--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: assassination. If the truthful answer is…" description: "\"“assassination. If the truthful answer is “No, what with all those Secret Service agents and special arrangements, I couldn’t get within a mile of the ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32b/gavin-de-becker-11681_secret-service_assassination-if-the-truthful-answer-is_1857509.jpg" --- # assassination. If the truthful answer is “No, what with… ![“assassination. If the truthful answer is “No, what with all those Secret Service agents and special arrangements, I couldn’t get within a mile of the guy,” the person cannot shoot the president. Of course, this isn’t a permanently reliable predictor, because ability belief can be influenced and…” quote by Gavin de Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32b/gavin-de-becker-11681_secret-service_assassination-if-the-truthful-answer-is_1857509.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32b/gavin-de-becker-11681_secret-service_assassination-if-the-truthful-answer-is_1857509.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32b/gavin-de-becker-11681_secret-service_assassination-if-the-truthful-answer-is_1857509.jpg) > ““assassination. If the truthful answer is “No, what with all those Secret Service agents and special arrangements, I couldn’t get within a mile of the guy,” the person cannot shoot the president. Of course, this isn’t a permanently reliable predictor, because ability belief can be influenced and changed. If, for example, I believe I could not possibly dive into the ocean from a two-hundred-foot-high cliff, then I cannot. But a coach might influence my belief. Encouragement, teaching of”” [Gavin de Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-de-becker/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Our perceived limits shape what we can achieve; belief can block or enable action, and external influence can shift those limits. **In simple terms:** Beliefs set limits; others can change them. Key Takeaway Question beliefs that limit you. Themes self‑efficacy belief influence Mood cautious reflective Type motivational psychological When to use this quote - personal goals - risk taking - coaching - performance - decision making Key Concepts psychology self‑fulfilling prophecy Questions to Reflect On - What belief holds you back? - Who can help you reframe it? A Different Perspective Beliefs may be deeply ingrained and resistant to change. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ability Belief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ability-belief-2477853/) [Assassination](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/assassination/) [Belief Influenced](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/belief-influenced-2477854/) [Influence Belief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/influence-belief-2477852/) [Secret service](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/secret-service/) [Shoot President](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shoot-president-2477855/) ## Related quotes > [There's never a dearth of reasons to shoot at the President.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/there-s-never-a-dearth-of-reasons-to-shoot-at-the-president/) [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) > [If we were real domestic terrorists, shoot, President Obama would be wanting to pal around with us, wouldn't he?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-palin/if-we-were-real-domestic-terrorists-shoot-president-obama-would-be/) [Sarah Palin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-palin/) > [As nearly two dozen Secret Service agents and members of the military were punished or fired following a 2012 prostitution scandal in Colombia, Obama…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-d-leonnig/as-nearly-two-dozen-secret-service-agents-and-members-of-the-military/) [Carol D. Leonnig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-d-leonnig/) > [“the Secret Service trains its agents to identify counterfeit bills by having them handle every possible kind of real REAL bill. Old ones. New…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-n-harris/the-secret-service-trains-its-agents-to-identify-counterfeit-bills-by/) [José N. Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-n-harris/) > [President Obama broke a world record after he reached a million followers on Twitter in just five hours. The only guys not following Obama?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-fallon/president-obama-broke-a-world-record-after-he-reached-a-million/) [Jimmy Fallon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-fallon/) > [People'd be like, "Oh, spending taxpayer money." It's like, "No, no, I actually I'm paying for all of this. The only thing I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/people-d-be-like-oh-spending-taxpayer-money-it-s-like-no-no-i/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [“9:12 P.M.—GROUND ZERO, WASHINGTON, D.C. Without warning, the capital of the United States was obliterated. At precisely 9:12 p.m. Eastern, in a millisecond of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-c-rosenberg/9-12-p-m-ground-zero-washington-d-c-without-warning-the-capital-of/) [Joel C. Rosenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-c-rosenberg/) > [It wouldn't be bad to have the Secret Service keeping an eye on my teenage daughter. I personally am not troubled by the fact…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marco-rubio/it-wouldn-t-be-bad-to-have-the-secret-service-keeping-an-eye-on-my/) [Marco Rubio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marco-rubio/) > [I challenge Hillary Clinton; take away your Secret Service. Take it away now! Take away your Secret Service! Dismiss them! Have no security around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-drudge/i-challenge-hillary-clinton-take-away-your-secret-service-take-it/) [Matt Drudge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-drudge/) > [I don't know if I'd want to be a Secret Service agent. In the movies, it's exciting and romantic and all that. Really, most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-quaid/i-don-t-know-if-i-d-want-to-be-a-secret-service-agent-in-the-movies/) [Dennis Quaid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-quaid/) > [A couple of years ago, I went to dinner with a very high-profile source, and out of respect, I put my phone down for,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristen-welker/a-couple-of-years-ago-i-went-to-dinner-with-a-very-high-profile/) [Kristen Welker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristen-welker/) > [“He looked like a cross between The Terminator and a secret service agent— a really hot secret service agent.