--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The only good thing ever done by a…" description: "\"The only good thing ever done by a committee was the King James version.\" — Rita Mae Brown" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/173/rita-mae-brown-1111_committee_the-only-good-thing-ever-done-by-a-commi_1442535.png" --- # The only good thing ever done by a committee was the King… ![“The only good thing ever done by a committee was the King James version.” quote by Rita Mae Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/173/rita-mae-brown-1111_committee_the-only-good-thing-ever-done-by-a-commi_1442535.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/173/rita-mae-brown-1111_committee_the-only-good-thing-ever-done-by-a-commi_1442535.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/173/rita-mae-brown-1111_committee_the-only-good-thing-ever-done-by-a-commi_1442535.png) > “The only good thing ever done by a committee was the King James version.” [Rita Mae Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-mae-brown/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Committees often dilute ideas; the King James Bible stands out as a rare success. **In simple terms:** Committees usually hinder progress. Key Takeaway Seek individual excellence. Themes politics collaboration creativity Mood critical thoughtful Type political literary When to use this quote - legislation - team projects - creative writing - policy making Key Concepts groupthink authority quality control Questions to Reflect On - When does collective effort outweigh individual work? - Can structure improve outcomes? A Different Perspective Some committees produce breakthroughs despite odds. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Good things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-things/) [Kings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kings/) ## Related quotes > [To claim, therefore, inerrancy for the King James Version, or even for the Revised Version, is to claim inerrancy for men who never professed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-claim-therefore-inerrancy-for-the-king-james-version-or-even-for/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I'm now an agnostic but I grew up on the King James version, which I'm eternally grateful for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penelope-lively/i-m-now-an-agnostic-but-i-grew-up-on-the-king-james-version-which-i-m/) [Penelope Lively](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penelope-lively/) > [I should think that an ordinary copy of the King James version would have been good enough for those Congressmen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/calvin-coolidge/i-should-think-that-an-ordinary-copy-of-the-king-james-version-would/) [Calvin Coolidge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/calvin-coolidge/) > [Other translations may engage the mind, but the King James Version is the Bible of the heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-norton/other-translations-may-engage-the-mind-but-the-king-james-version-is/) David Norton > [“The most determining external influence on his style was unquestionably the old, so-called King James version of the English Bible. His language is saturated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-edwards/the-most-determining-external-influence-on-his-style-was/) [Jonathan Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-edwards/) > [At last, in 1611, was made, under the auspices of King James, the famous King James version; and this is the great literary monument…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lafcadio-hearn/at-last-in-1611-was-made-under-the-auspices-of-king-james-the-famous/) [Lafcadio Hearn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lafcadio-hearn/) > [I will not be making appointments to a committee that is not bipartisan.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-pelosi/i-will-not-be-making-appointments-to-a-committee-that-is-not/) [Nancy Pelosi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-pelosi/) > [You can't have cinema by committee if you're trying to do it well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janeane-garofalo/you-can-t-have-cinema-by-committee-if-you-re-trying-to-do-it-well/) [Janeane Garofalo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janeane-garofalo/) > [“committees can criticize, but they cannot create.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-ogilvy/committees-can-criticize-but-they-cannot-create/) [David Ogilvy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-ogilvy/) > [Committees are consumers and sometimes sterilizers of ideas, rarely creators of them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-a-kissinger/committees-are-consumers-and-sometimes-sterilizers-of-ideas-rarely/) [Henry A. Kissinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-a-kissinger/) > [Committees are to get everybody together and homogenize their thinking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/art-linkletter/committees-are-to-get-everybody-together-and-homogenize-their-thinking/) [Art Linkletter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/art-linkletter/) > [One of the great joys this year and the year before has been how all of the people in this body, men and women,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hayes/one-of-the-great-joys-this-year-and-the-year-before-has-been-how-all/) [Robin Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hayes/) > [Government likes committees... a lot. Committees kill all the really good ideas and generally all the really bad ideas. They produce middle-ground mush.