--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If you let people think they can get away…" description: "\"If you let people think they can get away with a certain type of behaviour, people will take advantage of it.\" — Kemi Badenoch" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/128/kemi-badenoch-7071_behaviour_if-you-let-people-think-they-can-get-awa_3147053.jpg" --- # If you let people think they can get away with a certain… ![“If you let people think they can get away with a certain type of behaviour, people will take advantage of it.” quote by Kemi Badenoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/128/kemi-badenoch-7071_behaviour_if-you-let-people-think-they-can-get-awa_3147053.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/128/kemi-badenoch-7071_behaviour_if-you-let-people-think-they-can-get-awa_3147053.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/128/kemi-badenoch-7071_behaviour_if-you-let-people-think-they-can-get-awa_3147053.jpg) > “If you let people think they can get away with a certain type of behaviour, people will take advantage of it.” [Kemi Badenoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kemi-badenoch/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Allowing misconduct without consequences encourages exploitation and erodes trust. **In simple terms:** Permitting bad behavior leads to abuse. Key Takeaway Enforce clear standards and consequences. Themes ethics leadership accountability Mood cautious serious Type advisory policy When to use this quote - workplace - public policy - community management Key Concepts social contract behavioral incentives Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance enforcement with empathy? - What safeguards prevent over‑punishment? A Different Perspective May overlook context where flexibility is needed. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Behaviour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/behaviour/) [Habits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/habits/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) ## Related quotes > [Don't let people take advantage of you because they will.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shawn-bradley/don-t-let-people-take-advantage-of-you-because-they-will/) [Shawn Bradley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shawn-bradley/) > [I can let people take advantage of me at times.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-forte/i-can-let-people-take-advantage-of-me-at-times/) [Will Forte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-forte/) > [Conditions impact the behaviour of people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eliyahu-goldratt/conditions-impact-the-behaviour-of-people/) [Eliyahu Goldratt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliyahu-goldratt/) > [I think it's a very central tenet to it yes, it is. I can't bear it, I can't bear inequality, I can't bear bad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-suzman/i-think-it-s-a-very-central-tenet-to-it-yes-it-is-i-can-t-bear-it-i/) [Janet Suzman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-suzman/) > [“You're a little short on self-awareness. People who are always exacting right behaviour from other people tend to be that way.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-hansen/you-re-a-little-short-on-self-awareness-people-who-are-always/) [Joseph Hansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-hansen/) > [People who can't take advantage of opportunity take advantage of people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-goulston/people-who-can-t-take-advantage-of-opportunity-take-advantage-of/) [Mark Goulston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-goulston/) > [“(Query – Why do people with no children of their own seem to think the shocking behaviour of other people’s offspring a fit subject…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-e-stevenson/query-why-do-people-with-no-children-of-their-own-seem-to-think-the/) [D.E. Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-e-stevenson/) > [Music is the reason I started talking to people. When I started singing in bars and trains, I began to learn the behaviour of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-clementine/music-is-the-reason-i-started-talking-to-people-when-i-started/) [Benjamin Clementine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-clementine/) > [Young people have the advantage because they have their whole lives open to be astonished.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-libeskind/young-people-have-the-advantage-because-they-have-their-whole-lives/) [Daniel Libeskind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-libeskind/) > [There are people who are out to take advantage of others and some who are merely putting in their time. But most of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-livermore/there-are-people-who-are-out-to-take-advantage-of-others-and-some-who/) [David Livermore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-livermore/) > [Go looking for conflict, and you'll find it. Go looking for people to take advantage of you, and they generally will. See the world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/go-looking-for-conflict-and-you-ll-find-it-go-looking-for-people-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Keep to yourself. Once you show kindness, people WILL take advantage of you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimberly-afe/keep-to-yourself-once-you-show-kindness-people-will-take-advantage-of/) Kimberly Afe > [“...crazy people must have an advantage when it comes to doing crazy things.