---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What I wound up doing, which I think is…"
description: "\"What I wound up doing, which I think is really journalistically dubious, is changing the order of some of the things I did, so that the things I ended ..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e58/joel-stein-12345_dubious_what-i-wound-up-doing-which-i-think-is-r_2176634.jpg"
---

#  What I wound up doing, which I think is really…

![“What I wound up doing, which I think is really journalistically dubious, is changing the order of some of the things I did, so that the things I ended up struggling with the most wind up being two-thirds of the way in.” quote by Joel Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e58/joel-stein-12345_dubious_what-i-wound-up-doing-which-i-think-is-r_2176634.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e58/joel-stein-12345_dubious_what-i-wound-up-doing-which-i-think-is-r_2176634.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e58/joel-stein-12345_dubious_what-i-wound-up-doing-which-i-think-is-r_2176634.jpg)

> “What I wound up doing, which I think is really journalistically dubious, is changing the order of some of the things I did, so that the things I ended up struggling with the most wind up being two-thirds of the way in.”

[Joel Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-stein/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

He rearranged his narrative to highlight his biggest challenges later, creating a more compelling story arc.

**In simple terms:** He reordered events to emphasize struggle.

Key Takeaway

Structure stories to build tension.

Themes

storytelling structure journalism

Mood

analytical critical

Type

journalistic reflective

When to use this quote

- writing
- presentations
- teaching
- marketing

Key Concepts

narrative pacing focus editing

Questions to Reflect On

- Is the altered order ethical?
- How does this affect audience perception?

A Different Perspective

Manipulating chronology may distort truth.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Order](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/order/) [Struggle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/struggle/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Wind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wind/) [Wounds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wounds/)

## Related quotes

> [I just pulled a Dwight Howard at Starbucks - I kept changing my order until they finally just gave me 4 different coffees.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-just-pulled-a-dwight-howard-at-starbucks-i-kept-changing-my-order/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [The most universal and effectual way of discovering the true meaning of law, when the words are dubious, is by considering the reason and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blackstone/the-most-universal-and-effectual-way-of-discovering-the-true-meaning/)

[William Blackstone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blackstone/)

> [You see, my Lord Archbishop, what is "dubious" about my theology is not that it contradicts particular doctrinal teachings, things are much worse or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugen-drewermann/you-see-my-lord-archbishop-what-is-dubious-about-my-theology-is-not/)

[Eugen Drewermann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugen-drewermann/)

> [Wholeness is sort of a dubious concept. Because in terms of the human body and literal wholeness and structures, you think: "here are the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-brownstein/wholeness-is-sort-of-a-dubious-concept-because-in-terms-of-the-human/)

[Carrie Brownstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-brownstein/)

> [“It is of the dubious inevitable side of human nature—like gold teeth and tinned salmon and bastard lacy valentines”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-maclane/it-is-of-the-dubious-inevitable-side-of-human-nature-like-gold-teeth/)

[Mary MacLane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-maclane/)

> [Faculty Psychology is getting to be respectable again after centuries of hanging around with phrenologists and other dubious types. By faculty psychology I mean,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-fodor/faculty-psychology-is-getting-to-be-respectable-again-after-centuries/)

[Jerry Fodor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-fodor/)

> [What we really need the poet's and orator's I help to keep alive in us is not, then, the common and gregarious courage which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-james/what-we-really-need-the-poet-s-and-orator-s-i-help-to-keep-alive-in/)

[William James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-james/)

> [It should seem that Negroes, of all Americans, would be found in the Free-thought fold, since they have suffered more than any other class…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hubert-harrison/it-should-seem-that-negroes-of-all-americans-would-be-found-in-the/)

Hubert Harrison

> [Writing is to descend like a miner to the depths of the mine with a lamp on your forehead, a light whose dubious brightness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-cendrars/writing-is-to-descend-like-a-miner-to-the-depths-of-the-mine-with-a/)

[Blaise Cendrars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-cendrars/)

> [So, Beav, tell me about yourself." "I'm Blue." "Sweetheart, if I had your dubious taste in men, I wouldn't be too happy, either." "My…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-elizabeth-phillips/so-beav-tell-me-about-yourself-i-m-blue-sweetheart-if-i-had-your/)

[Susan Elizabeth Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-elizabeth-phillips/)

> [I’m saying language is a passport. A dubious, dangerous passport too.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/xiaolu-guo/i-m-saying-language-is-a-passport-a-dubious-dangerous-passport-too/)

[Xiaolu Guo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/xiaolu-guo/)

> [Man is constantly being assured that he has more power than ever before in history, but his daily experience is one of powerlessness. ...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-m-weaver/man-is-constantly-being-assured-that-he-has-more-power-than-ever/)