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-devos/government-likes-committees-a-lot-committees-kill-all-the-really-good/) [Betsy DeVos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-devos/) > [It is necessary to get a lot of men together, for the show of the thing, otherwise the world will not believe. That is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-trollope/it-is-necessary-to-get-a-lot-of-men-together-for-the-show-of-the/) [Anthony Trollope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-trollope/) > [My feeling has always been that 'Good Eats' would have never happened had it been left to a committee.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alton-brown/my-feeling-has-always-been-that-good-eats-would-have-never-happened/) [Alton Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alton-brown/) ## More by Rita Mae Brown > [“Friendship distills the sweetness of life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-mae-brown/friendship-distills-the-sweetness-of-life/) [Rita Mae Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-mae-brown/) > [About all you can do in life is be who you are. Some people will love you for you. Most will love you for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-mae-brown/about-all-you-can-do-in-life-is-be-who-you-are-some-people-will-love/) [Rita Mae Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-mae-brown/) > [He tried to drown his troubles but they knew how to swim.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-mae-brown/he-tried-to-drown-his-troubles-but-they-knew-how-to-swim/) [Rita Mae Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-mae-brown/) > [“The most revolutionary thing you can do is to be yourself, to speak your truth, to open your arms to life including the pain.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-mae-brown/the-most-revolutionary-thing-you-can-do-is-to-be-yourself-to-speak/) [Rita Mae Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-mae-brown/) > [Content without style is propaganda or adolescence. Style without content is decadence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-mae-brown/content-without-style-is-propaganda-or-adolescence-style-without/) [Rita Mae Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-mae-brown/) > [Whenever I doubt the existence of God or the Goddess, I look at horses. Only God could have made a horse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-mae-brown/whenever-i-doubt-the-existence-of-god-or-the-goddess-i-look-at-horses/) [Rita Mae Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-mae-brown/) > [Language is decanted and shared. If only one person is left alive speaking a language - the case with some American Indian languages -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-mae-brown/language-is-decanted-and-shared-if-only-one-person-is-left-alive/) [Rita Mae Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-mae-brown/) > [“what would happen if she'd open her eyes and see only dark and feel satin from the coffin? That'd scare her enough to kill…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-mae-brown/what-would-happen-if-she-d-open-her-eyes-and-see-only-dark-and-feel/) [Rita Mae Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-mae-brown/) > [“You know, it’s hell to work with a cat. They really are smarter than we are. Have you ever gotten anyone to feed you,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-mae-brown/you-know-it-s-hell-to-work-with-a-cat-they-really-are-smarter-than-we/) [Rita Mae Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-mae-brown/) > [I don't want to die. I think death is a greatly overrated experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-mae-brown/i-don-t-want-to-die-i-think-death-is-a-greatly-overrated-experience/) [Rita Mae Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-mae-brown/) > [Leroy bet me I couldn't find a pot of gold at the end, and I told him that was a stupid bet because the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-mae-brown/leroy-bet-me-i-couldn-t-find-a-pot-of-gold-at-the-end-and-i-told-him/) [Rita Mae Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-mae-brown/) > [An army of lovers shall not fail.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-mae-brown/an-army-of-lovers-shall-not-fail/) [Rita Mae Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-mae-brown/) > [Cats and dogs believe politicians are like cemetery caregivers; they are on top of everyone, but nobody listens.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-mae-brown/cats-and-dogs-believe-politicians-are-like-cemetery-caregivers-they/) [Rita Mae Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-mae-brown/) > [Femininity and masculinity are social constructs. Female and male are biological. We don't have to learn to be men or women but we do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-mae-brown/femininity-and-masculinity-are-social-constructs-female-and-male-are/) [Rita Mae Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-mae-brown/) > [One of the keys to happiness is a bad memory.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-mae-brown/one-of-the-keys-to-happiness-is-a-bad-memory/) [Rita Mae Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-mae-brown/) [Explore all 290 Rita Mae Brown quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-mae-brown/) ## More Committee quotes > [My feeling has always been that 'Good Eats' would have never happened had it been left to a committee.