--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A speculator is a man who, if he dies at…" description: "\"A speculator is a man who, if he dies at the right time, has a rich widow.\" — Christina Stead" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dbc/christina-stead-2325_customer_a-speculator-is-a-man-who-if-he-dies-at_196269.png" --- # A speculator is a man who, if he dies at the right time… ![“A speculator is a man who, if he dies at the right time, has a rich widow.” quote by Christina Stead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dbc/christina-stead-2325_customer_a-speculator-is-a-man-who-if-he-dies-at_196269.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dbc/christina-stead-2325_customer_a-speculator-is-a-man-who-if-he-dies-at_196269.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dbc/christina-stead-2325_customer_a-speculator-is-a-man-who-if-he-dies-at_196269.png) > “A speculator is a man who, if he dies at the right time, has a rich widow.” [Christina Stead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-stead/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Speculation can be a gamble where timing determines wealth, sometimes leaving a widow enriched after a death. **In simple terms:** Speculators profit if timing aligns, even after death. Key Takeaway Timing is crucial in risk‑taking. Themes risk timing wealth Mood critical thoughtful Type ethical philosophical When to use this quote - investment decisions - insurance planning - estate planning Key Concepts economics probability theory Questions to Reflect On - Is it ethical to profit from others’ misfortune? - How does timing affect your risk tolerance? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Customer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/customer/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Widow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/widow/) [Widows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/widows/) ## Related quotes > [A speculator is a man who, if he dies at the right time, has arich widow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-stead/a-speculator-is-a-man-who-if-he-dies-at-the-right-time-has-arich-widow/) [Christina Stead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-stead/) > [A speculator is a man who observes the future, and acts before it occurs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-baruch/a-speculator-is-a-man-who-observes-the-future-and-acts-before-it/) [Bernard Baruch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-baruch/) > [I've always thought that the most perfect fate which could befall any woman would be to be born a rich widow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/faith-baldwin/i-ve-always-thought-that-the-most-perfect-fate-which-could-befall-any/) [Faith Baldwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/faith-baldwin/) > [... a speculator is one who runs risks of which he is aware and an investor is one who runs risks of which he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-maynard-keynes/a-speculator-is-one-who-runs-risks-of-which-he-is-aware-and-an/) [John Maynard Keynes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-maynard-keynes/) > [The speculator is not an investor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-lefevre/the-speculator-is-not-an-investor/) [Edwin Lefevre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-lefevre/) > [Speculators often prosper through ignorance; it is a cliché that in a roaring bull market knowledge is superfluous and experience is a handicap. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-graham/speculators-often-prosper-through-ignorance-it-is-a-clich-that-in-a/) [Benjamin Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-graham/) > [A speculator gambles that a stock will go up in price because somebody else will pay even more for it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-graham/a-speculator-gambles-that-a-stock-will-go-up-in-price-because/) [Benjamin Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-graham/) > [Speculator: One who bought stocks that went down.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-forbes/speculator-one-who-bought-stocks-that-went-down/) [Malcolm Forbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-forbes/) > [Just remember, without discipline, a clear strategy, and a concise plan, the speculator will fall into all the emotional pitfalls of the market -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-lauriston-livermore/just-remember-without-discipline-a-clear-strategy-and-a-concise-plan/) [Jesse Lauriston Livermore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-lauriston-livermore/) > [A prudent speculator never argues with the tape. Markets are never wrong, opinions often are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-lauriston-livermore/a-prudent-speculator-never-argues-with-the-tape-markets-are-never/) [Jesse Lauriston Livermore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-lauriston-livermore/) > [If you're an investor, you're looking on what the asset is going to do, if you're a speculator, you're commonly focusing on what the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-buffett/if-you-re-an-investor-you-re-looking-on-what-the-asset-is-going-to-do/) [Warren Buffett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-buffett/) > [Clergyman: A ticket speculator outside the gates of Heaven.