[Richard M. Weaver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-m-weaver/)

> [Sometimes it's a fraught, kind of laden world of performance that I think can be really dubious, but it's also super fun to almost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-hecker/sometimes-it-s-a-fraught-kind-of-laden-world-of-performance-that-i/)

[Tim Hecker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-hecker/)

> [The diversity of India cannot thrive on facile attempts to create the homogeneous category of "Indian." Nor can it thrive on dubious attempts to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nyla-ali-khan/the-diversity-of-india-cannot-thrive-on-facile-attempts-to-create-the/)

[Nyla Ali Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nyla-ali-khan/)

> [It would have been easier to fight alone with inadequate forces than to have to accept...responsibility for our ally's lack of fighting qualities and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-kesselring/it-would-have-been-easier-to-fight-alone-with-inadequate-forces-than/)

[Albert Kesselring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-kesselring/)

## More by Joel Stein

> [I want to be heavily tied to a city that I write for every week, that knows my stuff and I can interact with.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-stein/i-want-to-be-heavily-tied-to-a-city-that-i-write-for-every-week-that/)

[Joel Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-stein/)

> [I never thought to look at the New York Times one, even though I knew people were pissed off. I've seen YouTube videos from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-stein/i-never-thought-to-look-at-the-new-york-times-one-even-though-i-knew/)

[Joel Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-stein/)

> [When wine drinkers tell me they taste notes of cherries, tobacco and rose petals, usually all I can detect is a whole lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-stein/when-wine-drinkers-tell-me-they-taste-notes-of-cherries-tobacco-and/)

[Joel Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-stein/)

> [When Time got rid of my column, I thought it was all over. It was really sad. And then, I just started pushing it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-stein/when-time-got-rid-of-my-column-i-thought-it-was-all-over-it-was/)

[Joel Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-stein/)

> [ I have some idea that if I pick on \[boy band\] One Direction, I'll get a ton of hate mail, because I know that… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-stein/i-have-some-idea-that-if-i-pick-on-boy-band-one-direction-i-ll-get-a/)

[Joel Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-stein/)

> [I don't read "letters" sections of magazines, but I'll read anyone's blog post about me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-stein/i-don-t-read-letters-sections-of-magazines-but-i-ll-read-anyone-s/)

[Joel Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-stein/)

> [I've definitely written people e-mails telling them I've loved their stories, but that seems more like a professional journalist thing to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-stein/i-ve-definitely-written-people-e-mails-telling-them-i-ve-loved-their/)

[Joel Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-stein/)

> [I can't imagine what someone would write that would infuriate me. Maybe if my loved one had died of some disease and someone was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-stein/i-can-t-imagine-what-someone-would-write-that-would-infuriate-me/)

[Joel Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-stein/)

> [People would ask if I wanted to host things and I was like, "No, I'm a writer, I don't host things." Just thinking I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-stein/people-would-ask-if-i-wanted-to-host-things-and-i-was-like-no-i-m-a/)

[Joel Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-stein/)

> [I don't like to be in the forest. It's a weird thing. I've learned to have a general appreciation for nature, which has taken…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-stein/i-don-t-like-to-be-in-the-forest-it-s-a-weird-thing-i-ve-learned-to/)

[Joel Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-stein/)

> [Early on, even in college, I figured out that it was just more interesting to me to create content than to write about other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-stein/early-on-even-in-college-i-figured-out-that-it-was-just-more/)

[Joel Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-stein/)

> [I think I realized that Dave Barry was funnier than I'll ever be, and he made no attempt to make any actual points. He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-stein/i-think-i-realized-that-dave-barry-was-funnier-than-i-ll-ever-be-and/)

[Joel Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-stein/)

> [I always thought that being at Time and tweaking your bosses and exploiting your expense account was just fun. Just joyous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-stein/i-always-thought-that-being-at-time-and-tweaking-your-bosses-and/)

[Joel Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-stein/)

> [I'm not that clued into what people are that touchy about and how many of them there are and how niche these niches are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-stein/i-m-not-that-clued-into-what-people-are-that-touchy-about-and-how/)

[Joel Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-stein/)

> [I can't imagine deer hunting. I used to think I couldn't imagine deer hunting because killing a deer seemed so awful. But now I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-stein/i-can-t-imagine-deer-hunting-i-used-to-think-i-couldn-t-imagine-deer/)

[Joel Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-stein/)

[Explore all 55 Joel Stein quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-stein/)

## More Dubious quotes

> [It would have been easier to fight alone with inadequate forces than to have to accept...responsibility for our ally's lack of fighting qualities and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-kesselring/it-would-have-been-easier-to-fight-alone-with-inadequate-forces-than/)

