---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What” and “if” are two words as…"
description: "\"“What” and “if” are two words as non-threatening as words can be, but put them together side by side and they have the power to haunt you for the rest ..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ff/carrie-green-31316_life_what-and-if-are-two-words-as-non-threate_2078492.jpg"
---

#  What” and “if” are two words as non-threatening as words…

![“What” and “if” are two words as non-threatening as words can be, but put them together side by side and they have the power to haunt you for the rest of your life.’ LETTERS TO JULIET, SCREENPLAY BY JOSÉ RIVERA AND TIM SULLIVAN” quote by Carrie Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ff/carrie-green-31316_life_what-and-if-are-two-words-as-non-threate_2078492.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ff/carrie-green-31316_life_what-and-if-are-two-words-as-non-threate_2078492.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ff/carrie-green-31316_life_what-and-if-are-two-words-as-non-threate_2078492.jpg)

> ““What” and “if” are two words as non-threatening as words can be, but put them together side by side and they have the power to haunt you for the rest of your life.’ LETTERS TO JULIET, SCREENPLAY BY JOSÉ RIVERA AND TIM SULLIVAN””

[Carrie Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-green/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Combining “what” and “if” creates a haunting, lingering doubt that can dominate thoughts.

**In simple terms:** What‑if thoughts can haunt you.

Key Takeaway

Challenge limiting “what‑if” narratives.

Themes

doubt what‑if mental habits

Mood

anxious reflective

Type

psychological inspirational

When to use this quote

- decision making
- creative brainstorming
- personal reflection

Key Concepts

cognitive bias rumination future anxiety

Questions to Reflect On

- What “what‑if” holds you back?
- How can you reframe these thoughts?

A Different Perspective

Over‑analysis can paralyze action.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Rest of your life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rest-of-your-life/) [Screenplay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/screenplay/) [Side by side](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/side-by-side/) [Words](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/words/)

## Related quotes

> [“What” and “if” are two words as non-threatening as words can be, but put them together side by side and they have the power…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-green/what-and-if-are-two-words-as-non-threatening-as-words-can-be-but-put-2/)

[Carrie Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-green/)

> [My experience is, I do a table reading, and it's literally like it's written in colossal neon lights what's wrong with the screenplay.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-morgan/my-experience-is-i-do-a-table-reading-and-it-s-literally-like-it-s/)

[Peter Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-morgan/)

> [It's really hard to write a screenplay, it's nauseating. All those great writers that tried to write screenplays, they couldn't do it, most of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hampton-fancher/it-s-really-hard-to-write-a-screenplay-it-s-nauseating-all-those/)

[Hampton Fancher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hampton-fancher/)

> [I think longer that you sit on a screenplay the longer you sit. I'm a firm believer that you can write the magic out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-farmer/i-think-longer-that-you-sit-on-a-screenplay-the-longer-you-sit-i-m-a/)

[Todd Farmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-farmer/)

> [On the one occasion where I did try writing a screenplay, I found the rewriting just unendurable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-moore/on-the-one-occasion-where-i-did-try-writing-a-screenplay-i-found-the/)

[Alan Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-moore/)

> [When I directed the third 'Insidious' film I loved it so much that I decided this is what I want to do from now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leigh-whannell/when-i-directed-the-third-insidious-film-i-loved-it-so-much-that-i/)

[Leigh Whannell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leigh-whannell/)

> [I guess the first screenplay of mine that was done was 'Falling in Love' with Robert DeNiro and Meryl Streep.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-cristofer/i-guess-the-first-screenplay-of-mine-that-was-done-was-falling-in/)

[Michael Cristofer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-cristofer/)

> [I never could have written the screenplay because I would have been forced to learn new software and I can't learn one more thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augusten-burroughs/i-never-could-have-written-the-screenplay-because-i-would-have-been/)

[Augusten Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augusten-burroughs/)

> [A screenplay is really an instruction manual, and it can be interpreted in any number of ways. The casting, the choice of location, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/a-screenplay-is-really-an-instruction-manual-and-it-can-be/)

[David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/)

> [I don't generate a storyline and then fill it out in the course of writing. The story actually generates in the course of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/i-don-t-generate-a-storyline-and-then-fill-it-out-in-the-course-of/)

