--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There was an emergency brake, but I’m…" description: "\"“There was an emergency brake, but I’m terrible at deciding what amounts to an emergency, most of all when I’m in the middle of an emergency, and I did..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ee/matt-bellassai-28768_emergency_there-was-an-emergency-brake-but-i-m-ter_533419.jpg" --- # There was an emergency brake, but I’m terrible at deciding… ![“There was an emergency brake, but I’m terrible at deciding what amounts to an emergency, most of all when I’m in the middle of an emergency, and I didn’t pull it.” quote by Matt Bellassai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ee/matt-bellassai-28768_emergency_there-was-an-emergency-brake-but-i-m-ter_533419.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ee/matt-bellassai-28768_emergency_there-was-an-emergency-brake-but-i-m-ter_533419.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ee/matt-bellassai-28768_emergency_there-was-an-emergency-brake-but-i-m-ter_533419.jpg) > ““There was an emergency brake, but I’m terrible at deciding what amounts to an emergency, most of all when I’m in the middle of an emergency, and I didn’t pull it.”” [Matt Bellassai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-bellassai/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. In emergencies, deciding what truly requires urgent action is hard, especially when already overwhelmed. **In simple terms:** Hard to know what’s truly urgent during a crisis. Key Takeaway Prioritize and act calmly. Themes decision‑making crisis stress self‑awareness prioritization Mood anxious determined Type practical motivational When to use this quote - workplace emergencies - personal health crises - disaster planning - time management Key Concepts Emergency response cognitive overload risk assessment Questions to Reflect On - How do you differentiate real emergencies from perceived ones? - What strategies help you act decisively under pressure? A Different Perspective Over‑analysis can delay necessary action. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Emergency](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/emergency/) ## Related quotes > [I'm always on the road, and I drive rental cars. Sometimes I don't know what's going on with the car, and I'll drive for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-hedberg/i-m-always-on-the-road-and-i-drive-rental-cars-sometimes-i-don-t-know/) [Mitch Hedberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-hedberg/) > [I bet a funny thing about driving a car off a cliff is, while you're in midair, you still hit those brakes! Hey, better…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-handey/i-bet-a-funny-thing-about-driving-a-car-off-a-cliff-is-while-you-re/) [Jack Handey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-handey/) > [In this country, you never pull the emergency brake, even when there is an emergency. It is imperative that the trains run on schedule.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-d-rrenmatt/in-this-country-you-never-pull-the-emergency-brake-even-when-there-is/) [Friedrich Durrenmatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-d-rrenmatt/) > [“We’re in a state of emergency Because we’re lighting fires All the way home”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-re-in-a-state-of-emergency-because-we-re-lighting-fires-all-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [We produce motor drive electronics; we produce cargo systems for large narrow-body and wide-body airplanes and, more importantly, the emergency escape chute that goes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-r-chenevert/we-produce-motor-drive-electronics-we-produce-cargo-systems-for-large/) [Louis R. Chenevert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-r-chenevert/) > [“This is a 911?” Adam said as he walked up. “You know you only text that when someone is dead or dying. You scared…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/this-is-a-911-adam-said-as-he-walked-up-you-know-you-only-text-that/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [You don't get time to meet your peers such as Dharmendra and Hema Malini very often. Award functions or other events are the only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amitabh-bachchan/you-don-t-get-time-to-meet-your-peers-such-as-dharmendra-and-hema/) [Amitabh Bachchan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amitabh-bachchan/) > [Where Democrats have a real toehold to criticize Republicans is that families still feel very financially fragile. About 2 in 5 adults would struggle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-lowrey/where-democrats-have-a-real-toehold-to-criticize-republicans-is-that/) [Annie Lowrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-lowrey/) > [Quite simply, when D.C. Metro riders - often the first to see a problem developing - try to notify first responders, they frequently are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-o-rielly/quite-simply-when-d-c-metro-riders-often-the-first-to-see-a-problem/) [Michael O'Rielly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-o-rielly/) > [Carry always your earplugs with you in case of emergency, like meeting with a politician!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/carry-always-your-earplugs-with-you-in-case-of-emergency-like-meeting/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [I started out wanting to be a fireman and would cry if my mother tried to take off my 'Emergency 51' hat, so she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-henry/i-started-out-wanting-to-be-a-fireman-and-would-cry-if-my-mother/) [Ed Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-henry/) > [It is critical that firefighters and emergency responders have the proper equipment, training and staffing to do their jobs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/conor-lamb/it-is-critical-that-firefighters-and-emergency-responders-have-the/) [Conor Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/conor-lamb/) > [In case of emergency , Break Dance!