Not verified Quotes

Context

This line is commonly believed to have been spoken by Thomas Edison, as told in Harper's Monthly Magazine (1932).

You're chillin' on your bed with your headphones on, when suddenly, an idea pops into your head. It's brilliant. You're a genius. See how much effort that took? One percent. And when you wake up the next morning, is the idea still brilliant? Yes?

Yes!

Now how do you take that idea from inspiration to real-world application? Edison is giving you a little forewarning with this quote; you'll have to dial back your personal life and focus on work, work, work. That's the 99 percent.

There is some doubt, though, on whether or not Edison said these words exactly. In an 1898 issue of Ladies Home Journal, he used the ratio of 2 to 98, and in a 1901 Idaho newspaper article, he used the ratio of 1 to 99. But the most often cited reference is to a 1932 article in Harper's Monthly Magazine that said, without providing any proof, that Edison gave this quote around 1902ish. So, as with all antiques—without provenance, ya got nothin'.

Where you've heard it

You'll hear this at the gym. "I was so inspired to work out I left a whole pool of perspiration on that machine." Ew. Makes you want to skip that treadmill for the one beside it, right?

Additional Notable References:

• In case you need help imagining what Edison sounded like when he (maybe) said this, here you go.
• Tips for the 99% part.

Pretentious Factor

If you were to drop this quote at a dinner party, would you get an in-unison "awww" or would everyone roll their eyes and never invite you back? Here it is, on a scale of 1-10.

Good quote for a motivational speech, not so much for a dinner party. If the speaker is one of those 99 percent-ers, congratulate them for making it to the party at all, and hope their antiperspirant is industrial strength.