Quote of the day by Agatha Christie: “If you place your head in a lion’s mouth, then you cannot…”

Quote
of
the
day
by
Agatha
Ch istie
(Image:
Wikipedia)

Life
ofte
i volves
ge ui e
isk,
but
ot
eve y
isk
is
actually
wo th
taki g.
Some
decisio s
place
someo e
i
a
situatio
whe e
the
possible
co seque ces
we e
obvious
f om
the
ve y
begi i g.
Agatha
Ch istie
captu ed
that
exact
idea
i
o e
vivid
image.
“If
you
place
you
head
i
a
lio ‘s
mouth,
the
you
ca ot
complai
o e
day
if
he
happe s
to
bite
it
off,”
she
w ote.
It
is
a
ext eme
pictu e
used
to
make
a
ge ui ely
simple
poi t
about
espo sibility,
o e
that
has
stayed
with
eade s
fa
lo ge
tha
the
specific
sto y
it
was
o igi ally
w itte
fo ,
appea i g
ight
at
the
ve y
sta t
of
he
lo g
a d
ema kable
w iti g
ca ee .

Quote
of
the
day
by
Agatha
Ch istie

“If
you
place
you
head
i
a
lio ‘s
mouth,
the
you
ca ot
complai
o e
day
if
he
happe s
to
bite
it
off”

Whe e
this
quote
actually
comes
f om

This
li e
appea s
i
The
Myste ious
Affai
at
Styles,
published
i
1920,
Ch istie’s
ve y
fi st
ovel
a d
the
book
that
i t oduced
he
most
famous
detective,
He cule
Poi ot,
to
the
wo ld.
It
would
go
o
to
lau ch
o e
of
the
most
successful
w iti g
ca ee s
i
publishi g
histo y,
a d
this
pa ticula
li e,
tucked
i side
he
debut,
has
outlived
the
specific
plot
it
appea ed
i ,
ci culati g
today
as
a
piece
of
sta dalo e
wisdom
about
co seque ces.

What
the
quote
by
Agatha
Ch istie
is
actually
sayi g

The
“lio ‘s
mouth”
sta ds
fo
a
ge ui ely
da ge ous
situatio ,
a d
delibe ately
placi g
you
head
i side
it
ep ese ts
k owi gly
taki g
o
a
se ious
isk.
Ch istie
is
ot
eally
a gui g
that
people
should
avoid
eve y
fo m
of
isk.
P og ess
ofte
ge ui ely
equi es
cou age
a d
eal
u ce tai ty.
The
poi t
is
a owe
tha
that,
that
people
should
actually
ecog ise
the
isks
they
a e
accepti g
befo e
taki g
the
actio
i
the
fi st
place.
If
a
co seque ce
was
easo ably
fo eseeable
f om
the
sta t,
complai i g
about
it
afte wa d
does
ot
cha ge
the
fact
that
the
o igi al
decisio
was
a
co scious
choice.

Why
u de sta di g
co seque ces
actually
matte s

Eve y
decisio
ca ies
co seque ces,
eve
whe
they
a e
ot
immediately
visible
at
the
time.
A
choice
ca
feel
co ve ie t
o
exciti g
i
the
mome t,
without
much
thought
give
to
what
might
happe
late .
O ce
the
co seque ces
eve tually
do
appea ,
the
o igi al
decisio
ca
look
ve y
diffe e t
i
hi dsight.
Thi ki g
ahead
eve
gua a tees
eve ythi g
will
go
exactly
to
pla ,
but
it
does
help
someo e
tell
the
diffe e ce
betwee
a
ge ui ely
calculated
isk
a d
o e
that
was
simply
u ecessa y.

The
eal
diffe e ce
betwee
cou age
a d
eckless ess

O e
useful
lesso
bu ied
i side
the
quote
is
the
disti ctio
betwee
taki g
a
isk
fo
a
ge ui ely
mea i gful
easo
a d
taki g
o e
without
eally
co side i g
the
co seque ces
at
all.
Cou age
mea s
ecog isi g
a
isk
clea ly
a d
decidi g
the
pote tial
be efit
still
justifies
it.
Reckless ess
mea s
ig o i g
o
u de estimati g
the
actual
da ge
i volved.
Someo e
sta ti g
a
busi ess
o
cha gi g
ca ee s
faces
eal
u ce tai ty,
a d
that
ki d
of
isk
ca
still
be
wo thwhile
whe
it
has
actually
bee
thought
th ough.
K owi gly
ig o i g
a
obvious
wa i g
sig
is
a
diffe e t
matte
e ti ely.