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-humphreys/he-looked-like-a-cross-between-the-terminator-and-a-secret-service/) [Sara Humphreys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-humphreys/) > [“Who wants to serve in a police vice squad, spending hours peeking into men’s johns to detect acts of homosexuality? Who wants a job…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-w-watts/who-wants-to-serve-in-a-police-vice-squad-spending-hours-peeking-into/) [Alan W. Watts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-w-watts/) > [A gun in the hands of a secret service agent protecting our president isn't a bad word.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-lapierre/a-gun-in-the-hands-of-a-secret-service-agent-protecting-our-president/) [Wayne LaPierre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-lapierre/) > [To reform the Secret Service, the agency needs a director from outside the agency who will be immune from that culture and not beholden…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-kessler/to-reform-the-secret-service-the-agency-needs-a-director-from-outside/) [Ronald Kessler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-kessler/) ## More by Gavin de Becker > [“We want recognition, not accomplishment.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-de-becker/we-want-recognition-not-accomplishment/) [Gavin de Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-de-becker/) > [“Contrary to what people believe about the intuition of dogs, your intuitive abilities are vastly superior (and given that you add to your experience…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-de-becker/contrary-to-what-people-believe-about-the-intuition-of-dogs-your/) [Gavin de Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-de-becker/) > [“Generally speaking, rapport-building has a far better reputation than it deserves. It is perceived as admirable when in fact it is almost always done…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-de-becker/generally-speaking-rapport-building-has-a-far-better-reputation-than/) [Gavin de Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-de-becker/) > [“Emotional Intelligence, Daniel Goleman describes seven key abilities most beneficial for human beings: the ability to motivate ourselves, to persist against frustration, to delay…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-de-becker/emotional-intelligence-daniel-goleman-describes-seven-key-abilities/) [Gavin de Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-de-becker/) > [“Every day, people engaged in the clever defiance of their own intuition become, in mid-thought, victims of violence and accidents. So when we wonder…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-de-becker/every-day-people-engaged-in-the-clever-defiance-of-their-own/) [Gavin de Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-de-becker/) > [“niceness does not equal goodness. Niceness is a decision, a strategy of social interaction; it is not a character trait. People seeking to control…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-de-becker/niceness-does-not-equal-goodness-niceness-is-a-decision-a-strategy-of/) [Gavin de Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-de-becker/) > [I encourage people to remember that "no" is a complete sentence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-de-becker/i-encourage-people-to-remember-that-no-is-a-complete-sentence/) [Gavin de Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-de-becker/) > [“When young, they are attached by heavy chains to large stakes driven deep into the ground. They pull and yank and strain and struggle,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-de-becker/when-young-they-are-attached-by-heavy-chains-to-large-stakes-driven/) [Gavin de Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-de-becker/) > [“Every human behavior can be explained by what precedes it, but that does not excuse it,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-de-becker/every-human-behavior-can-be-explained-by-what-precedes-it-but-that/) [Gavin de Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-de-becker/) > [“The institutions of psychiatry, law enforcement, and government have proved that no matter what your resources, you cannot reliably control the conduct of crazy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-de-becker/the-institutions-of-psychiatry-law-enforcement-and-government-have/) [Gavin de Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-de-becker/) > [“The institutions of psychiatry, law enforcement, and goverment have proved that no matter what our resources, you cannot reliable control the conduct of CRAZY…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-de-becker/the-institutions-of-psychiatry-law-enforcement-and-goverment-have/) [Gavin de Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-de-becker/) > [“Conditional rejections are not rejections—they are discussions.