--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What are the odds that people will make…" description: "\"What are the odds that people will make smart decisions about money if they don't need to make smart decisions--if they can get rich making dumb decisi..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f7/michael-lewis-705_decision_what-are-the-odds-that-people-will-make_1490450.png" --- # What are the odds that people will make smart decisions… ![“What are the odds that people will make smart decisions about money if they don't need to make smart decisions--if they can get rich making dumb decisions? The incentives on Wall Street were all wrong; they're still all wrong.” quote by Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f7/michael-lewis-705_decision_what-are-the-odds-that-people-will-make_1490450.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f7/michael-lewis-705_decision_what-are-the-odds-that-people-will-make_1490450.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f7/michael-lewis-705_decision_what-are-the-odds-that-people-will-make_1490450.png) > “What are the odds that people will make smart decisions about money if they don't need to make smart decisions--if they can get rich making dumb decisions? The incentives on Wall Street were all wrong; they're still all wrong.” [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Wall Street incentives reward reckless risk, leading to poor financial decisions. **In simple terms:** Bad incentives cause bad money choices. Key Takeaway Demand better incentives. Themes finance ethics incentives risk Mood critical concerned Type analytical inspirational When to use this quote - investment - policy - regulation - personal finance Key Concepts moral hazard systemic failure Questions to Reflect On - How can we align profit with responsibility? - What reforms could reduce reckless behavior? A Different Perspective Changing incentives is politically difficult. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Decision](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decision/) [Dumb decisions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dumb-decisions/) [Incentives](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/incentives/) [Money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/money/) [Odds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/odds/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Smart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smart/) [Smart decisions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smart-decisions/) [Streets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/streets/) [Wall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wall/) [Wall St](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wall-st/) [Wall street](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wall-street/) ## Related quotes > [“What are the odds that people will make smart decisions about money if they don’t need to make smart decisions—if they can get rich…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/what-are-the-odds-that-people-will-make-smart-decisions-about-money/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [When you really fall in love with someone, you start making stupid decisions. That's why rich people guard themselves against it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-dillon/when-you-really-fall-in-love-with-someone-you-start-making-stupid/) [Tim Dillon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-dillon/) > [Money is one of the most important subjects of your entire life. Some of life's greatest enjoyments and most of life's greatest disappointments stem…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-g-allen/money-is-one-of-the-most-important-subjects-of-your-entire-life-some/) [Robert G. Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-g-allen/) > [I don't make decisions for money or popularity. I do things because they're right for me, and they're interesting and challenging.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clare-balding/i-don-t-make-decisions-for-money-or-popularity-i-do-things-because/) [Clare Balding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clare-balding/) > [Poor people aren't making dumb decisions because they are dumb, but because they're living in a context in which anyone would make dumb decisions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rutger-bregman/poor-people-aren-t-making-dumb-decisions-because-they-are-dumb-but/) [Rutger Bregman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rutger-bregman/) > [We are the greatest computers in this world, but now we've created the smart phone which is smarter than us now, but we're still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bootsy-collins/we-are-the-greatest-computers-in-this-world-but-now-we-ve-created-the/) [Bootsy Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bootsy-collins/) > [“Of course, the cool kids have no idea that what they’re engaging in is really just another biological trick. They actually think they’re being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-gutfeld/of-course-the-cool-kids-have-no-idea-that-what-they-re-engaging-in-is/) [Greg Gutfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-gutfeld/) > [I went to school at MIT with a whole bunch of engineers. And then I started work one day and asked myself, 'Why do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-su/i-went-to-school-at-mit-with-a-whole-bunch-of-engineers-and-then-i/) [Lisa Su](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-su/) > [Strategic plans cause more dumb decisions than anything else in America.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-munger/strategic-plans-cause-more-dumb-decisions-than-anything-else-in/) [Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-munger/) > [The way that we make dumb decisions and discriminatory decisions is by employing stereotypes about groups of people. We don't see people as fully…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-maddow/the-way-that-we-make-dumb-decisions-and-discriminatory-decisions-is/) [Rachel Maddow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-maddow/) > [How I wish we could all see the cost of our choices as clearly as a price tag on items in a store. If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lysa-terkeurst/how-i-wish-we-could-all-see-the-cost-of-our-choices-as-clearly-as-a/) [Lysa TerKeurst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lysa-terkeurst/) > [Outstanding long-term results are produced primarily by avoiding dumb decisions, rather than by making brilliant ones.