"A fear of the unknown keeps a lot of people from leaving bad situations"
About this Quote
The intent is plainspoken but pointed: a nudge toward action that doesn’t shame the person who’s frozen. Gifford isn’t diagnosing with clinical language; she’s translating a complicated pattern into talk-show clarity. The subtext carries empathy and a warning at once: if you keep waiting to feel “ready,” you might be confusing readiness with certainty, and certainty is a luxury change never offers.
Context matters because Gifford’s public persona is built on relatability and resilience, the kind that gets packaged into daytime wisdom. Coming from an entertainer rather than a therapist, the line reads like cultural permission: you’re allowed to admit the scariest part isn’t leaving the bad thing, it’s stepping into a life without a script. It also quietly critiques how communities reinforce inertia - families, workplaces, relationships can normalize dysfunction as long as it stays predictable. The quote works because it names the real villain: not the bad situation itself, but the story we tell ourselves about what comes after.
Quote Details
| Topic | Moving On |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
| Cite |
Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
Gifford, Kathie Lee. (2026, January 17). A fear of the unknown keeps a lot of people from leaving bad situations. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/a-fear-of-the-unknown-keeps-a-lot-of-people-from-62290/
Chicago Style
Gifford, Kathie Lee. "A fear of the unknown keeps a lot of people from leaving bad situations." FixQuotes. January 17, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/a-fear-of-the-unknown-keeps-a-lot-of-people-from-62290/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"A fear of the unknown keeps a lot of people from leaving bad situations." FixQuotes, 17 Jan. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/a-fear-of-the-unknown-keeps-a-lot-of-people-from-62290/. Accessed 5 Feb. 2026.












