--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Bad outcomes don’t just happen; they…" description: "\"“Bad outcomes don’t just happen; they occur because specific people make, or fail to make, specific decisions”\" — Ray Dalio" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/265/ray-dalio-299_decision-making_bad-outcomes-don-t-just-happen-they-occu_3181159.jpg" --- # Bad outcomes don’t just happen; they occur because… ![“Bad outcomes don’t just happen; they occur because specific people make, or fail to make, specific decisions” quote by Ray Dalio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/265/ray-dalio-299_decision-making_bad-outcomes-don-t-just-happen-they-occu_3181159.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/265/ray-dalio-299_decision-making_bad-outcomes-don-t-just-happen-they-occu_3181159.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/265/ray-dalio-299_decision-making_bad-outcomes-don-t-just-happen-they-occu_3181159.jpg) > ““Bad outcomes don’t just happen; they occur because specific people make, or fail to make, specific decisions”” [Ray Dalio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-dalio/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Decisions shape outcomes; poor results stem from specific bad choices or indecision. **In simple terms:** Bad outcomes come from bad decisions. Key Takeaway Make deliberate choices. Themes responsibility decision-making consequences Mood reflective serious Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - business strategy - personal finance - leadership - project planning Key Concepts causality agency risk management Questions to Reflect On - How can you improve decision quality? - What habits prevent poor choices? A Different Perspective Decisions are sometimes constrained by limited information. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Decision making](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decision-making/) ## Related quotes > [“Avoid the anonymous “we” and “they,” because they mask personal responsibility. 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There are so many people that I admire and there's directors that I'm desperate to work with that haven't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamie-dornan/i-don-t-have-specific-people-there-are-so-many-people-that-i-admire/) [Jamie Dornan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamie-dornan/) > [Any individual decisions can be badly thought through, and yet be successful, or exceedingly well thought through, but be unsuccessful, because the recognized possibility…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-rubin/any-individual-decisions-can-be-badly-thought-through-and-yet-be/) [Robert Rubin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-rubin/) > [The modern joint stock firm is the outcome of innumerable decisions made by individual entrepreneurs, owners and managers. For these decision makers the choices…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-d-chandler-jr/the-modern-joint-stock-firm-is-the-outcome-of-innumerable-decisions/) Alfred D. Chandler, Jr > [When you're faced with a choice, you have one of three choices that you can have. You can have those with power decide. 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By failing well, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-dalio/i-believe-that-the-key-to-success-lies-in-knowing-how-to-both-strive/) [Ray Dalio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-dalio/) > [“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/) > [It is suggested that in domestic violence at least the presence or absence of a firearm, or of any other type of weapon, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-greenwood/it-is-suggested-that-in-domestic-violence-at-least-the-presence-or/) [Colin Greenwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-greenwood/) > [If you have a different mindset, you will have a different outcome: if you make different choices from your peers, your life will then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-ma/if-you-have-a-different-mindset-you-will-have-a-different-outcome-if/) [Jack Ma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-ma/) ## More by Ray Dalio > [“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/) > [“Having a process that ensures problems are brought to the surface, and their root causes diagnosed, assures that continual improvements occur.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-dalio/having-a-process-that-ensures-problems-are-brought-to-the-surface-and/) [Ray Dalio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-dalio/) > [“If you can’t successfully do something, don’t think you can tell others how it should be done”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-dalio/if-you-can-t-successfully-do-something-don-t-think-you-can-tell/) [Ray Dalio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-dalio/) > [“Remember that a good plan should resemble a movie script.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-dalio/remember-that-a-good-plan-should-resemble-a-movie-script/) [Ray Dalio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-dalio/) > [“I believe that the key to success lies in knowing how to both strive for a lot and fail well. 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You get better…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-dalio/life-is-like-a-game-where-you-seek-to-overcome-the-obstacles-that/) [Ray Dalio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-dalio/) > [“when we look down on ourselves through the eyes of nature we are of absolutely no significance. It is a reality that each one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-dalio/when-we-look-down-on-ourselves-through-the-eyes-of-nature-we-are-of/) [Ray Dalio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-dalio/) > [“Great questions are a much better indicator of future success than great answers.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-dalio/great-questions-are-a-much-better-indicator-of-future-success-than/) [Ray Dalio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-dalio/) > [“Georgi Plekhanov’s classic On the Role of the Individual in History.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-dalio/georgi-plekhanov-s-classic-on-the-role-of-the-individual-in-history/) [Ray Dalio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-dalio/) [Explore all 716 Ray Dalio quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-dalio/) ## 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": "“Bad outcomes don’t just happen; they occur because specific people make, or fail to make, specific decisions”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ray Dalio" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-dalio/bad-outcomes-don-t-just-happen-they-occur-because-specific-people/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Decision making" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-dalio/bad-outcomes-don-t-just-happen-they-occur-because-specific-people/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/265/ray-dalio-299_decision-making_bad-outcomes-don-t-just-happen-they-occu_3181159.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/265/ray-dalio-299_decision-making_bad-outcomes-don-t-just-happen-they-occu_3181159.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/265/ray-dalio-299_decision-making_bad-outcomes-don-t-just-happen-they-occu_3181159.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Bad outcomes don’t just happen; they occur because specific people make, or fail to make, specific decisions” — Ray Dalio", "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": "Ray Dalio", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-dalio/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Bad outcomes don’t just happen; they...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-dalio/bad-outcomes-don-t-just-happen-they-occur-because-specific-people/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-dalio/bad-outcomes-don-t-just-happen-they-occur-because-specific-people/#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 } } ] } ```