[William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/)

> [“I put no stock in religion. By the word religion I have seen the lunacy of fanatics of every denomination be called the will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/i-put-no-stock-in-religion-by-the-word-religion-i-have-seen-the/)

[William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/)

> [All drama is conflict. Without conflict, there is no action. Without action, there is no character. Without character, there is no story. And without…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/syd-field/all-drama-is-conflict-without-conflict-there-is-no-action-without/)

[Syd Field](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/syd-field/)

> [During script narrations, if I feel the screenplay mood jumping abruptly, I tell the director, and they work on it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vijay-sethupathi/during-script-narrations-if-i-feel-the-screenplay-mood-jumping/)

[Vijay Sethupathi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vijay-sethupathi/)

> [I'm a film guy. I love it. When I read the screenplay, I knew that there would be no HD camera that could achieve…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deon-taylor/i-m-a-film-guy-i-love-it-when-i-read-the-screenplay-i-knew-that-there/)

Deon Taylor

> [If I could find the right kind of property, get tied in with the right movie, I'd love to be involved, but I just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-yankovic/if-i-could-find-the-right-kind-of-property-get-tied-in-with-the-right/)

[Al Yankovic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-yankovic/)

## More by Carrie Green

> [“Life is constantly nudging all of us to play bigger, to share our messages, to turn our ideas into reality, to chase our dreams.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-green/life-is-constantly-nudging-all-of-us-to-play-bigger-to-share-our/)

[Carrie Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-green/)

> [“Success begins with me. Success is inside me, and it’s something I have to create on purpose, day in, day out.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-green/success-begins-with-me-success-is-inside-me-and-it-s-something-i-have/)

[Carrie Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-green/)

> [“While the journey can sometimes seem hard, it’s actually simple. Success is all about doing a few things consistently. Seriously.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-green/while-the-journey-can-sometimes-seem-hard-it-s-actually-simple/)

[Carrie Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-green/)

> [“Who is she? She is brave, courageous, a real go-getter. She knows what she wants and she knows that she’ll make it happen. She…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-green/who-is-she-she-is-brave-courageous-a-real-go-getter-she-knows-what/)

[Carrie Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-green/)

> [“Success is all about doing a few things consistently. Seriously. So”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-green/success-is-all-about-doing-a-few-things-consistently-seriously-so/)

[Carrie Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-green/)

> [“Sometimes, you have to go wrong in order to learn how to go right. And it’s all OK. It’s part of the adventure.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-green/sometimes-you-have-to-go-wrong-in-order-to-learn-how-to-go-right-and/)

[Carrie Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-green/)

> [“The only thing standing between greatness and me, is me.’ WOODY ALLEN”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-green/the-only-thing-standing-between-greatness-and-me-is-me-woody-allen/)

[Carrie Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-green/)

> [“Success is not an accident; it’s something we have to create on purpose. And”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-green/success-is-not-an-accident-it-s-something-we-have-to-create-on/)

[Carrie Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-green/)

> [“Be thankful for what you have; you’ll end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don’t have, you will never, ever have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-green/be-thankful-for-what-you-have-you-ll-end-up-having-more-if-you-2/)

[Carrie Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-green/)

> [“I felt like I was supposed to be doing something bigger, something more meaningful, something… I didn’t bloody know. Every day, I wondered, ‘Why…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-green/i-felt-like-i-was-supposed-to-be-doing-something-bigger-something/)

[Carrie Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-green/)

> [“What” and “if” are two words as non-threatening as words can be, but put them together side by side and they have the power…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-green/what-and-if-are-two-words-as-non-threatening-as-words-can-be-but-put-2/)

[Carrie Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-green/)

> [“In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing, the next best thing is the wrong thing, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-green/in-any-moment-of-decision-the-best-thing-you-can-do-is-the-right-3/)

[Carrie Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-green/)

> [“Ultimately, we are here right now. We’re living, breathing people who have incredible opportunities at our fingertips. If that doesn’t scream at you, ‘SPEAK…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-green/ultimately-we-are-here-right-now-we-re-living-breathing-people-who/)

[Carrie Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-green/)

> [“If you do nothing, because you don’t know what the right thing to do is, you’ll end up drifting. Time will pass you by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-green/if-you-do-nothing-because-you-don-t-know-what-the-right-thing-to-do/)