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/clergyman-a-ticket-speculator-outside-the-gates-of-heaven/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [Speculation is a hard and trying business, and a speculator must be on the job all the time or he'll soon have no job…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-lauriston-livermore/speculation-is-a-hard-and-trying-business-and-a-speculator-must-be-on/) [Jesse Lauriston Livermore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-lauriston-livermore/) > [The most realistic distinction between the investor and the speculator is found in their attitude toward stock-market movements. The speculator's primary interest lies in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-graham/the-most-realistic-distinction-between-the-investor-and-the/) [Benjamin Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-graham/) > [Ask yourself: Am I an investor, or am I a speculator? An investor is a person who owns business and holds it forever and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-c-bogle/ask-yourself-am-i-an-investor-or-am-i-a-speculator-an-investor-is-a/) [John C. Bogle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-c-bogle/) ## More by Christina Stead > [Charm is a cunning self-forgetfulness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-stead/charm-is-a-cunning-self-forgetfulness/) [Christina Stead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-stead/) > [“It is splendid—to be—loved! If we only—can—live up—to the thoughts—of us—by them—that love us!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-stead/it-is-splendid-to-be-loved-if-we-only-can-live-up-to-the-thoughts-of/) [Christina Stead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-stead/) > [“I’m afraid to write to your father: he criticizes my spelling,” sneered Henny. “And it appears I know nothing about geography. Hang his stuck-up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-stead/i-m-afraid-to-write-to-your-father-he-criticizes-my-spelling-sneered/) [Christina Stead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-stead/) > [“you do not know what she did not only to me but to the little children. She has tortured them, turned them against me,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-stead/you-do-not-know-what-she-did-not-only-to-me-but-to-the-little/) [Christina Stead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-stead/) > [To me, all the juice of a book is in an unpublished manuscript, and the published book is like a dead tree - just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-stead/to-me-all-the-juice-of-a-book-is-in-an-unpublished-manuscript-and-the/) [Christina Stead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-stead/) > [“Hair under the arms, for example, he said, should never be removed, for nature had put it there, and evidently it had some use.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-stead/hair-under-the-arms-for-example-he-said-should-never-be-removed-for/) [Christina Stead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-stead/) > [About myself - no. I'm unimportant, an observer, a wandering animal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-stead/about-myself-no-i-m-unimportant-an-observer-a-wandering-animal/) [Christina Stead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-stead/) > [“A month before our marriage, I knew it would be a well-nigh hopeless union, yet so great is a young man’s idea of what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-stead/a-month-before-our-marriage-i-knew-it-would-be-a-well-nigh-hopeless/) [Christina Stead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-stead/) > [“For a moment, after years of scamping, she felt the dread power of wifehood; they were locked in each other’s grasp till the end—the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-stead/for-a-moment-after-years-of-scamping-she-felt-the-dread-power-of/) [Christina Stead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-stead/) > [Socialist writers are made of sterner stuff than those who only let their characters steeplechase through trouble in order to comeout first in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-stead/socialist-writers-are-made-of-sterner-stuff-than-those-who-only-let/) [Christina Stead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-stead/) > [“Don’t call humans rats—rats are superior.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-stead/don-t-call-humans-rats-rats-are-superior/) [Christina Stead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-stead/) > [“Whatever men say, women know;”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-stead/whatever-men-say-women-know/) [Christina Stead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-stead/) > [“she is never more herself than when she destroys herself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-stead/she-is-never-more-herself-than-when-she-destroys-herself/) [Christina Stead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-stead/) > [Each Australian is a Ulysses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-stead/each-australian-is-a-ulysses/) [Christina Stead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-stead/) > [A dominant race did not lie, because it had the whip.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-stead/a-dominant-race-did-not-lie-because-it-had-the-whip/) [Christina Stead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-stead/) [Explore all 171 Christina Stead quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-stead/) ## More Customer quotes > [“Start a business, not a startup”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/start-a-business-not-a-startup/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Amongst the financial Twitterati, the term 'muppets' has come to describe any client used and abused by some financial predator. I've adopted the term…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-ritholtz/amongst-the-financial-twitterati-the-term-muppets-has-come-to/) [Barry Ritholtz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-ritholtz/) > [Many early-stage entrepreneurs make one simple mistake: Describing this 'big picture' in vague concepts and words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunil-nagaraj/many-early-stage-entrepreneurs-make-one-simple-mistake-describing/) [Sunil Nagaraj](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunil-nagaraj/) > [The purpose of this book is to supply, in the form suitable for laymen, guidance in the adoption and execution of an investment policy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-graham/the-purpose-of-this-book-is-to-supply-in-the-form-suitable-for-laymen/) [Benjamin Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-graham/) > [Don't think OF the market. Think AS the market.