Maybe it's "Authored" vs. "Emergent"

[Cheesegear]

Do you even understand how belittling that is ?

If the players solve a scenario in a way that the DM doesn't expect. But it doesn't ruin the game. Who gives a ****?

If you've never had to look a player in the eyes, and ask 'Are you sure you want to do that? Do you understand how stupid that's going to be?' and then no-one has fun (including the player who committed the action) because you've been forced to address this idiocy that no-one wanted to do? Then you have much, much different players than I do.

If you've never had other players at the table, Boo! and throw small objects at another player, and turn to you and say;
'NO! DM. Please? He doesn't assault the officer. He doesn't do that. Here's what we're actually doing...'
Then you have much, much different players than I do.

Some choices the players can make are extraordinarily disruptive. I don't mean 'They solved the scenario in a way that I didn't expect.', I mean 'The consequences of this particular decision has the potential to ruin the game for other players, and I'm not actually sure you really want me to play this out...But herrre we gooo...'

Not all choices a player can make, are good choices. And no, I don't mean they might possibly ruin the narrative. **** it. I'll change the narrative. I'll put scratch marks into my notes and write in the margins. I'm an adult. Take that emergent content and turn it into authored content...Like you're supposed to. There's no problem. Who cares? Doesn't every DM just take players' actions into account? Isn't that just want DMing is?
- A DM starts with authored content.
- The players take emergent actions.
- The DM authors next session with those actions having taken place.
- The players take emergent actions.
- etc.

But there are choices that a character can make, that ruin the game, and those choices are really, really hard to take back. Those are the irrational choices that make no sense;
'I made a decision that got two players who weren't me, killed! Uh-oh, Spaghetti-Os...Sor-ryyy.' But hey, at least the player that didn't die got to exercise their agency, right?