--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Seems indecisive, doesn't it? Either be a…" description: "\"“Seems indecisive, doesn't it? Either be a period or be a comma, but make up your mind.”\" — Jodi Picoult" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/616/jodi-picoult-45_psychology_seems-indecisive-doesn-t-it-either-be-a_1558667.jpg" --- # Seems indecisive, doesn't it? Either be a period or be a… ![“Seems indecisive, doesn't it? Either be a period or be a comma, but make up your mind.” quote by Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/616/jodi-picoult-45_psychology_seems-indecisive-doesn-t-it-either-be-a_1558667.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/616/jodi-picoult-45_psychology_seems-indecisive-doesn-t-it-either-be-a_1558667.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/616/jodi-picoult-45_psychology_seems-indecisive-doesn-t-it-either-be-a_1558667.jpg) > ““Seems indecisive, doesn't it? Either be a period or be a comma, but make up your mind.”” [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A call for decisive punctuation, urging clear choices over ambiguity. **In simple terms:** Choose clearly, avoid indecision. Key Takeaway Make firm decisions. Themes communication clarity decision-making Mood thoughtful direct Type advice reflective When to use this quote - writing - editing - public speaking Key Concepts grammar punctuation assertiveness Questions to Reflect On - How does punctuation affect meaning? - When is ambiguity useful? A Different Perspective Indecision can be stylistic, not always problematic. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Indecisive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/indecisive/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) ## Related quotes > [“So we’re seemingly in quite a pickle. Sometimes a period provides too much pause between these two sentences, but the comma doesn’t provide enough.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-baranick/so-we-re-seemingly-in-quite-a-pickle-sometimes-a-period-provides-too/) [Jenny Baranick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-baranick/) > [I have spent most of the day putting in a comma and the rest of the day taking it out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/i-have-spent-most-of-the-day-putting-in-a-comma-and-the-rest-of-the/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [“1) I’m, a, comma, whore. Apparently, I throw them around like confetti. Or glitter. The title of my next book: WHY COMMAS RULE THE…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimberly-derting/1-i-m-a-comma-whore-apparently-i-throw-them-around-like-confetti-or/) [Kimberly Derting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimberly-derting/) > [“Some folks metabolism isn't just slow, it's in a comma.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sincerrea-carrington/some-folks-metabolism-isn-t-just-slow-it-s-in-a-comma/) [Sincerrea Carrington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sincerrea-carrington/) > [I'm a fierce editor! I don't edit out things that I began by saying, usually. The editing is on the micro level - a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-davis/i-m-a-fierce-editor-i-don-t-edit-out-things-that-i-began-by-saying/) [Lydia Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-davis/) > [Give me the comma of imperfect striving, thus to find zest in the immediate living. Ever the reaching but never the gaining, ever the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-graham/give-me-the-comma-of-imperfect-striving-thus-to-find-zest-in-the/) [Winston Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-graham/) > [“Consider failure as just a comma in the middle of a sentence that tells the story of your life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-o-leary/consider-failure-as-just-a-comma-in-the-middle-of-a-sentence-that/) [Jeff O'Leary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-o-leary/) > [The goofiness of radicals thinking they have to dress in Guatemalan peasant clothes. The poor don't want you to look like them. They want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-kidder/the-goofiness-of-radicals-thinking-they-have-to-dress-in-guatemalan/) [Tracy Kidder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-kidder/) > [My cholesterol count has a comma.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-pinette/my-cholesterol-count-has-a-comma/) [John Pinette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-pinette/) > [A comma . . . catches the gentle drift of the mind in thought, turning in on itself and back on itself, reversing, redoubling,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/a-comma-catches-the-gentle-drift-of-the-mind-in-thought-turning-in-on/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [“It is no accident, Ma, that the comma resembles a fetus— that curve of continuation. We were all once inside our mothers, saying with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ocean-vuong/it-is-no-accident-ma-that-the-comma-resembles-a-fetus-that-curve-of/) [Ocean Vuong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ocean-vuong/) > [I mean we cant even rock them shoes if it dont got a comma on the price tag ya know. I mean.. I mean…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicki-minaj/i-mean-we-cant-even-rock-them-shoes-if-it-dont-got-a-comma-on-the/) [Nicki Minaj](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicki-minaj/) > [“Never place a period in your life where God only meant to place a comma.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gracie-allen/never-place-a-period-in-your-life-where-god-only-meant-to-place-a/) [Gracie Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gracie-allen/) > [There is truth and falsehood in a comma.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-stoppard/there-is-truth-and-falsehood-in-a-comma/) [Tom Stoppard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-stoppard/) > [Sometime yuh got to shut up, swallow yr pride and accept that yuh are wrong. It's not called giving up, it's called growing up](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teary-persaud/sometime-yuh-got-to-shut-up-swallow-yr-pride-and-accept-that-yuh-are/) [Teary Persaud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teary-persaud/) ## More by Jodi Picoult > [You get through it, you just never get over it](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/you-get-through-it-you-just-never-get-over-it/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [“Let me guess," Eric says, "You never meant for it to happen." "Hell, yes, I did. I've wanted her since you two started dating."…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/let-me-guess-eric-says-you-never-meant-for-it-to-happen-hell-yes-i/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [“It’s the difference between dancing along the eggshell crust of acquaintance and diving into the messy center of a relationship.