Do what you feel in your heart to be right — for you'll be criticized anyway. You'll be "damned if you do, and damned if you don't."

Eleanor Roosevelt offered this counsel in the setting of her long-running newspaper column “My Day,” where she frequently addressed readers’ moral dilemmas and the pressures of public opinion. As a highly visible First Lady and later an international public figure, she was routinely scrutinized and attacked from multiple political directions. The remark reflects her pragmatic experience that public criticism is often unavoidable, especially when one takes principled stands. In that context, she urges readers to prioritize conscience over approval, because attempting to satisfy everyone typically leads to paralysis or compromise without actually escaping blame.

The quote argues for ethical self-reliance: if criticism is unavoidable, the rational strategy is to prioritize what you sincerely believe is right. Roosevelt frames moral action as an inner commitment (“in your heart”) rather than a performance for others. The blunt idiom “damned if you do, and damned if you don’t” underscores the double bind of public judgment—especially acute for people in positions of responsibility—where inaction can be condemned as readily as action. The saying therefore functions as a call to courage: accept reputational risk as the cost of principled decision-making.

1) “Do what you feel in your heart to be right, for you’ll be criticized anyway.”
2) “Do what you think is right. You will be criticized anyway.”
3) “You’re damned if you do and damned if you don’t.”