Why
people
sometimes
ig o e
obvious
wa i g
sig s

Decisio s
a e
a ely
made
o
pu e
logic
alo e.
Exciteme t,
ambitio ,
p essu e
o
simple
fea
of
missi g
a
oppo tu ity
ca
all
quietly
i flue ce
someo e’s
judgeme t.
A
pe so
ca
focus
so
heavily
o
the
pote tial
ewa d
that
the
actual
isk
becomes
a
afte thought,
a d
by
the
time
the
co seque ces
fi ally
a ive,
it
ca
be
tempti g
to
blame
ci cumsta ces
athe
tha
the
o igi al
choice.
Ch istie’s
image
is
eally
e cou agi g
people
to
pause
befo e
that
pa ticula
step
is
actually
take .

Taki g
eal
espo sibility
fo
a
choice

Pe so al
espo sibility
was
eve
about
accepti g
blame
fo
absolutely
eve ythi g
that
happe s.
Ge ui ely
u expected
eve ts
occu
eve
whe
someo e
has
acted
ca efully,
a d
ci cumsta ces
ca
shift
i
ways
obody
could
have
p edicted.
The
lesso
he e
is
mo e
specific
tha
that.
Whe
someo e
k owi gly
chooses
a
ge ui ely
isky
cou se
of
actio ,
they
should
also
be
willi g
to
ack owledge
that
the
eve tual
outcome
was
always
pa t
of
that
same
choice.

How
this
idea
applies
to
o di a y,
eve yday
situatio s

The
message
clea ly
applies
fa
beyo d
d amatic
sce a ios.
Someo e
who
epeatedly
ig o es
eal
fi a cial
wa i gs
may
eve tually
u
i to
se ious
mo ey
p oblems.
A
pe so
who
keeps
damagi g
a
elatio ship
without
add essi g
thei
ow
behaviou
may
eve tually
lose
someo e’s
t ust
e ti ely.
No e
of
this
is
eally
about
livi g
i
fea .
It
is
about
ge ui ely
u de sta di g
what
a
decisio
actually
i volves
befo e
maki g
it.

Why
calculated
isks
a e
ot
the
same
thi g
as
mistakes

Not
eve y
isk
is
a
mistake
waiti g
to
happe .
Ple ty
of
impo ta t
achieveme ts
equi e
steppi g
outside
a
comfo t
zo e
e ti ely.
E t ep e eu s
i vest
i
busi esses
that
might
ge ui ely
fail.
Athletes
push
themselves
despite
a
eal
isk
of
i ju y.
The
eal
diffe e ce
lies
i
p epa atio
a d
awa e ess.
A
calculated
isk
i volves
ge ui ely
u de sta di g
the
possible
outcomes
a d
decidi g
the
pote tial
ewa d
still
justifies
them,
which
is
co side ably
diffe e t
f om
simply
ig o i g
a
obvious
da ge
a d
hopi g
othi g
happe s.

Othe
memo able
quotes
by
Agatha
Ch istie

Why
this
quote
emai s
eleva t
today

The
st e gth
of
Ch istie’s
image
comes
f om
exactly
how
simple
it
actually
is.
Nobody
eeds
to
u de sta d
a y
complicated
philosophy
to
pictu e
someo e
volu ta ily
placi g
thei
head
ea
a
lio ‘s
mouth.
Choices
a d
co seque ces
a e
usually
co ected
fa
mo e
closely
tha
people
would
like
to
admit,
a d
taki g
a
ge ui e
isk
is
sometimes
ecessa y,
p ovided
the
isk
itself
has
actually
bee
u de stood
fi st.
Occasio ally
the
b avest
decisio
eally
is
to
take
that
isk.
Just
as
ofte ,
the
wise
decisio
is
simply
k owi g
exactly
whe
ot
to
put
you
head
a ywhe e
ea
the
lio ‘s
mouth
i
the
fi st
place.

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