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilari-bell/crazy-people-must-have-an-advantage-when-it-comes-to-doing-crazy/) [Hilari Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilari-bell/) > [You can't be too nice all the time. You have to learn to be stern or people take advantage of your good nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-can-t-be-too-nice-all-the-time-you-have-to-learn-to-be-stern-or/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You get a team that goes out there and they find a little bit of something that advantage is going to seem larger then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chad-knaus/you-get-a-team-that-goes-out-there-and-they-find-a-little-bit-of/) [Chad Knaus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chad-knaus/) ## More by Kemi Badenoch > [People are rightly concerned about what Brexit will mean for the country, for their jobs and for their families.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kemi-badenoch/people-are-rightly-concerned-about-what-brexit-will-mean-for-the/) [Kemi Badenoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kemi-badenoch/) > [My experiences led me to the Conservative Party which embodied my belief in helping everyone reach their potential regardless of their background.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kemi-badenoch/my-experiences-led-me-to-the-conservative-party-which-embodied-my/) [Kemi Badenoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kemi-badenoch/) > [What we are against is the teaching of contested political ideas as if they are accepted facts. We don't do this with communism. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kemi-badenoch/what-we-are-against-is-the-teaching-of-contested-political-ideas-as/) [Kemi Badenoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kemi-badenoch/) > [People are a lot less likely to think that their family member is part of the government conspiracy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kemi-badenoch/people-are-a-lot-less-likely-to-think-that-their-family-member-is/) [Kemi Badenoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kemi-badenoch/) > [The truth is I don't want my baby out in the freezing cold just because there's an election. But there is no such thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kemi-badenoch/the-truth-is-i-don-t-want-my-baby-out-in-the-freezing-cold-just/) [Kemi Badenoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kemi-badenoch/) > [The amount I have cost the NHS for maternity services is phenomenal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kemi-badenoch/the-amount-i-have-cost-the-nhs-for-maternity-services-is-phenomenal/) [Kemi Badenoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kemi-badenoch/) > [I'm black but I'm also a woman, a Mum.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kemi-badenoch/i-m-black-but-i-m-also-a-woman-a-mum/) [Kemi Badenoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kemi-badenoch/) > [I believe the vote for Brexit was the greatest ever vote of confidence in the project of the United Kingdom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kemi-badenoch/i-believe-the-vote-for-brexit-was-the-greatest-ever-vote-of/) [Kemi Badenoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kemi-badenoch/) > [We've got gay marriage, and civil partnerships, so what are transsexuals looking for?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kemi-badenoch/we-ve-got-gay-marriage-and-civil-partnerships-so-what-are/) [Kemi Badenoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kemi-badenoch/) > [I have a huge problem with calling young people snowflakes. We shouldn't be doing that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kemi-badenoch/i-have-a-huge-problem-with-calling-young-people-snowflakes-we-shouldn/) [Kemi Badenoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kemi-badenoch/) > [You can't pick and choose the rules depending on the colour of someone's skin. That is what the racists do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kemi-badenoch/you-can-t-pick-and-choose-the-rules-depending-on-the-colour-of/) [Kemi Badenoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kemi-badenoch/) > [When my husband and I are getting into a taxi, I always stop the taxi and say where I want to go. My husband…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kemi-badenoch/when-my-husband-and-i-are-getting-into-a-taxi-i-always-stop-the-taxi/) [Kemi Badenoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kemi-badenoch/) > [Every party conference season, I'm struck by how much is spent on lobbying by the public affairs industry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kemi-badenoch/every-party-conference-season-i-m-struck-by-how-much-is-spent-on/) [Kemi Badenoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kemi-badenoch/) > [The truth is that our freedoms are being subtly eroded in an era where emotion and sentiment are prized above reason and rationality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kemi-badenoch/the-truth-is-that-our-freedoms-are-being-subtly-eroded-in-an-era/) [Kemi Badenoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kemi-badenoch/) > [I'm not just equality minister I am also a Treasury secretary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kemi-badenoch/i-m-not-just-equality-minister-i-am-also-a-treasury-secretary/) [Kemi Badenoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kemi-badenoch/) [Explore all 95 Kemi Badenoch quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kemi-badenoch/) ## More Behaviour quotes > [Nobody has the right to put another under such a difficulty that he must either hurt the person by telling the truth or hurt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/nobody-has-the-right-to-put-another-under-such-a-difficulty-that-he/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [“Do you keep pace with those around you, or do you decide yourself just how you will live your life? The truth is...only you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-goodier/do-you-keep-pace-with-those-around-you-or-do-you-decide-yourself-just/) [Steve Goodier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-goodier/) > [I don't see much future for the Americans ... it's a decayed country. And they have their racial problem, and the problem of social…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-hitler/i-don-t-see-much-future-for-the-americans-it-s-a-decayed-country-and/) [Adolf Hitler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-hitler/) > [“To live without any regret is to act right.