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/it-s-the-difference-between-dancing-along-the-eggshell-crust-of/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [Because hate's just the flip side of love. Like heads and tails on a dime. If you don't know what it feels like to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/because-hate-s-just-the-flip-side-of-love-like-heads-and-tails-on-a/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [Some women are meant to change the world, while others are meant to hold it together. And then there are those of us who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/some-women-are-meant-to-change-the-world-while-others-are-meant-to/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [I love feeling loved. I don't love knowing that I will always come in second place. I love the fact that at least sometimes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/i-love-feeling-loved-i-don-t-love-knowing-that-i-will-always-come-in/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [“Music is the language of memory”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/music-is-the-language-of-memory/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [But there is a different between mending someone who's broken and finding someone who makes you complete.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/but-there-is-a-different-between-mending-someone-who-s-broken-and/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [“sometimes words are not big enough to contain all the feelings you are trying to pour into them. My”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/sometimes-words-are-not-big-enough-to-contain-all-the-feelings-you/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [“The age wasn't as important as the milestones.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/the-age-wasn-t-as-important-as-the-milestones/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [The night is falling down around us. Meteors rain like fireworks, quick rips in the seam of the dark... Every second, another streak of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/the-night-is-falling-down-around-us-meteors-rain-like-fireworks-quick/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [“When she had packed all the artifacts that made up their personal history into liquor store boxes, the house became strictly a feminine place.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/when-she-had-packed-all-the-artifacts-that-made-up-their-personal/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [“Maybe who we are isn't so much about what we do, but rather what we're capable of when we least expect it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/maybe-who-we-are-isn-t-so-much-about-what-we-do-but-rather-what-we-re/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [“Here's what I hadn't realized : the mother you haven't seen for almost 36 years isn't your mother. She is a stranger. Sharing DNA…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/here-s-what-i-hadn-t-realized-the-mother-you-haven-t-seen-for-almost/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [My brother believed in all sorts of mythical creatures: pixies, dragons, werewolves, honest men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/my-brother-believed-in-all-sorts-of-mythical-creatures-pixies-dragons/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) [Explore all 2,062 Jodi Picoult quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) ## More Comma quotes > [Sometime yuh got to shut up, swallow yr pride and accept that yuh are wrong. It's not called giving up, it's called growing up](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teary-persaud/sometime-yuh-got-to-shut-up-swallow-yr-pride-and-accept-that-yuh-are/) [Teary Persaud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teary-persaud/) > [There is truth and falsehood in a comma.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-stoppard/there-is-truth-and-falsehood-in-a-comma/) [Tom Stoppard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-stoppard/) > [“Never place a period in your life where God only meant to place a comma.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gracie-allen/never-place-a-period-in-your-life-where-god-only-meant-to-place-a/) [Gracie Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gracie-allen/) > [I mean we cant even rock them shoes if it dont got a comma on the price tag ya know. I mean.. I mean…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicki-minaj/i-mean-we-cant-even-rock-them-shoes-if-it-dont-got-a-comma-on-the/) [Nicki Minaj](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicki-minaj/) > [“It is no accident, Ma, that the comma resembles a fetus— that curve of continuation. We were all once inside our mothers, saying with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ocean-vuong/it-is-no-accident-ma-that-the-comma-resembles-a-fetus-that-curve-of/) [Ocean Vuong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ocean-vuong/) > [A comma . . . catches the gentle drift of the mind in thought, turning in on itself and back on itself, reversing, redoubling,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/a-comma-catches-the-gentle-drift-of-the-mind-in-thought-turning-in-on/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [My cholesterol count has a comma.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-pinette/my-cholesterol-count-has-a-comma/) [John Pinette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-pinette/) > [The goofiness of radicals thinking they have to dress in Guatemalan peasant clothes. The poor don't want you to look like them. They want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-kidder/the-goofiness-of-radicals-thinking-they-have-to-dress-in-guatemalan/) [Tracy Kidder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-kidder/) > [“Consider failure as just a comma in the middle of a sentence that tells the story of your life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-o-leary/consider-failure-as-just-a-comma-in-the-middle-of-a-sentence-that/) [Jeff O'Leary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-o-leary/) > [Give me the comma of imperfect striving, thus to find zest in the immediate living. Ever the reaching but never the gaining, ever the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-graham/give-me-the-comma-of-imperfect-striving-thus-to-find-zest-in-the/) [Winston Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-graham/) > [I'm a fierce editor! I don't edit out things that I began by saying, usually. The editing is on the micro level - a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-davis/i-m-a-fierce-editor-i-don-t-edit-out-things-that-i-began-by-saying/) [Lydia Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-davis/) > [“Some folks metabolism isn't just slow, it's in a comma.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sincerrea-carrington/some-folks-metabolism-isn-t-just-slow-it-s-in-a-comma/) [Sincerrea Carrington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sincerrea-carrington/) > [“1) I’m, a, comma, whore. Apparently, I throw them around like confetti. Or glitter. The title of my next book: WHY COMMAS RULE THE…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimberly-derting/1-i-m-a-comma-whore-apparently-i-throw-them-around-like-confetti-or/) [Kimberly Derting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimberly-derting/) > [I have spent most of the day putting in a comma and the rest of the day taking it out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/i-have-spent-most-of-the-day-putting-in-a-comma-and-the-rest-of-the/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [I guess its time for the trama, with the E-A-Z-Y-E comma now thats drama, so pay attention by the way I must mention, I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eazy-e/i-guess-its-time-for-the-trama-with-the-e-a-z-y-e-comma-now-thats/) [Eazy-E](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eazy-e/) Browse all 74 Comma quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Seems indecisive, doesn't it? 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