Skip to content
quotesby

About this quote

What does it mean?
Critiques those who react impulsively or speak without thinking before understanding a problem.
In plain terms
Some people rush to speak or act without thinking first.
What can you take from it?
Think before you speak or act on a problem.

Where it applies

  • conflict resolution
  • workplace discussions
  • personal debates

Putting it to work

  • pause before responding
  • listen actively
  • evaluate before acting

Questions to consider

  • When is speaking quickly actually helpful?
  • How do you balance speed and thought?

Another view

Sometimes quick action is needed and overthinking causes harm.

More from Adlai Stevenson

  1. I can't say that I love it with a fierce passion - indeed as a profession it's rather disappointing since it is not a profession at all, but rather a business …

    Permalink to quote #90

  2. An Independent is someone who wants to take the politics out of politics.

    Permalink to quote #92

  3. The art of government has grown from its seeds in the tiny city-states of Greece to become the political mode of half the world. So let us dream of a world in …

    Permalink to quote #89

Related quotes

  1. Speech is human, silence is divine, yet also brutish and dead: therefore we must learn both arts.

    Thomas CarlyleThomas Carlyle quote #1

  2. 'It's not so much knowing when to speak, when to pause.'

    Jack BennyJack Benny quote #6

  3. My basic rule is to speak slowly and simply so that my audience has an opportunity to follow and think about what I am saying.

    Margaret Chase SmithMargaret Chase Smith quote #16