[Carrie Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-green/)

> [“The voice would scare the wits out of me. It would make me think I wasn’t good enough. It would make me feel like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-green/the-voice-would-scare-the-wits-out-of-me-it-would-make-me-think-i/)

[Carrie Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-green/)

[Explore all 16 Carrie Green quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-green/)

## More Life quotes

> [Of all the people who have affected my life and influenced the choices I've made, none has been more important than my father. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teddy-atlas/of-all-the-people-who-have-affected-my-life-and-influenced-the/)

[Teddy Atlas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teddy-atlas/)

> [What sets worlds in motion is the interplay of differences, their attractions and repulsions. Life is plurality, death is uniformity. By suppressing differences and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/what-sets-worlds-in-motion-is-the-interplay-of-differences-their/)

[Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/)

> [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Life works most perfectly when a reciprocal love relationship is in place between man and God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-moore/life-works-most-perfectly-when-a-reciprocal-love-relationship-is-in/)

[Beth Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-moore/)

> [I value the experiences that come with life too much to sit by and not put my full effort into them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-miller/i-value-the-experiences-that-come-with-life-too-much-to-sit-by-and/)

[Jim Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-miller/)

> [Entertainment is a sacred pursuit when done well. When done well, it raises the quality of human life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-chabon/entertainment-is-a-sacred-pursuit-when-done-well-when-done-well-it/)

[Michael Chabon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-chabon/)

> [“There's more to life than you can see. Your sight is limited.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tammy-kling/there-s-more-to-life-than-you-can-see-your-sight-is-limited/)

[Tammy Kling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tammy-kling/)

> [“I've spent much of my life calling my intuition "something wrong with me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deanna-l-lawlis/i-ve-spent-much-of-my-life-calling-my-intuition-something-wrong-with/)

Deanna L. Lawlis

> [When you do things they're absolutely right at that time for you and it can always teach you something about yourself. You can take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kym-marsh/when-you-do-things-they-re-absolutely-right-at-that-time-for-you-and/)

[Kym Marsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kym-marsh/)

> [The only people who think the Internet is a calamity are people whose lives have been hurt by it; the only people who insist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-klosterman/the-only-people-who-think-the-internet-is-a-calamity-are-people-whose/)

[Chuck Klosterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-klosterman/)

> [The one thing that I keep learning over and over again is that I don't know nothing. I mean, that's my life lesson.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwayne-johnson/the-one-thing-that-i-keep-learning-over-and-over-again-is-that-i-don/)

[Dwayne Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwayne-johnson/)

> [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“The future is only an indifferent void no one cares about, but the past is filled with life, and its countenance is irritating, repellent,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/the-future-is-only-an-indifferent-void-no-one-cares-about-but-the/)

[Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/)

> [Two things revolutionised life: moving to the countryside and falling in love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-love/two-things-revolutionised-life-moving-to-the-countryside-and-falling/)

[Nick Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-love/)

> [But just remember, life without me would be even more unbearable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-rice/but-just-remember-life-without-me-would-be-even-more-unbearable/)

[Anne Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-rice/)

[Browse all 265,290 Life quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“What” and “if” are two words as non-threatening as words can be, but put them together side by side and they have the power to haunt you for the rest of your life.’ LETTERS TO JULIET, SCREENPLAY BY JOSÉ RIVERA AND TIM SULLIVAN”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Carrie Green"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-green/what-and-if-are-two-words-as-non-threatening-as-words-can-be-but-put/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Life"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-green/what-and-if-are-two-words-as-non-threatening-as-words-can-be-but-put/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ff/carrie-green-31316_life_what-and-if-are-two-words-as-non-threate_2078492.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ff/carrie-green-31316_life_what-and-if-are-two-words-as-non-threate_2078492.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ff/carrie-green-31316_life_what-and-if-are-two-words-as-non-threate_2078492.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“What” and “if” are two words as non-threatening as words can be, but put them together side by side and they…” — Carrie Green",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Carrie Green",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-green/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“What” and “if” are two words...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-green/what-and-if-are-two-words-as-non-threatening-as-words-can-be-but-put/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-green/what-and-if-are-two-words-as-non-threatening-as-words-can-be-but-put/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
