--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It takes ten good decisions to make up…" description: "\"“It takes ten good decisions to make up for one disastrous one. This is why it is better not to make nine good decisions than to make one bad one—which..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/818/neel-burton-16027_decision-making_it-takes-ten-good-decisions-to-make-up-f_1774901.jpg" --- # It takes ten good decisions to make up for one disastrous… ![“It takes ten good decisions to make up for one disastrous one. This is why it is better not to make nine good decisions than to make one bad one—which is what happens most of the time.” quote by Neel Burton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/818/neel-burton-16027_decision-making_it-takes-ten-good-decisions-to-make-up-f_1774901.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/818/neel-burton-16027_decision-making_it-takes-ten-good-decisions-to-make-up-f_1774901.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/818/neel-burton-16027_decision-making_it-takes-ten-good-decisions-to-make-up-f_1774901.jpg) > ““It takes ten good decisions to make up for one disastrous one. This is why it is better not to make nine good decisions than to make one bad one—which is what happens most of the time.”” [Neel Burton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-burton/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Making many good choices cannot fully offset a single disastrous one, so avoiding big mistakes is crucial. **In simple terms:** One bad decision outweighs many good ones. Key Takeaway Prioritize avoiding major errors. Themes decision-making risk consequences Mood cautious reflective Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - financial planning - career moves - relationships - health decisions - project management Key Concepts probability impact error management Questions to Reflect On - How can you identify high‑impact decisions early? - What safeguards can reduce the chance of a disastrous choice? A Different Perspective Even many good choices may not prevent damage from a single error. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Decision making](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decision-making/) [Decisions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decisions/) [Failure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) [Judgement](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/judgement/) [Success](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/success/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [“Sometimes we make decisions and we think that the decisions we make are to our benefit. Other times, we make decisions and at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-hildreth/sometimes-we-make-decisions-and-we-think-that-the-decisions-we-make/) [Scott Hildreth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-hildreth/) > [Good decisions don't make life easy, but they do make it easier.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-cole/good-decisions-don-t-make-life-easy-but-they-do-make-it-easier/) [Gary Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-cole/) > [I have faith in the United States and our ability to make good decisions based on the facts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-gore/i-have-faith-in-the-united-states-and-our-ability-to-make-good/) [Al Gore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-gore/) > [“This is your life and you have the right and responsibility to make good decisions for yourself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryant-mcgill/this-is-your-life-and-you-have-the-right-and-responsibility-to-make/) [Bryant McGill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryant-mcgill/) > [True leaders are not just competent at what they do; they make good decisions about what to do](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melchor-lim/true-leaders-are-not-just-competent-at-what-they-do-they-make-good/) [Melchor Lim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melchor-lim/) > [Making good decisions leads to good results, the same with bad decisions. Sometimes we slip up, just take more steps forward than backward!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/making-good-decisions-leads-to-good-results-the-same-with-bad/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“If you let fear make decisions for you, fear will make good decisions - but only for its own sake, not yours. p. 161”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bridget-asher/if-you-let-fear-make-decisions-for-you-fear-will-make-good-decisions/) [Bridget Asher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bridget-asher/) > [My job as a coach is to make good decisions. It's not to go out there and block or tackle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-belichick/my-job-as-a-coach-is-to-make-good-decisions-it-s-not-to-go-out-there/) [Bill Belichick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-belichick/) > [Life have many ways to show us who is in charge,It's always US ,we make our decisions and we make our future , Life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laylablack/life-have-many-ways-to-show-us-who-is-in-charge-it-s-always-us-we/) Laylablack > [Too many decisions to make with no sign of what to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/too-many-decisions-to-make-with-no-sign-of-what-to-do/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I don't take right decisions, I take decisions and make them right](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muhammad-ali-jinnah/i-don-t-take-right-decisions-i-take-decisions-and-make-them-right/) [Muhammad Ali Jinnah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muhammad-ali-jinnah/) > [Bad decisions make great stories.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/bad-decisions-make-great-stories/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [With every decisions we make, the last question we ask is what does the consumer think of this.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/niall-fitzgerald/with-every-decisions-we-make-the-last-question-we-ask-is-what-does/) Niall FitzGerald > [“Consider every choice carefully, no matter how small, for it will affect the bigger decisions you make.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-george/consider-every-choice-carefully-no-matter-how-small-for-it-will/) [Jim George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-george/) > [“In whatever decisions you make in life, you have to run them through a series of logic tests to make sure that there aren’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-talmage-mathis/in-whatever-decisions-you-make-in-life-you-have-to-run-them-through-a/) [John-Talmage Mathis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-talmage-mathis/) ## More by Neel Burton > [“Loneliness is the manifestation of the conflict between our desire for meaning and the absence of objective meaning from the universe.