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikhil-saluja/in-case-of-emergency-break-dance/) [Nikhil Saluja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikhil-saluja/) > [“HH14 - Emergency Meals”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-wilson/hh14-emergency-meals/) [Benjamin Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-wilson/) > [Give me an impromptu 50-person guest list, a fold-out emergency trestle table and a pack of frozen vol-au-vent cases and, darlings, I will give…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-dent/give-me-an-impromptu-50-person-guest-list-a-fold-out-emergency/) [Grace Dent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-dent/) ## More by Matt Bellassai > [“I’m hopping on one foot and grasping at the curtains, because that’s what dressing rooms are these days, curtains instead of walls so you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-bellassai/i-m-hopping-on-one-foot-and-grasping-at-the-curtains-because-that-s/) [Matt Bellassai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-bellassai/) > [“her eyes widened ever so slightly as she got closer, in that way that adults’ eyes tend to widen when they realize things are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-bellassai/her-eyes-widened-ever-so-slightly-as-she-got-closer-in-that-way-that/) [Matt Bellassai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-bellassai/) > [“I wrote her a letter, because a letter felt like the easiest and also most dramatic way to do this kind of thing, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-bellassai/i-wrote-her-a-letter-because-a-letter-felt-like-the-easiest-and-also/) [Matt Bellassai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-bellassai/) > [“Listen. Don't sexually harass Brenda and also, the guy who wants 15 percent off that kitchen mixer he found in the sale bin can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-bellassai/listen-don-t-sexually-harass-brenda-and-also-the-guy-who-wants-15/) [Matt Bellassai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-bellassai/) > [“But we're talking about America here, where babies grow up to be even bigger babies, and all we really get along the way is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-bellassai/but-we-re-talking-about-america-here-where-babies-grow-up-to-be-even/) [Matt Bellassai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-bellassai/) > [“Eventually, of course, I grew up, and those fears went away. But the fun thing about fears is that they’re easily replaced with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-bellassai/eventually-of-course-i-grew-up-and-those-fears-went-away-but-the-fun/) [Matt Bellassai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-bellassai/) > [“Seriously, if teenage girls decide to organize one day, there’s literally nothing we can do to stop them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-bellassai/seriously-if-teenage-girls-decide-to-organize-one-day-there-s/) [Matt Bellassai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-bellassai/) > [“Is everything OK in there?” the sales associate is asking. “Do you need any help?” Which is not a question you want someone asking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-bellassai/is-everything-ok-in-there-the-sales-associate-is-asking-do-you-need/) [Matt Bellassai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-bellassai/) > [“Is everything all right in there?” (A question that someone only asks when everything is not all right in there.)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-bellassai/is-everything-all-right-in-there-a-question-that-someone-only-asks/) [Matt Bellassai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-bellassai/) > [“(I will never understand the thrill of fishing. At its very best, it’s an activity that ends with a vicious struggle to reel in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-bellassai/i-will-never-understand-the-thrill-of-fishing-at-its-very-best-it-s/) [Matt Bellassai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-bellassai/) > [“Babies are to be kept on silent at all times, and if one goes off in public, it shall be discarded.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-bellassai/babies-are-to-be-kept-on-silent-at-all-times-and-if-one-goes-off-in/) [Matt Bellassai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-bellassai/) > [“(Side note: I heard that dentist call one of his assistants a bitch one time, so I have zero regrets about vomiting all over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-bellassai/side-note-i-heard-that-dentist-call-one-of-his-assistants-a-bitch-one/) [Matt Bellassai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-bellassai/) > [“a fax machine was the monstrous bastard child of a phone, a printer, a scanner, a calculator, and the devil,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-bellassai/a-fax-machine-was-the-monstrous-bastard-child-of-a-phone-a-printer-a/) [Matt Bellassai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-bellassai/) > [“Here’s the thing that you learn almost immediately when you work in retail: the customer is absolutely never right.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-bellassai/here-s-the-thing-that-you-learn-almost-immediately-when-you-work-in/) [Matt Bellassai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-bellassai/) > [“On weekends, the local blacksmith would come to our house and use my hair to forge wrought iron into various decorative metal fixtures.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-bellassai/on-weekends-the-local-blacksmith-would-come-to-our-house-and-use-my/) [Matt Bellassai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-bellassai/) [Explore all 19 Matt Bellassai quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-bellassai/) ## More Emergency quotes > [Give me an impromptu 50-person guest list, a fold-out emergency trestle table and a pack of frozen vol-au-vent cases and, darlings, I will give…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-dent/give-me-an-impromptu-50-person-guest-list-a-fold-out-emergency/) [Grace Dent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-dent/) > [“HH14 - Emergency Meals”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-wilson/hh14-emergency-meals/) [Benjamin Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-wilson/) > [In case of emergency , Break Dance!