“Appeasement is feeding the alligator and hoping he eats you last.”

—Sir Winston Churchill, Former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom

Photo from Flickr by Tamable the Jaguar

The political definition of appeasement is “a diplomatic policy of making various forms of concessions to an enemy power in order to avoid conflict.” A notable example was between Great Britain and Nazi Germany in the late 1930s.

A more general definition involves yielding or conceding to the demands of a nation, group or person in a conciliatory effort, sometimes at the expense of justice or other principles.

Today, I suggest that you examine where and at what potential benefit or cost do you see examples of appeasement in your professional or personal lives.

EXERCISE:

Determine where you are simply feeding the alligators in your world, hoping they will eat you last. In what situations would a courageous, principled stance be the way to go?