"If we listened to our intellect, we'd never have a love affair. We'd never have a friendship. We'd never go into business, because we'd be cynical. Well, that's nonsense. You've got to jump off cliffs all the time and build your wings on the way down"
About this Quote
The real target isn’t intelligence; it’s cynicism dressed up as intelligence. “If we listened to our intellect” is a sly misdirection, suggesting that the mind has one voice when it actually has competing ones: curiosity, fear, pride, control. Cynicism is the voice that calls itself “realism” so it doesn’t have to admit it’s afraid. Bradbury punctures that posture with “Well, that’s nonsense,” a blunt reset that reads like a storyteller refusing to let the plot die of overanalysis.
Then comes the metaphor that reveals his context as a writer of speculative worlds: jump off cliffs, build wings on the way down. It’s not a sermon about recklessness; it’s an argument for iterative courage. You commit first, you improvise second. That’s how books get written, relationships deepen, careers happen. Bradbury’s subtext is practical: creation is always a delayed proof. You can’t think your way into certainty because certainty is usually the prize you get after you’ve already leapt.
Quote Details
| Topic | Motivational |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
| Cite |
Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
Bradbury, Ray. (2026, January 15). If we listened to our intellect, we'd never have a love affair. We'd never have a friendship. We'd never go into business, because we'd be cynical. Well, that's nonsense. You've got to jump off cliffs all the time and build your wings on the way down. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/if-we-listened-to-our-intellect-wed-never-have-a-153073/
Chicago Style
Bradbury, Ray. "If we listened to our intellect, we'd never have a love affair. We'd never have a friendship. We'd never go into business, because we'd be cynical. Well, that's nonsense. You've got to jump off cliffs all the time and build your wings on the way down." FixQuotes. January 15, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/if-we-listened-to-our-intellect-wed-never-have-a-153073/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"If we listened to our intellect, we'd never have a love affair. We'd never have a friendship. We'd never go into business, because we'd be cynical. Well, that's nonsense. You've got to jump off cliffs all the time and build your wings on the way down." FixQuotes, 15 Jan. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/if-we-listened-to-our-intellect-wed-never-have-a-153073/. Accessed 19 Feb. 2026.