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-burton/loneliness-is-the-manifestation-of-the-conflict-between-our-desire/) [Neel Burton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-burton/) > [“Just as Prometheus delivered stolen fire to man, so Eve, and the serpent, delivered man into self-consciousness, setting him up, were it not for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-burton/just-as-prometheus-delivered-stolen-fire-to-man-so-eve-and-the/) [Neel Burton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-burton/) > [“Just as we use speech and gestures to communicate, so we use touch. Words can say, ‘I love you’, but touch can also say…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-burton/just-as-we-use-speech-and-gestures-to-communicate-so-we-use-touch/) [Neel Burton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-burton/) > [Depression: the healthy suspicion that modern life has no meaning and that modern society is absurd and alienating.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-burton/depression-the-healthy-suspicion-that-modern-life-has-no-meaning-and/) [Neel Burton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-burton/) > [“Ultimately, loneliness is not the experience of lacking but the experience of living. It is part and parcel of the human condition, and, unless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-burton/ultimately-loneliness-is-not-the-experience-of-lacking-but-the/) [Neel Burton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-burton/) > [Man first creates the universe in his image, and then turns round to say that God created man in his image... As Voltaire quipped,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-burton/man-first-creates-the-universe-in-his-image-and-then-turns-round-to/) [Neel Burton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-burton/) > [“Philosophy is a bitter medicine with many fearsome side effects, but if you are able to stomach it, it can cure your soul of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-burton/philosophy-is-a-bitter-medicine-with-many-fearsome-side-effects-but/) [Neel Burton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-burton/) > [“In refining their senses and aesthetic judgement, blind tasters become much more conscious of the richness not only of wine but also of other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-burton/in-refining-their-senses-and-aesthetic-judgement-blind-tasters-become/) [Neel Burton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-burton/) > [Self-deception is a defining part of our human nature. By recognizing its various forms in ourselves and reflecting upon them, we may be able…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-burton/self-deception-is-a-defining-part-of-our-human-nature-by-recognizing/) [Neel Burton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-burton/) > [“Wonder begets culture, which begets yet more wonder, and the end of wonder is wisdom, which is the state of perpetual wonder.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-burton/wonder-begets-culture-which-begets-yet-more-wonder-and-the-end-of/) [Neel Burton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-burton/) > [There are essentially three types of people: those who love life more than they fear it, those who fear life more than they love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-burton/there-are-essentially-three-types-of-people-those-who-love-life-more/) [Neel Burton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-burton/) > [“Our life is just as long or short as our remembering: as rich as our imagining, as vibrant as our feeling, and as profound…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-burton/our-life-is-just-as-long-or-short-as-our-remembering-as-rich-as-our/) [Neel Burton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-burton/) > [“Although selfhood depends causally upon the existence of the brain, it amounts to something far more than the brain. This something is vague and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-burton/although-selfhood-depends-causally-upon-the-existence-of-the-brain-it/) [Neel Burton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-burton/) > [“I can't believe I spent 13 years at school and never got taught cooking, gardening, conversation, massage, Latin, or philosophy. What were they thinking?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-burton/i-can-t-believe-i-spent-13-years-at-school-and-never-got-taught/) [Neel Burton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-burton/) > [“If you’ve found something in life that's better than sleeping, you’re already a huge success.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-burton/if-you-ve-found-something-in-life-that-s-better-than-sleeping-you-re/) [Neel Burton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-burton/) [Explore all 41 Neel Burton quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-burton/) ## More Decision making 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/) > [“Exactly. So, what can't you take? Decide which of the two options is harder, and do the other. That way, no matter how hard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josephine-angelini/exactly-so-what-can-t-you-take-decide-which-of-the-two-options-is/) [Josephine Angelini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josephine-angelini/) > [“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/) > [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/) > [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/) > [“Slow down your thinking so you can note the criteria you are using to make your decision. 2. Write the criteria down as a principle.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-dalio/slow-down-your-thinking-so-you-can-note-the-criteria-you-are-using-to/) [Ray Dalio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-dalio/) > [My best business decision was to be independent as a musician and artist. My worst was compromising on certain aspects of a deal for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ziggy-marley/my-best-business-decision-was-to-be-independent-as-a-musician-and/) [Ziggy Marley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ziggy-marley/) > [“Making a decision takes a moment, living a decision takes a life-time.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherif-a-el-mawardy/making-a-decision-takes-a-moment-living-a-decision-takes-a-life-time/) [Sherif A. El-Mawardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherif-a-el-mawardy/) > [Cheshvan starts tonight," Rixon said, "What are you doing arsing around in a graveyard?" "Thinking." "Thinking?" "A process by which I use my brain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/becca-fitzpatrick/cheshvan-starts-tonight-rixon-said-what-are-you-doing-arsing-around/) [Becca Fitzpatrick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/becca-fitzpatrick/) > [The right decision is the wrong decision if it's made too late.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/the-right-decision-is-the-wrong-decision-if-it-s-made-too-late/) [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) > [“The decisions we take reflects our belief and our charachter”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajnish-borah/the-decisions-we-take-reflects-our-belief-and-our-charachter/) Rajnish Borah > [I think most of us are raised with preconceived notions of the choices we're supposed to make. We waste so much time making decisions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-bullock/i-think-most-of-us-are-raised-with-preconceived-notions-of-the/) [Sandra Bullock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-bullock/) [Browse all 4,912 Decision making quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decision-making/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“It takes ten good decisions to make up for one disastrous one. 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