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-buffett/outstanding-long-term-results-are-produced-primarily-by-avoiding-dumb/) [Warren Buffett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-buffett/) > [When you get a lot of money thrown at you, you can make some dumb decisions without the right advice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peyton-manning/when-you-get-a-lot-of-money-thrown-at-you-you-can-make-some-dumb/) [Peyton Manning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peyton-manning/) > [I bought a company in the mid-'90s called Dexter Shoe and paid $400 million for it. And it went to zero. And I gave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-buffett/i-bought-a-company-in-the-mid-90s-called-dexter-shoe-and-paid-400/) [Warren Buffett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-buffett/) > [The idea that it's smart to allow Wall Street firms, with this "too big to fail" imprimatur, to become hedge funds again - it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/the-idea-that-it-s-smart-to-allow-wall-street-firms-with-this-too-big/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) ## More by Michael Lewis > [“Crucial decisions are made, today as thousands of years ago, in terms of the intuitive guesses and preferences of a few men in positions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/crucial-decisions-are-made-today-as-thousands-of-years-ago-in-terms/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [“You saw someone who reminded you of you, and then you looked for the reasons why you liked him. The”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/you-saw-someone-who-reminded-you-of-you-and-then-you-looked-for-the/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [“At other places management says, ‘Well, gee, fellas, do we really want to bet the ranch on this deal?’ Lewie was not only willing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/at-other-places-management-says-well-gee-fellas-do-we-really-want-to/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [“BILLY WOULD SAY later that his wife left him because she was unnerved by his intensity—that she could even see it in his hands…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/billy-would-say-later-that-his-wife-left-him-because-she-was-unnerved/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [“The great thing about baseball players, from the point of view of personal hygiene, is how seldom they break a sweat.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/the-great-thing-about-baseball-players-from-the-point-of-view-of/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [There was but one question he left unasked, and it vibrated between his lines: if gross miscalculations of a person's value could occur on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/there-was-but-one-question-he-left-unasked-and-it-vibrated-between/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [“The author refers to a player's affected nonchalance and comments he is, "too young to realize you are what you pretend to be.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/the-author-refers-to-a-player-s-affected-nonchalance-and-comments-he/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [A banking system is an act of faith: it survives only for as long as people believe it will.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/a-banking-system-is-an-act-of-faith-it-survives-only-for-as-long-as/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [Some coaches believed they could judge a player's performance simply by watching it. In this they were deeply mistaken. The naked eye was an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/some-coaches-believed-they-could-judge-a-player-s-performance-simply/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [“No longer were the prices of ordinary mortgage bonds allowed to roam inefficiently, for they were now linked to the CMO market, in much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/no-longer-were-the-prices-of-ordinary-mortgage-bonds-allowed-to-roam/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [“The difference between Strauss and Ranieri?” says one trader still at Salomon. “That’s easy. Strauss wouldn’t stoop to use the men’s room on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/the-difference-between-strauss-and-ranieri-says-one-trader-still-at/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [“The only inexplicable aspect of the process was that economic theory (which is, after all, what economics students were supposed to know) served almost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/the-only-inexplicable-aspect-of-the-process-was-that-economic-theory/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [“It's not easy to stand apart from mass hysteria - to believe that most of what's in the financial news is wrong, to believe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/it-s-not-easy-to-stand-apart-from-mass-hysteria-to-believe-that-most/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [“Dont worry about where i am , i'll let you know when i get there .”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/dont-worry-about-where-i-am-i-ll-let-you-know-when-i-get-there/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [“Someone out there was using the fact that stock market orders arrived at different times at different exchanges to front-run orders from one market…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/someone-out-there-was-using-the-fact-that-stock-market-orders-arrived/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) [Explore all 398 Michael Lewis quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) ## More Decision quotes > [Making the right decision is hard,telling someone your decision is even harder.