---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Relying on hard data, committing to open…"
description: "\"“Relying on hard data, committing to open and democratic communication, acknowledging fallibility: these are the central tenets of any system that aims..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/479/kathryn-schulz-7782_communication_relying-on-hard-data-committing-to-open_2867523.png"
---

#  Relying on hard data, committing to open and democratic…

![“Relying on hard data, committing to open and democratic communication, acknowledging fallibility: these are the central tenets of any system that aims to protect us from error. They are also markedly different from how we normally think—from our often hasty and asymmetric treatment of evidence…” quote by Kathryn Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/479/kathryn-schulz-7782_communication_relying-on-hard-data-committing-to-open_2867523.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/479/kathryn-schulz-7782_communication_relying-on-hard-data-committing-to-open_2867523.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/479/kathryn-schulz-7782_communication_relying-on-hard-data-committing-to-open_2867523.png)

> ““Relying on hard data, committing to open and democratic communication, acknowledging fallibility: these are the central tenets of any system that aims to protect us from error. They are also markedly different from how we normally think—from our often hasty and asymmetric treatment of evidence, from the cloistering effects of insular communities, and from our instinctive recourse to defensiveness and denial.””

[Kathryn Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-schulz/)

## About This Quote

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

Open, democratic communication and humility protect systems from error, contrasting with defensive, biased evidence handling.

**In simple terms:** Honesty and openness reduce mistakes.

Key Takeaway

Prioritize transparency and admit fallibility.

Themes

communication truth humility error systems

Mood

cautious inspirational

Type

organizational ethical

When to use this quote

- team meetings
- public policy
- scientific research
- media reporting

Key Concepts

epistemology organizational behavior

Questions to Reflect On

- What structures encourage open dialogue?
- How to balance speed and thoroughness?

A Different Perspective

Defensiveness can still dominate high‑stakes environments.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Acknowledging Fallibility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/acknowledging-fallibility-3904618/) [Central Tenets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/central-tenets-3904620/) [Communication](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication/) [Fallibility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fallibility/) [Fallibility Central](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fallibility-central-3904619/) [Tenets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tenets/)

## Related quotes

> [“If you really want to be right (or at least improve the odds of being right), you have to start by acknowledging your fallibility,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-schulz/if-you-really-want-to-be-right-or-at-least-improve-the-odds-of-being/)

[Kathryn Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-schulz/)

> [Truth, Peace and Non-violence form the central tenets of the 'Idea of India'!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/narendra-modi/truth-peace-and-non-violence-form-the-central-tenets-of-the-idea-of/)

[Narendra Modi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/narendra-modi/)

> [“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/)

> [“For us, there's no other option than to hold to the tenets of our faith”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-chang/for-us-there-s-no-other-option-than-to-hold-to-the-tenets-of-our-faith/)

[Sara Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-chang/)

> [When much dispute has past, we find our tenets just the same as last.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/when-much-dispute-has-past-we-find-our-tenets-just-the-same-as-last/)

[Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/)

> [I think in the end there are only 20 or 30 tenets of basic cooking. It's going at perhaps the same issue from different…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alton-brown/i-think-in-the-end-there-are-only-20-or-30-tenets-of-basic-cooking-it/)

[Alton Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alton-brown/)

> [One of the basic tenets of the working class is you want to get out of the working class.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-moore/one-of-the-basic-tenets-of-the-working-class-is-you-want-to-get-out/)

[Michael Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-moore/)

> [I don't have a set of tenets, but I live an ethical life. I practice a humility that presupposes there's a power greater than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-j-fox/i-don-t-have-a-set-of-tenets-but-i-live-an-ethical-life-i-practice-a/)

[Michael J. Fox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-j-fox/)

> [I hope that in my books there's an undertone of politics, basic tenets of how we should live.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jasper-fforde/i-hope-that-in-my-books-there-s-an-undertone-of-politics-basic-tenets/)

[Jasper Fforde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jasper-fforde/)

> [“Divide and rule, weaken and conquer, love and enslave, these are three tenets of politics”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bangambiki-habyarimana/divide-and-rule-weaken-and-conquer-love-and-enslave-these-are-three/)

[Bangambiki Habyarimana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bangambiki-habyarimana/)

> [All the tenets that I had grown up with were thrown out the window.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/archie-shepp/all-the-tenets-that-i-had-grown-up-with-were-thrown-out-the-window/)

[Archie Shepp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/archie-shepp/)

> [In politics as in religion, my tenets are few and simple. The leading one of which, and indeed that which embraces most others, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-washington/in-politics-as-in-religion-my-tenets-are-few-and-simple-the-leading/)

