--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I ran like a cheetah - well, like a…" description: "\"I ran like a cheetah - well, like a cheetah that smoked too much.\" — John Green" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/687/john-green-12_cheetahs_i-ran-like-a-cheetah-well-like-a-cheetah_668315.jpg" --- # I ran like a cheetah - well, like a cheetah that smoked… ![“I ran like a cheetah - well, like a cheetah that smoked too much.” quote by John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/687/john-green-12_cheetahs_i-ran-like-a-cheetah-well-like-a-cheetah_668315.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/687/john-green-12_cheetahs_i-ran-like-a-cheetah-well-like-a-cheetah_668315.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/687/john-green-12_cheetahs_i-ran-like-a-cheetah-well-like-a-cheetah_668315.jpg) > “I ran like a cheetah - well, like a cheetah that smoked too much.” [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker humorously compares their speed to a cheetah, then adds a twist that the cheetah smokes, implying a paradox of natural ability and self‑destructive habits. **In simple terms:** Speed meets self‑destruction. Key Takeaway Recognize and curb harmful habits that undermine talent. Themes humor self‑awareness paradox Mood playful reflective Type anecdotal humorous When to use this quote - sports - personal growth - health - workplace Key Concepts human nature habit formation performance Questions to Reflect On - What habit is slowing you down? - How can you keep speed without self‑sabotage? A Different Perspective Even fast performers can be limited by bad habits. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cheetahs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cheetahs/) [Smoking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smoking/) ## Related quotes > [A hippie is someone who looks like Tarzan, walks like Jane and smells like Cheetah.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/a-hippie-is-someone-who-looks-like-tarzan-walks-like-jane-and-smells/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [I used to always say, 'Cheetahs don't stretch.' And I look at myself as a cheetah.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/desean-jackson/i-used-to-always-say-cheetahs-don-t-stretch-and-i-look-at-myself-as-a/) [DeSean Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/desean-jackson/) > [I want to show off how beautiful my subjects are, whether its a cheetah or a live girl or two of them together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bunny-yeager/i-want-to-show-off-how-beautiful-my-subjects-are-whether-its-a/) [Bunny Yeager](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bunny-yeager/) > [I don't think my moped could outrun a cheetah.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-messinger/i-don-t-think-my-moped-could-outrun-a-cheetah/) [Jonathan Messinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-messinger/) > [What are you?” I said irritably. “In the Serengeti, Ms. Lane, I would be the cheetah. I’m stronger, smarter, faster, and hungrier than everything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-marie-moning/what-are-you-i-said-irritably-in-the-serengeti-ms-lane-i-would-be-the/) [Karen Marie Moning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-marie-moning/) > [Why should I stretch? Does a cheetah stretch before it chases its prey?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-griffey-jr-2/why-should-i-stretch-does-a-cheetah-stretch-before-it-chases-its-prey/) [Ken Griffey, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-griffey-jr-2/) > [To me, fast food is when a cheetah eats an antelope.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-carlin/to-me-fast-food-is-when-a-cheetah-eats-an-antelope/) [George Carlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-carlin/) > [I'm a street walking cheetah with a heart full of napalm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iggy-pop/i-m-a-street-walking-cheetah-with-a-heart-full-of-napalm/) [Iggy Pop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iggy-pop/) > [Filming in India was one big adventure. For 'The Cheetah Girls', we were in Mumbai for two weeks, then Rajasthan for six weeks. Every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-steger/filming-in-india-was-one-big-adventure-for-the-cheetah-girls-we-were/) [Michael Steger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-steger/) > [I saw this bloke chatting up a cheetah. He was trying to pull a fast one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-vine/i-saw-this-bloke-chatting-up-a-cheetah-he-was-trying-to-pull-a-fast/) [Tim Vine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-vine/) > [“Do I really run like that?" (Kitty) "Yup," Martini confirmed. "Don't worry, I think it's sexy." "Thank God. I think I look like a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gini-koch/do-i-really-run-like-that-kitty-yup-martini-confirmed-don-t-worry-i/) [Gini Koch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gini-koch/) > [“In a matter of a moment the amount of sand in the upper part of the hour-glass had dwindled dramatically, the tiny grains were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-saragamo/in-a-matter-of-a-moment-the-amount-of-sand-in-the-upper-part-of-the/) Jose Saragamo > [When the ancestors of the cheetah first began pursuing the ancestors of the gazelle, neither of them could run as fast as they can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/when-the-ancestors-of-the-cheetah-first-began-pursuing-the-ancestors/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“Within