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alton-brown/my-feeling-has-always-been-that-good-eats-would-have-never-happened/) [Alton Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alton-brown/) > [What is interesting in Washington, D.C., is I've never missed a vote. The veterans' committee keeps track of hearings, and I've never missed a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-coffman/what-is-interesting-in-washington-d-c-is-i-ve-never-missed-a-vote-the/) [Mike Coffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-coffman/) > [You never meet the writer when you're making a TV movie in America - they're too ashamed to show up and see how their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-don-baker/you-never-meet-the-writer-when-you-re-making-a-tv-movie-in-america/) [Joe Don Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-don-baker/) > [It is necessary to get a lot of men together, for the show of the thing, otherwise the world will not believe. That is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-trollope/it-is-necessary-to-get-a-lot-of-men-together-for-the-show-of-the/) [Anthony Trollope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-trollope/) > [Government likes committees... a lot. Committees kill all the really good ideas and generally all the really bad ideas. They produce middle-ground mush.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-devos/government-likes-committees-a-lot-committees-kill-all-the-really-good/) [Betsy DeVos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-devos/) > [If the many allegations made to this date are true, then the burglars who broke into the headquarters of the Democratic National Committee at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-ervin/if-the-many-allegations-made-to-this-date-are-true-then-the-burglars/) [Sam Ervin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-ervin/) > [One of the great joys this year and the year before has been how all of the people in this body, men and women,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hayes/one-of-the-great-joys-this-year-and-the-year-before-has-been-how-all/) [Robin Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hayes/) > [I was sent there by the Free Congress Committee, headed by Paul Weyrich. Fred Smith and I were sent down as observers, with reporters'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dixie-lee-ray/i-was-sent-there-by-the-free-congress-committee-headed-by-paul/) [Dixie Lee Ray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dixie-lee-ray/) > [Some people advocate public nomination and a three-track system - allowing voters and political parties to make nominations along with the committee. These people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-lam/some-people-advocate-public-nomination-and-a-three-track-system/) [Carrie Lam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-lam/) > [As you know in this committee, we have all of HUD, and HUD is responsible for so many programs that determine the quality of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-waters/as-you-know-in-this-committee-we-have-all-of-hud-and-hud-is/) [Maxine Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-waters/) > [I believe in a running back by committee. Always have. Always been taught that way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dorsey/i-believe-in-a-running-back-by-committee-always-have-always-been/) [John Dorsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dorsey/) > [As chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee - the chief tax-writing body in Congress - I understand that true comprehensive tax reform…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-brady/as-chairman-of-the-house-ways-and-means-committee-the-chief-tax/) [Kevin Brady](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-brady/) > [Committees are to get everybody together and homogenize their thinking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/art-linkletter/committees-are-to-get-everybody-together-and-homogenize-their-thinking/) [Art Linkletter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/art-linkletter/) > [I'm chairing a UNESCO committee on how to improve global Internet communications for science; help third-world people get onto the Net so they can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-lederberg/i-m-chairing-a-unesco-committee-on-how-to-improve-global-internet/) [Joshua Lederberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-lederberg/) > [Committees are consumers and sometimes sterilizers of ideas, rarely creators of them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-a-kissinger/committees-are-consumers-and-sometimes-sterilizers-of-ideas-rarely/) [Henry A. Kissinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-a-kissinger/) Browse all 337 Committee quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The only good thing ever done by a committee was the King James version.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Rita Mae Brown" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-mae-brown/the-only-good-thing-ever-done-by-a-committee-was-the-king-james/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Committee" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-mae-brown/the-only-good-thing-ever-done-by-a-committee-was-the-king-james/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/173/rita-mae-brown-1111_committee_the-only-good-thing-ever-done-by-a-commi_1442535.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/173/rita-mae-brown-1111_committee_the-only-good-thing-ever-done-by-a-commi_1442535.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/173/rita-mae-brown-1111_committee_the-only-good-thing-ever-done-by-a-commi_1442535.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The only good thing ever done by a committee was the King James version.” — Rita Mae Brown", "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": "Rita Mae Brown", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-mae-brown/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The only good thing ever done...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-mae-brown/the-only-good-thing-ever-done-by-a-committee-was-the-king-james/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-mae-brown/the-only-good-thing-ever-done-by-a-committee-was-the-king-james/#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 } } ] } ```