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikhil-saluja/in-case-of-emergency-break-dance/) [Nikhil Saluja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikhil-saluja/) > [It is critical that firefighters and emergency responders have the proper equipment, training and staffing to do their jobs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/conor-lamb/it-is-critical-that-firefighters-and-emergency-responders-have-the/) [Conor Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/conor-lamb/) > [I started out wanting to be a fireman and would cry if my mother tried to take off my 'Emergency 51' hat, so she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-henry/i-started-out-wanting-to-be-a-fireman-and-would-cry-if-my-mother/) [Ed Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-henry/) > [Carry always your earplugs with you in case of emergency, like meeting with a politician!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/carry-always-your-earplugs-with-you-in-case-of-emergency-like-meeting/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [Quite simply, when D.C. Metro riders - often the first to see a problem developing - try to notify first responders, they frequently are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-o-rielly/quite-simply-when-d-c-metro-riders-often-the-first-to-see-a-problem/) [Michael O'Rielly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-o-rielly/) > [Where Democrats have a real toehold to criticize Republicans is that families still feel very financially fragile. About 2 in 5 adults would struggle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-lowrey/where-democrats-have-a-real-toehold-to-criticize-republicans-is-that/) [Annie Lowrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-lowrey/) > [You don't get time to meet your peers such as Dharmendra and Hema Malini very often. Award functions or other events are the only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amitabh-bachchan/you-don-t-get-time-to-meet-your-peers-such-as-dharmendra-and-hema/) [Amitabh Bachchan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amitabh-bachchan/) > [“This is a 911?” Adam said as he walked up. “You know you only text that when someone is dead or dying. You scared…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/this-is-a-911-adam-said-as-he-walked-up-you-know-you-only-text-that/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [We produce motor drive electronics; we produce cargo systems for large narrow-body and wide-body airplanes and, more importantly, the emergency escape chute that goes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-r-chenevert/we-produce-motor-drive-electronics-we-produce-cargo-systems-for-large/) [Louis R. Chenevert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-r-chenevert/) > [“We’re in a state of emergency Because we’re lighting fires All the way home”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-re-in-a-state-of-emergency-because-we-re-lighting-fires-all-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Safe care saves lives and saves money. Adverse events like high levels of infection, blood clots or falls in hospital, emergency readmissions and pressure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lansley/safe-care-saves-lives-and-saves-money-adverse-events-like-high-levels/) [Andrew Lansley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lansley/) > [For about 175,000 people, Chiranjeevi Blood Bank has supplied blood for free in times of emergency. This is because of the service-oriented attitude of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ram-charan/for-about-175-000-people-chiranjeevi-blood-bank-has-supplied-blood/) [Ram Charan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ram-charan/) > [“Why do I take a blade and slash my arms? Why do I drink myself into a stupor? Why do I swallow bottles of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-jamieson/why-do-i-take-a-blade-and-slash-my-arms-why-do-i-drink-myself-into-a/) [Alice Jamieson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-jamieson/) [Browse all 305 Emergency quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/emergency/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“There was an emergency brake, but I’m terrible at deciding what amounts to an emergency, most of all when I’m in the middle of an emergency, and I didn’t pull it.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Matt Bellassai" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-bellassai/there-was-an-emergency-brake-but-i-m-terrible-at-deciding-what/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Emergency" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-bellassai/there-was-an-emergency-brake-but-i-m-terrible-at-deciding-what/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ee/matt-bellassai-28768_emergency_there-was-an-emergency-brake-but-i-m-ter_533419.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ee/matt-bellassai-28768_emergency_there-was-an-emergency-brake-but-i-m-ter_533419.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ee/matt-bellassai-28768_emergency_there-was-an-emergency-brake-but-i-m-ter_533419.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“There was an emergency brake, but I’m terrible at deciding what amounts to an emergency, most of all when…” — Matt Bellassai", "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": "Matt Bellassai", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-bellassai/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“There was an emergency brake, but...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-bellassai/there-was-an-emergency-brake-but-i-m-terrible-at-deciding-what/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-bellassai/there-was-an-emergency-brake-but-i-m-terrible-at-deciding-what/#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 } } ] } ```