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-de-becker/conditional-rejections-are-not-rejections-they-are-discussions/) [Gavin de Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-de-becker/) > [“A Natural History of the Senses, author Diane Ackerman says, “The brain is a good stagehand. It gets on with its work while we’re…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-de-becker/a-natural-history-of-the-senses-author-diane-ackerman-says-the-brain/) [Gavin de Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-de-becker/) > [“Unlike when people lived in small communities and could not escape their past behavior, we live in an age of anonymous one-time encounters, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-de-becker/unlike-when-people-lived-in-small-communities-and-could-not-escape/) [Gavin de Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-de-becker/) > [“We must learn and then teach our children that niceness does not equal goodness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-de-becker/we-must-learn-and-then-teach-our-children-that-niceness-does-not/) [Gavin de Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-de-becker/) [Explore all 58 Gavin de Becker quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-de-becker/) ## More Assassination quotes > [If it comes to a question of law, the charges they brought against me - the Espionage Act - is called the quintessential political…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/if-it-comes-to-a-question-of-law-the-charges-they-brought-against-me/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [ We have the ability to take him \[President of Venezuela, Hugo Chavez\] out, and I think the time has come that we exercise that… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-robertson/we-have-the-ability-to-take-him-president-of-venezuela-hugo-chavez/) [Pat Robertson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-robertson/) > [“Assassination is murder with a touch more precision. Brother Sim is precise.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-lawrence/assassination-is-murder-with-a-touch-more-precision-brother-sim-is/) [Mark Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-lawrence/) > [Strange, (is it not?) that battles, martyrs, blood, even assassination should so condense - perhaps only really lastingly condense - a Nationality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/strange-is-it-not-that-battles-martyrs-blood-even-assassination/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [In modern day academia, secretly assassinating your peers is not necessarily performed the same way it was in king Tarquins day. The growth in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-spacey/in-modern-day-academia-secretly-assassinating-your-peers-is-not/) [Simon Spacey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-spacey/) > [The Romans have provided a lot of writers with a model for various interstellar empires, of course, and no wonder. The Roman Empire is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-leckie/the-romans-have-provided-a-lot-of-writers-with-a-model-for-various/) [Ann Leckie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-leckie/) > [We know from Talmadge Hayer, one of the men who carried out the assassination, who was shot by Ruben X as he tried to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manning-marable/we-know-from-talmadge-hayer-one-of-the-men-who-carried-out-the/) [Manning Marable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manning-marable/) > [Assassination's the fastest way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moliere/assassination-s-the-fastest-way/) [Moliere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moliere/) > [“He also had a condition that was referred to as granulated eyelids and it caused him to blink more than usual, as if he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-hansen/he-also-had-a-condition-that-was-referred-to-as-granulated-eyelids/) [Ron Hansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-hansen/) > [“Hundreds of political assassinations related to minority races, labor leaders and spokesmen against fascism have taken place in the U.S. since World War II.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-brussell/hundreds-of-political-assassinations-related-to-minority-races-labor/) [Mae Brussell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mae-brussell/) > [However, after the assassination of Salman Taseer, the killer of Salman Taseer was welcomed by the religious fanatics. And they showered rose petals on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shahbaz-bhatti/however-after-the-assassination-of-salman-taseer-the-killer-of-salman/) [Shahbaz Bhatti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shahbaz-bhatti/) > [There is not a single celebrated Southern name in any of the departments of human industry except those of war, assassination, lynching, murder, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/there-is-not-a-single-celebrated-southern-name-in-any-of-the/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [I think that the implication of King's assassination has not been fully appreciated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-louis-gates/i-think-that-the-implication-of-king-s-assassination-has-not-been/) [Henry Louis Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-louis-gates/) > [The Senate has been debased to the level of a forum of hate and character assassination sheltered by the shield of congressional immunity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-chase-smith/the-senate-has-been-debased-to-the-level-of-a-forum-of-hate-and/) [Margaret Chase Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-chase-smith/) > [A deep, black grief gripped Robert Kennedy in the months following his brother's assassination. He lost weight, fell into melancholy silences, wore his brother's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thurston-clarke/a-deep-black-grief-gripped-robert-kennedy-in-the-months-following-his/) [Thurston Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thurston-clarke/) [Browse all 264 Assassination quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/assassination/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“assassination. If the truthful answer is “No, what with all those Secret Service agents and special arrangements, I couldn’t get within a mile of the guy,” the person cannot shoot the president. Of course, this isn’t a permanently reliable predictor, because ability belief can be influenced and changed. If, for example, I believe I could not possibly dive into the ocean from a two-hundred-foot-high cliff, then I cannot. But a coach might influence my belief. 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