a few months Mitch Bush, head veterinarian at the National Zoo, and David Wildt, a young reproductive physiologist working as a postdoctoral fellow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-j-o-brien/within-a-few-months-mitch-bush-head-veterinarian-at-the-national-zoo/) [Stephen J. O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-j-o-brien/) > [“The woman laughed again. She was the loudest person in the cave. Eena wondered if perhaps she was talking to a female Ghengat. Curiosity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richelle-e-goodrich/the-woman-laughed-again-she-was-the-loudest-person-in-the-cave-eena/) [Richelle E. Goodrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richelle-e-goodrich/) ## More by John Green > [Issac:"I dislike living in a world without Augustus Waters." Computer: "I don't understand-" Issac: "Me neither. Pause](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/issac-i-dislike-living-in-a-world-without-augustus-waters-computer-i/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“I just want to stay away from people and read books and think”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-just-want-to-stay-away-from-people-and-read-books-and-think/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [She smiled with all the delight of a kid on Christmas morning and said, "Y'all smoke to enjoy it. I smoke to die." -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/she-smiled-with-all-the-delight-of-a-kid-on-christmas-morning-and/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [A Margo for each of us--and each more mirror than window.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/a-margo-for-each-of-us-and-each-more-mirror-than-window/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“No one ever says good-bye unless they want to see you again.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/no-one-ever-says-good-bye-unless-they-want-to-see-you-again/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Neither novels or their readers benefit from any attempts to divine whether any facts hide inside a story. Such efforts attack the very idea…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/neither-novels-or-their-readers-benefit-from-any-attempts-to-divine/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“Traffic's not too bad on Sheridan, and I'm cornering the car like it's the Indy 500, and we're listening to my favorite NMH song,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/traffic-s-not-too-bad-on-sheridan-and-i-m-cornering-the-car-like-it-s/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“Praise God for good nurses.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/praise-god-for-good-nurses/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [So I was ugly. I was never fat, really, and I never wore headgear or had zits or anything. But I was ugly. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/so-i-was-ugly-i-was-never-fat-really-and-i-never-wore-headgear-or-had/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Nothing has ever looked like that ever in all of human history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/nothing-has-ever-looked-like-that-ever-in-all-of-human-history/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“said to him quietly, as if I couldn’t hear or something. Dad was about to respond but I interrupted.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/said-to-him-quietly-as-if-i-couldn-t-hear-or-something-dad-was-about/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [I believe humans have souls, and I believe in the conservation of souls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-believe-humans-have-souls-and-i-believe-in-the-conservation-of-souls/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“He was hot. A nonhotboy stares at you relentlessly and it is, at best, awkward and, at worst, a form of assault. But a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/he-was-hot-a-nonhotboy-stares-at-you-relentlessly-and-it-is-at-best/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [I think if you keep the box closed long enough you do kill the cat, actually.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-think-if-you-keep-the-box-closed-long-enough-you-do-kill-the-cat/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Imagining the future is a kind of nostalgia. (...) You spend your whole life stuck in the labyrinth, thinking about how you'll escape it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/imagining-the-future-is-a-kind-of-nostalgia-you-spend-your-whole-life/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) [Explore all 3,614 John Green quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) ## More Cheetahs quotes > [I used to always say, 'Cheetahs don't stretch.' And I look at myself as a cheetah.