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhishek-tiwari/making-the-right-decision-is-hard-telling-someone-your-decision-is/) [Abhishek Tiwari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhishek-tiwari/) > [It is said that history turns on small hinges. A human career, too, results from an accumulating series of decisions about large and small…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-vincent-peale/it-is-said-that-history-turns-on-small-hinges-a-human-career-too/) [Norman Vincent Peale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-vincent-peale/) > [Elections belong to the people. It's their decision. If they decide to turn their back on the fire and burn their behinds, then they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/elections-belong-to-the-people-it-s-their-decision-if-they-decide-to/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [Bush reiterated his stand to conservatives opposing his decision on stem cell research. He said today he believes life begins at conception and ends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-leno/bush-reiterated-his-stand-to-conservatives-opposing-his-decision-on/) [Jay Leno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-leno/) > [“How can you make an informed decision about whether to save the world if you never leave your tiny part of it?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shaun-david-hutchinson/how-can-you-make-an-informed-decision-about-whether-to-save-the-world/) [Shaun David Hutchinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shaun-david-hutchinson/) > [Love is the foundation from which your decisions about your life should be made.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/love-is-the-foundation-from-which-your-decisions-about-your-life/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Indecision becomes decision with time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/indecision-becomes-decision-with-time/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If you think of people as making decisions actively, every time we think about the cup of coffee, we say, "How much will I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-ariely/if-you-think-of-people-as-making-decisions-actively-every-time-we/) [Dan Ariely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-ariely/) > [It was a conscious decision on my part to take up fewer films. And if you're not seen that often on screen, nobody calls…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-lever/it-was-a-conscious-decision-on-my-part-to-take-up-fewer-films-and-if/) [Johnny Lever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-lever/) > [Decision is a risk rooted in the courage of being free.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-tillich/decision-is-a-risk-rooted-in-the-courage-of-being-free/) [Paul Tillich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-tillich/) > [I never think of things rationally or intellectually. I swear, every single decision I make is just instinct and my instincts tend to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neill-blomkamp/i-never-think-of-things-rationally-or-intellectually-i-swear-every/) [Neill Blomkamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neill-blomkamp/) > [“it is either you happen to life or life happens to you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sesan-kareem/it-is-either-you-happen-to-life-or-life-happens-to-you/) [Sesan Kareem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sesan-kareem/) > [How strange that something so simple could have been instrumental in my decision to ruin one of my most relationships and friendships, and damage…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/how-strange-that-something-so-simple-could-have-been-instrumental-in/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [I am encouraged President Obama now says he will fulfill his constitutional obligation to seek authorization for any potential military action in Syria. This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rand-paul/i-am-encouraged-president-obama-now-says-he-will-fulfill-his/) [Rand Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rand-paul/) > [In New York, you are constantly faced with this very urgent decision that you have to make, about every twenty minutes...you have to decide,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-cross/in-new-york-you-are-constantly-faced-with-this-very-urgent-decision/) [David Cross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-cross/) [Browse all 9,145 Decision quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decision/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "What are the odds that people will make smart decisions about money if they don't need to make smart decisions--if they can get rich making dumb decisions? The incentives on Wall Street were all wrong; they're still all wrong.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Michael Lewis" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/what-are-the-odds-that-people-will-make-smart-decisions-about-money-2/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Decision" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/what-are-the-odds-that-people-will-make-smart-decisions-about-money-2/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f7/michael-lewis-705_decision_what-are-the-odds-that-people-will-make_1490450.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f7/michael-lewis-705_decision_what-are-the-odds-that-people-will-make_1490450.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f7/michael-lewis-705_decision_what-are-the-odds-that-people-will-make_1490450.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“What are the odds that people will make smart decisions about money if they don't need to make smart…” — Michael Lewis", "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": "Michael Lewis", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "What are the odds that people...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/what-are-the-odds-that-people-will-make-smart-decisions-about-money-2/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/what-are-the-odds-that-people-will-make-smart-decisions-about-money-2/#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 } } ] } ```