/) [Lewis Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-black/) > [Even at its most perceptive, sociology deals in abstractions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-russo/even-at-its-most-perceptive-sociology-deals-in-abstractions/) [Richard Russo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-russo/) > [I think we are living a life without specificity, and then our lives become abstractions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-tempest-williams/i-think-we-are-living-a-life-without-specificity-and-then-our-lives/) [Terry Tempest Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-tempest-williams/) > [I don't see those paintings as abstractions, especially because they are emblems of the inkblot. They aren't smashed together; they are constructed shape-by-shape, layer-by-layer,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-james-marshall/i-don-t-see-those-paintings-as-abstractions-especially-because-they/) [Kerry James Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-james-marshall/) > [For the Warrior of the Light, there are no abstractions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/for-the-warrior-of-the-light-there-are-no-abstractions/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [To make someone an icon is to make him an abstraction, and abstractions are incapable of vital communication with living people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-foster-wallace/to-make-someone-an-icon-is-to-make-him-an-abstraction-and/) [David Foster Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-foster-wallace/) > [Policymakers think that if they get the abstractions right, that will drive behavior in the desired direction. But the world happens in real time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sendhil-mullainathan/policymakers-think-that-if-they-get-the-abstractions-right-that-will/) [Sendhil Mullainathan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sendhil-mullainathan/) > [At the same time, new concepts and abstractions flow into the picture, taking up the task of describing the universe without reference to such…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/at-the-same-time-new-concepts-and-abstractions-flow-into-the-picture/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It is easier to compare concrete things in a fictional story with concrete things in real life than it is to compare abstractions with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-kreeft/it-is-easier-to-compare-concrete-things-in-a-fictional-story-with/) [Peter Kreeft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-kreeft/) > [You can deny, if you like, nearly all abstractions: justice, beauty, truth, goodness, mind, God. You can deny seriousness, but not play.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johan-huizinga/you-can-deny-if-you-like-nearly-all-abstractions-justice-beauty-truth/) [Johan Huizinga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johan-huizinga/) > [Abstractions about right and wrong, whether they are as old as Thou Shalt Not Kill or as modern as Do Your Own Thing, often…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/abstractions-about-right-and-wrong-whether-they-are-as-old-as-thou/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [When novels deal in abstractions, they generally go off the rails.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philipp-meyer/when-novels-deal-in-abstractions-they-generally-go-off-the-rails/) [Philipp Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philipp-meyer/) > [In retrospect I can see that my desire to create abstractions has become more and more radical. Art should not be delivering a report…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andreas-gursky/in-retrospect-i-can-see-that-my-desire-to-create-abstractions-has/) [Andreas Gursky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andreas-gursky/) ## More by Jason Fried, David Heinemeier Hansson > [“Aprendre dels errors està sobrevalorat”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-fried-david-heinemeier-hansson/aprendre-dels-errors-est-sobrevalorat/) [Jason Fried, David Heinemeier Hansson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-fried-david-heinemeier-hansson/) > [“Don’t be insecure about aiming to be a small business. Anyone who runs a business that’s sustainable and profitable, whether it’s big or small,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-fried-david-heinemeier-hansson/don-t-be-insecure-about-aiming-to-be-a-small-business-anyone-who-runs/) [Jason Fried, David Heinemeier Hansson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-fried-david-heinemeier-hansson/) > [“Writing is today 's currency for good ideas.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-fried-david-heinemeier-hansson/writing-is-today-s-currency-for-good-ideas/) [Jason Fried, David Heinemeier Hansson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-fried-david-heinemeier-hansson/) > [“La planificación a largo plazo en un negocio es una fantasía, a no ser que tú seas una pitonisa”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-fried-david-heinemeier-hansson/la-planificaci-n-a-largo-plazo-en-un-negocio-es-una-fantas-a-a-no-ser/) [Jason Fried, David Heinemeier Hansson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-fried-david-heinemeier-hansson/) > [“There are four-letter words you should never use in business. They're not fuck or shit. They're need, must, can't, easy, just, only and fast.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-fried-david-heinemeier-hansson/there-are-four-letter-words-you-should-never-use-in-business-they-re/) [Jason Fried, David Heinemeier Hansson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-fried-david-heinemeier-hansson/) > [“Think about it this way: If you had to launch your business in two weeks, what would you cut out?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-fried-david-heinemeier-hansson/think-about-it-this-way-if-you-had-to-launch-your-business-in-two/) [Jason Fried, David Heinemeier Hansson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-fried-david-heinemeier-hansson/) [Explore all 7 Jason Fried, David Heinemeier Hansson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-fried-david-heinemeier-hansson/) ## More Abstraction quotes > [Everything in dancing is style, allusion, the essence of many thoughts and feelings. The abstraction of many moments.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alvin-ailey/everything-in-dancing-is-style-allusion-the-essence-of-many-thoughts/) [Alvin Ailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alvin-ailey/) > [The premises from which we begin are not arbitrary ones, not dogmas, but real premises from which abstraction can only be made in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melchor-lim/the-premises-from-which-we-begin-are-not-arbitrary-ones-not-dogmas/) [Melchor Lim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melchor-lim/) > [Two elements are needed to form a truth - a fact and an abstraction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/remy-de-gourmont/two-elements-are-needed-to-form-a-truth-a-fact-and-an-abstraction/) [Remy de Gourmont](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/remy-de-gourmont/) > [But we must not underestimate the potency of the mathematical process of abstraction. A surprising variety of things happen to have both magnitude and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/banesh-hoffmann/but-we-must-not-underestimate-the-potency-of-the-mathematical-process/) [Banesh Hoffmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/banesh-hoffmann/) > [Sometimes I start in a very realistic fashion, and as I go on from one painting to another of the same kind, it becomes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georgia-o-keeffe/sometimes-i-start-in-a-very-realistic-fashion-and-as-i-go-on-from-one/) [Georgia O'Keeffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georgia-o-keeffe/) > [I like residing in abstraction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sufjan-stevens/i-like-residing-in-abstraction/) [Sufjan Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sufjan-stevens/) > [Cancer begins and ends with people. In the midst of scientific abstraction, it is sometimes possible to forget this one basic fact. Doctors treat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/june-goodfield/cancer-begins-and-ends-with-people-in-the-midst-of-scientific/) [June Goodfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/june-goodfield/) > [Yes, there was an element of abstraction and unreality in misfortune. 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It's an abstraction. Not unlike…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/don-t-get-stuck-on-the-level-of-words-a-word-is-no-more-than-a-means/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [Holidays are in no sense an alternative to the congestion and bustle of the cities and work. Quite the contrary. People look to escape…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-baudrillard/holidays-are-in-no-sense-an-alternative-to-the-congestion-and-bustle/) [Jean Baudrillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-baudrillard/) > [The pragmatist turns away from abstraction and insufficiency, from verbal solutions, from bad a priori reasons, from fixed principles, closed systems, and pretended absolutes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-james/the-pragmatist-turns-away-from-abstraction-and-insufficiency-from/) [William James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-james/) > [ I'd say that \[Louis\] Brandeis practiced a kind of a "living originalism," to use the title of Jack Balkin's great book. He said you… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-rosen/i-d-say-that-louis-brandeis-practiced-a-kind-of-a-living-originalism/) [Jeffrey Rosen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-rosen/) > [When novels deal in abstractions, they generally go off the rails.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philipp-meyer/when-novels-deal-in-abstractions-they-generally-go-off-the-rails/) [Philipp Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philipp-meyer/) [Browse all 562 Abstraction quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstraction/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The problem with abstractions (like reports and documents) is that they create illusions of agreement. 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