[George Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-washington/)

> [Sects differ more in name than tenets.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/honor-de-balzac/sects-differ-more-in-name-than-tenets/)

[Honore de Balzac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/honor-de-balzac/)

> [The tenets of Jeet Kune Do are simplicity, directness, and freedom, and it's meant to be a style that is efficient and non-telegraphic; you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shannon-lee/the-tenets-of-jeet-kune-do-are-simplicity-directness-and-freedom-and/)

[Shannon Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shannon-lee/)

> [The tenets of my cultural teachings are rooted in our commitment to lift up every community member so that no one is left behind.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deb-haaland/the-tenets-of-my-cultural-teachings-are-rooted-in-our-commitment-to/)

[Deb Haaland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deb-haaland/)

## More by Kathryn Schulz

> [“Our failure to understand another being's inner reality doesn't make that reality any less real, or any less valuable to that being. (p.255)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-schulz/our-failure-to-understand-another-being-s-inner-reality-doesn-t-make/)

[Kathryn Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-schulz/)

> [Error ... is less an intellectual problem than an existential one - a crisis not in what we know, but in who we are.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-schulz/error-is-less-an-intellectual-problem-than-an-existential-one-a/)

[Kathryn Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-schulz/)

> [“Even a committed realist will concede that there are many situations where an absolute standard of truth is unavailable. And yet, confronted with such…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-schulz/even-a-committed-realist-will-concede-that-there-are-many-situations/)

[Kathryn Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-schulz/)

> [We need to learn to love the flawed, imperfect things that we create, and to forgive ourselves for creating them. Regret doesen't remind us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-schulz/we-need-to-learn-to-love-the-flawed-imperfect-things-that-we-create/)

[Kathryn Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-schulz/)

> [“I had, during many years, followed a golden rule, namely that whenever a published fact, a new observation or thought came across me, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-schulz/i-had-during-many-years-followed-a-golden-rule-namely-that-whenever-a/)

[Kathryn Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-schulz/)

> [“It is often precisely these irresolvable issues that arouse our most impassioned certainty that we are right and our adversaries are wrong. To my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-schulz/it-is-often-precisely-these-irresolvable-issues-that-arouse-our-most/)

[Kathryn Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-schulz/)

> [“The vast majority of our beliefs are really beliefs once removed. Our faith that we are right is faith that someone else is right.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-schulz/the-vast-majority-of-our-beliefs-are-really-beliefs-once-removed-our/)

[Kathryn Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-schulz/)

> [We're terrified of not having the answers, and we would sometimes rather assert an incorrect answer than make our peace with the fact that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-schulz/we-re-terrified-of-not-having-the-answers-and-we-would-sometimes/)

[Kathryn Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-schulz/)

> [“When one admists that nothing is certain", proposed the philosopher Betrand Russell, "one must, I think, also add that some things are much more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-schulz/when-one-admists-that-nothing-is-certain-proposed-the-philosopher/)

[Kathryn Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-schulz/)

> [“It’s as if we regard other people as psychological crystals, with everything important refracted to the visible surface, while regarding ourselves as psychological icebergs,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-schulz/it-s-as-if-we-regard-other-people-as-psychological-crystals-with/)

[Kathryn Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-schulz/)

> [To err is to wander, and wandering is the way we discover the world; and, lost in thought, it is also the way we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-schulz/to-err-is-to-wander-and-wandering-is-the-way-we-discover-the-world/)

[Kathryn Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-schulz/)

> [“As all this suggests our relationship with evidence is seldom purely a cognitive one. Vilifying menstruating women bolstering anti-Muslim stereotypes murdering innocent citizens of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-schulz/as-all-this-suggests-our-relationship-with-evidence-is-seldom-purely/)

[Kathryn Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-schulz/)

> [“We are more alarmed by leaders who waver than by those who screw up. (p.174)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-schulz/we-are-more-alarmed-by-leaders-who-waver-than-by-those-who-screw-up-p/)

[Kathryn Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-schulz/)

> [“Plato (...) defined knowledge as "justified true belief". To his mind, you could only claim to know something if A) it was true; and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-schulz/plato-defined-knowledge-as-justified-true-belief-to-his-mind-you/)

[Kathryn Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-schulz/)

> [Thirty-three percent of all of our regrets pertain to decisions we made about education.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-schulz/thirty-three-percent-of-all-of-our-regrets-pertain-to-decisions-we/)

[Kathryn Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-schulz/)

[Explore all 87 Kathryn Schulz quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-schulz/)

## More Communication quotes

> [Some people still believe you should just fall in line with what's going on - and that's scary. It makes a mockery of freedom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-robison/some-people-still-believe-you-should-just-fall-in-line-with-what-s/)