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/to-live-without-any-regret-is-to-act-right/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [High testosterone levels have been proven to make men more likely to commit crimes. The tendency in men toward risky behaviour keeps turning up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-stark/high-testosterone-levels-have-been-proven-to-make-men-more-likely-to/) [Rodney Stark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-stark/) > [No one likes to admit they are racist or bear prejudices. Nor do they even like to be open and honest when they witness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-jacques/no-one-likes-to-admit-they-are-racist-or-bear-prejudices-nor-do-they/) [Martin Jacques](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-jacques/) > [I think it's a very central tenet to it yes, it is. I can't bear it, I can't bear inequality, I can't bear bad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-suzman/i-think-it-s-a-very-central-tenet-to-it-yes-it-is-i-can-t-bear-it-i/) [Janet Suzman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-suzman/) > [Look, I was only given a year or two to come up with tunes for this record, and when all but eight of them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-gorrie/look-i-was-only-given-a-year-or-two-to-come-up-with-tunes-for-this/) Alan Gorrie > [Behaviour is a mirror in which everyone shows his image.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vinesh/behaviour-is-a-mirror-in-which-everyone-shows-his-image/) [Vinesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vinesh/) > [There's a wow factor associated with my name. It could be due to my work as well as my behaviour.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/prosenjit-chatterjee/there-s-a-wow-factor-associated-with-my-name-it-could-be-due-to-my/) [Prosenjit Chatterjee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/prosenjit-chatterjee/) > [The individualism of current economic theory is manifest in the purely self-interested behaviour it generally assumes. It has no real place for fairness, malevolence,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-e-daly/the-individualism-of-current-economic-theory-is-manifest-in-the/) [Herman E. Daly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-e-daly/) > [“There's no difference between a madman and a professor...it should be clear to you in the way they dress, act and think.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bassey-johnson/there-s-no-difference-between-a-madman-and-a-professor-it-should-be/) [Michael Bassey Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bassey-johnson/) > [Modern man, seeking a middle position in the evaluation of sense impression and thought, can, following Plato , interpret the process of understanding nature…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-pauli/modern-man-seeking-a-middle-position-in-the-evaluation-of-sense/) [Wolfgang Pauli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-pauli/) > [“I think this is one bad side of a mirror; it helps us to see the reflection of the effects of our own actions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israelmore-ayivor/i-think-this-is-one-bad-side-of-a-mirror-it-helps-us-to-see-the/) [Israelmore Ayivor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israelmore-ayivor/) > [A lot of celebrities just want money, fame, power, fancy cars, houses all over the world and have people BOW DOWN to them. To…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-manson/a-lot-of-celebrities-just-want-money-fame-power-fancy-cars-houses-all/) [Shirley Manson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-manson/) [Browse all 696 Behaviour quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/behaviour/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If you let people think they can get away with a certain type of behaviour, people will take advantage of it.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Kemi Badenoch" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kemi-badenoch/if-you-let-people-think-they-can-get-away-with-a-certain-type-of/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Behaviour" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kemi-badenoch/if-you-let-people-think-they-can-get-away-with-a-certain-type-of/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/128/kemi-badenoch-7071_behaviour_if-you-let-people-think-they-can-get-awa_3147053.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/128/kemi-badenoch-7071_behaviour_if-you-let-people-think-they-can-get-awa_3147053.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/128/kemi-badenoch-7071_behaviour_if-you-let-people-think-they-can-get-awa_3147053.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If you let people think they can get away with a certain type of behaviour, people will take advantage of it.” — Kemi Badenoch", "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": "Kemi Badenoch", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kemi-badenoch/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If you let people think they...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kemi-badenoch/if-you-let-people-think-they-can-get-away-with-a-certain-type-of/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kemi-badenoch/if-you-let-people-think-they-can-get-away-with-a-certain-type-of/#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 } } ] } ```