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-fishman/don-t-think-of-the-market-think-as-the-market/) Michael Fishman > [If Wall Street crashes, does Main Street follow? Not necessarily.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-bernanke/if-wall-street-crashes-does-main-street-follow-not-necessarily/) [Ben Bernanke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-bernanke/) > [The exact details of how you practice value investing will vary investor to investor, but the fundamental principle of scouring the world, looking for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whitney-tilson/the-exact-details-of-how-you-practice-value-investing-will-vary/) [Whitney Tilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whitney-tilson/) > [The best way to hold customers is to constantly figure out how to give them more for less.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-kotler/the-best-way-to-hold-customers-is-to-constantly-figure-out-how-to/) [Philip Kotler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-kotler/) > [Perhaps the most important reason to be skeptical of government inflation numbers is that the government, like a fox campaigning to guard a hen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-schiff/perhaps-the-most-important-reason-to-be-skeptical-of-government/) [Peter Schiff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-schiff/) > [When the dollar collapses, it's not doing it in a vacuum. If the dollar loses value, it's doing so relative to some other currency.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-schiff/when-the-dollar-collapses-it-s-not-doing-it-in-a-vacuum-if-the-dollar/) [Peter Schiff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-schiff/) > [Corporations invest in sophisticated CRM, or Customer Relationship Management, programs to effectively oversee their relationship with their customers at every point during the buying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marc-ostrofsky/corporations-invest-in-sophisticated-crm-or-customer-relationship/) [Marc Ostrofsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marc-ostrofsky/) > [I believe confusion is good. Worldwide market leaders gain when there is confusion in the market.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/subhash-chandra/i-believe-confusion-is-good-worldwide-market-leaders-gain-when-there/) [Subhash Chandra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/subhash-chandra/) > [Damn inflation, full speed ahead,' Greenspan has said in both action and word. I think an investor should believe him and invest accordingly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gross/damn-inflation-full-speed-ahead-greenspan-has-said-in-both-action-and/) [Bill Gross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gross/) > [“When companies get big, they devote most of their care and feeding to the business that got them big. This is as it should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-schmidt/when-companies-get-big-they-devote-most-of-their-care-and-feeding-to/) [Eric Schmidt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-schmidt/) > [“Salesmanship is usually the art of making it the prospect’s problem, the salesperson’s need or desire to earn money.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mokokoma-mokhonoana/salesmanship-is-usually-the-art-of-making-it-the-prospect-s-problem/) [Mokokoma Mokhonoana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mokokoma-mokhonoana/) [Browse all 9,257 Customer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/customer/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "A speculator is a man who, if he dies at the right time, has a rich widow.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Christina Stead" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-stead/a-speculator-is-a-man-who-if-he-dies-at-the-right-time-has-a-rich/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Customer" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-stead/a-speculator-is-a-man-who-if-he-dies-at-the-right-time-has-a-rich/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dbc/christina-stead-2325_customer_a-speculator-is-a-man-who-if-he-dies-at_196269.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dbc/christina-stead-2325_customer_a-speculator-is-a-man-who-if-he-dies-at_196269.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dbc/christina-stead-2325_customer_a-speculator-is-a-man-who-if-he-dies-at_196269.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“A speculator is a man who, if he dies at the right time, has a rich widow.” — Christina Stead", "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": "Christina Stead", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-stead/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "A speculator is a man who,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-stead/a-speculator-is-a-man-who-if-he-dies-at-the-right-time-has-a-rich/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-stead/a-speculator-is-a-man-who-if-he-dies-at-the-right-time-has-a-rich/#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 } } ] } ```