[Albert Kesselring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-kesselring/)

> [The diversity of India cannot thrive on facile attempts to create the homogeneous category of "Indian." Nor can it thrive on dubious attempts to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nyla-ali-khan/the-diversity-of-india-cannot-thrive-on-facile-attempts-to-create-the/)

[Nyla Ali Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nyla-ali-khan/)

> [Sometimes it's a fraught, kind of laden world of performance that I think can be really dubious, but it's also super fun to almost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-hecker/sometimes-it-s-a-fraught-kind-of-laden-world-of-performance-that-i/)

[Tim Hecker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-hecker/)

> [Man is constantly being assured that he has more power than ever before in history, but his daily experience is one of powerlessness. ...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-m-weaver/man-is-constantly-being-assured-that-he-has-more-power-than-ever/)

[Richard M. Weaver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-m-weaver/)

> [I’m saying language is a passport. A dubious, dangerous passport too.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/xiaolu-guo/i-m-saying-language-is-a-passport-a-dubious-dangerous-passport-too/)

[Xiaolu Guo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/xiaolu-guo/)

> [So, Beav, tell me about yourself." "I'm Blue." "Sweetheart, if I had your dubious taste in men, I wouldn't be too happy, either." "My…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-elizabeth-phillips/so-beav-tell-me-about-yourself-i-m-blue-sweetheart-if-i-had-your/)

[Susan Elizabeth Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-elizabeth-phillips/)

> [Writing is to descend like a miner to the depths of the mine with a lamp on your forehead, a light whose dubious brightness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-cendrars/writing-is-to-descend-like-a-miner-to-the-depths-of-the-mine-with-a/)

[Blaise Cendrars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-cendrars/)

> [It should seem that Negroes, of all Americans, would be found in the Free-thought fold, since they have suffered more than any other class…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hubert-harrison/it-should-seem-that-negroes-of-all-americans-would-be-found-in-the/)

Hubert Harrison

> [What we really need the poet's and orator's I help to keep alive in us is not, then, the common and gregarious courage which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-james/what-we-really-need-the-poet-s-and-orator-s-i-help-to-keep-alive-in/)

[William James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-james/)

> [Faculty Psychology is getting to be respectable again after centuries of hanging around with phrenologists and other dubious types. By faculty psychology I mean,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-fodor/faculty-psychology-is-getting-to-be-respectable-again-after-centuries/)

[Jerry Fodor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-fodor/)

> [“It is of the dubious inevitable side of human nature—like gold teeth and tinned salmon and bastard lacy valentines”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-maclane/it-is-of-the-dubious-inevitable-side-of-human-nature-like-gold-teeth/)

[Mary MacLane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-maclane/)

> [Wholeness is sort of a dubious concept. Because in terms of the human body and literal wholeness and structures, you think: "here are the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-brownstein/wholeness-is-sort-of-a-dubious-concept-because-in-terms-of-the-human/)

[Carrie Brownstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-brownstein/)

> [You see, my Lord Archbishop, what is "dubious" about my theology is not that it contradicts particular doctrinal teachings, things are much worse or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugen-drewermann/you-see-my-lord-archbishop-what-is-dubious-about-my-theology-is-not/)

[Eugen Drewermann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugen-drewermann/)

> [The most universal and effectual way of discovering the true meaning of law, when the words are dubious, is by considering the reason and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blackstone/the-most-universal-and-effectual-way-of-discovering-the-true-meaning/)

[William Blackstone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blackstone/)

> [The dubious privilege of a freelance writer is he’s given the freedom to starve anywhere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-dubious-privilege-of-a-freelance-writer-is-he-s-given-the-freedom/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

Browse all 172 Dubious quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "What I wound up doing, which I think is really journalistically dubious, is changing the order of some of the things I did, so that the things I ended up struggling with the most wind up being two-thirds of the way in.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Joel Stein"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-stein/what-i-wound-up-doing-which-i-think-is-really-journalistically/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Dubious"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-stein/what-i-wound-up-doing-which-i-think-is-really-journalistically/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e58/joel-stein-12345_dubious_what-i-wound-up-doing-which-i-think-is-r_2176634.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e58/joel-stein-12345_dubious_what-i-wound-up-doing-which-i-think-is-r_2176634.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e58/joel-stein-12345_dubious_what-i-wound-up-doing-which-i-think-is-r_2176634.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“What I wound up doing, which I think is really journalistically dubious, is changing the order of some of…” — Joel Stein",
                "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": "Joel Stein",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-stein/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "What I wound up doing, which...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-stein/what-i-wound-up-doing-which-i-think-is-really-journalistically/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-stein/what-i-wound-up-doing-which-i-think-is-really-journalistically/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