[Emily Robison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-robison/)

> [The problem posed by indirect speech acts is the problem of how it is possible for the speaker to say one thing and mean…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-searle/the-problem-posed-by-indirect-speech-acts-is-the-problem-of-how-it-is/)

[John Searle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-searle/)

> [We should have a conversation when we hang up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benedict-cumberbatch/we-should-have-a-conversation-when-we-hang-up/)

[Benedict Cumberbatch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benedict-cumberbatch/)

> [Sing like no one's listening, love like you've never been hurt, dance like nobody's watching, and live like its heaven on earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/sing-like-no-one-s-listening-love-like-you-ve-never-been-hurt-dance/)

[Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/)

> [A poet is wounded into speech, and he examines these wounds, meticulously, to discover how to heal them. The bad poet harangues at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-r-delany/a-poet-is-wounded-into-speech-and-he-examines-these-wounds/)

[Samuel R. Delany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-r-delany/)

> [“To engage in dialogue is to serve others via whatever is real inside you; to engage in debate is to ultimately serve the illusions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oli-anderson/to-engage-in-dialogue-is-to-serve-others-via-whatever-is-real-inside/)

[Oli Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oli-anderson/)

> [What it comes down to for me is this: Will the technologies of communication in our culture, serve to enlighten us and help us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-waters/what-it-comes-down-to-for-me-is-this-will-the-technologies-of/)

[Roger Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-waters/)

> [In dialogue, there is opposition, yes, but no head-on collision. Smashing heads does not open minds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deborah-tannen/in-dialogue-there-is-opposition-yes-but-no-head-on-collision-smashing/)

[Deborah Tannen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deborah-tannen/)

> [A dialogue is very important. It is a form of communication in which question and answer continue till a question is left without an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jiddu-krishnamurti/a-dialogue-is-very-important-it-is-a-form-of-communication-in-which/)

[Jiddu Krishnamurti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jiddu-krishnamurti/)

> [I get afraid of the dark if I'm in a great deal of dark, and I have to move around inside of that fear...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-ferris/i-get-afraid-of-the-dark-if-i-m-in-a-great-deal-of-dark-and-i-have-to/)

[Emil Ferris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-ferris/)

> [I've been in a serious conversation with one of my children, and a fan has come up. I've been in a public bathroom and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-reddy/i-ve-been-in-a-serious-conversation-with-one-of-my-children-and-a-fan/)

[Helen Reddy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-reddy/)

> [Life as we know it is fundamentally unsatisfying. I think most folks feel this to be true. They know that a life of aimless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-yates/life-as-we-know-it-is-fundamentally-unsatisfying-i-think-most-folks/)

[Michael Yates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-yates/)

> [Disability, in general, hasn't been included in the conversation about inclusivity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-winston-george/disability-in-general-hasn-t-been-included-in-the-conversation-about/)

[Jason Winston George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-winston-george/)

> [“Women will be at least 50 percent of the communications community workforce … from executive suite to interns. Why? The “integrated” agency will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yoram-wind/women-will-be-at-least-50-percent-of-the-communications-community/)

[Yoram Wind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yoram-wind/)

> [There are certain things you must not say in spite of the fact that supposedly democracy means free speech. No. You are not allowed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-eubank-sr/there-are-certain-things-you-must-not-say-in-spite-of-the-fact-that/)

[Chris Eubank Sr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-eubank-sr/)

[Browse all 21,506 Communication quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“Relying on hard data, committing to open and democratic communication, acknowledging fallibility: these are the central tenets of any system that aims to protect us from error. They are also markedly different from how we normally think—from our often hasty and asymmetric treatment of evidence, from the cloistering effects of insular communities, and from our instinctive recourse to defensiveness and denial.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Kathryn Schulz"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-schulz/relying-on-hard-data-committing-to-open-and-democratic-communication/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Communication"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-schulz/relying-on-hard-data-committing-to-open-and-democratic-communication/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/479/kathryn-schulz-7782_communication_relying-on-hard-data-committing-to-open_2867523.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/479/kathryn-schulz-7782_communication_relying-on-hard-data-committing-to-open_2867523.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/479/kathryn-schulz-7782_communication_relying-on-hard-data-committing-to-open_2867523.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Relying on hard data, committing to open and democratic communication, acknowledging fallibility: these are…” — Kathryn Schulz",
                "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": "Kathryn Schulz",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-schulz/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“Relying on hard data, committing to...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-schulz/relying-on-hard-data-committing-to-open-and-democratic-communication/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-schulz/relying-on-hard-data-committing-to-open-and-democratic-communication/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