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/desean-jackson/i-used-to-always-say-cheetahs-don-t-stretch-and-i-look-at-myself-as-a/) [DeSean Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/desean-jackson/) > [Filming in India was one big adventure. For 'The Cheetah Girls', we were in Mumbai for two weeks, then Rajasthan for six weeks. Every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-steger/filming-in-india-was-one-big-adventure-for-the-cheetah-girls-we-were/) [Michael Steger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-steger/) > [These magnificent species of Africa - elephants, rhino, lions, leopards, cheetah, the great apes (Africa has four of the world's five great apes) -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-bergin/these-magnificent-species-of-africa-elephants-rhino-lions-leopards/) [Patrick Bergin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-bergin/) > [There are some girls who are turned on by my body, and some others who are turned off. but for the majority i just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-schwarzenegger/there-are-some-girls-who-are-turned-on-by-my-body-and-some-others-who/) [Arnold Schwarzenegger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-schwarzenegger/) > [Every culture from the Egyptians to the Mayans to the American Indians to the Bedouins created bestiaries that enabled them to express their relationship…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-colbert/every-culture-from-the-egyptians-to-the-mayans-to-the-american/) [Gregory Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-colbert/) > [I'm a street walking cheetah with a heart full of napalm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iggy-pop/i-m-a-street-walking-cheetah-with-a-heart-full-of-napalm/) [Iggy Pop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iggy-pop/) > [I think we have got to start again and go right back to first principles. The argument I shall advance, surprising as it may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/i-think-we-have-got-to-start-again-and-go-right-back-to-first/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [In the year 2007, seals, otters, lions, turtles, frogs, apes, snakes, butterflies, polar bears, cheetahs, whales are disappearing along with their variously furnished homes:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eban-goodstein/in-the-year-2007-seals-otters-lions-turtles-frogs-apes-snakes/) [Eban Goodstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eban-goodstein/) > [Cheetah genes cooperate with cheetah genes but not with camel genes, and vice versa. This is not because cheetah genes, even in the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/cheetah-genes-cooperate-with-cheetah-genes-but-not-with-camel-genes/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [I bet when cheetahs race and one of them cheats, the other one goes, Bro, you're such a cheetah! And they laugh & eat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohammed-bhat/i-bet-when-cheetahs-race-and-one-of-them-cheats-the-other-one-goes/) [Mohammed Bhat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohammed-bhat/) > [“Fred Astaire. Not a handsome man. He said himself he couldn’t sing. He was balding his whole life. He danced like a cheetah runs,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-barry/fred-astaire-not-a-handsome-man-he-said-himself-he-couldn-t-sing-he/) [Sebastian Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-barry/) > [The 'Cheetah Generation' refers to the new and angry generation of young African graduates and professionals, who look at African issues and problems from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-ayittey/the-cheetah-generation-refers-to-the-new-and-angry-generation-of/) [George Ayittey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-ayittey/) > [The more I think about it, the more there is to be said for the sloth. He sleeps fifteen to eighteen hours a day…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erma-bombeck/the-more-i-think-about-it-the-more-there-is-to-be-said-for-the-sloth/) [Erma Bombeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erma-bombeck/) > [Take, for example, the African jungle, the home of the cheetah. On whom does the cheetah prey? The old, the sick, the wounded, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-gordon-liddy/take-for-example-the-african-jungle-the-home-of-the-cheetah-on-whom/) [G. Gordon Liddy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-gordon-liddy/) > [I can give or take elephants; I never can find the cheetah-but the zebras captivate me. They'd be one of the few things that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/i-can-give-or-take-elephants-i-never-can-find-the-cheetah-but-the/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) [Browse all 34 Cheetahs quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cheetahs/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I ran like a cheetah - well, like a cheetah that smoked too much.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John Green" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-ran-like-a-cheetah-well-like-a-cheetah-that-smoked-too-much/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Cheetahs" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-ran-like-a-cheetah-well-like-a-cheetah-that-smoked-too-much/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/687/john-green-12_cheetahs_i-ran-like-a-cheetah-well-like-a-cheetah_668315.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/687/john-green-12_cheetahs_i-ran-like-a-cheetah-well-like-a-cheetah_668315.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/687/john-green-12_cheetahs_i-ran-like-a-cheetah-well-like-a-cheetah_668315.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I ran like a cheetah - well, like a cheetah that smoked too much.” — John 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": "John Green", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I ran like a cheetah -...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-ran-like-a-cheetah-well-like-a-cheetah-that-smoked-too-much/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-ran-like-a-cheetah-well-like-a-cheetah-that-smoked-too-much/#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 } } ] } ```