Henry Ford? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: The business titan Henry Ford apparently said something like: The industrialist should endeavor to make the best quality goods and pay the highest wages possible. Would you please help me to find the precise phrasing and an accurate citation? Reply from Quote Investigator: In 1933 Henry Ford was …
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Quote Origin: Keep Your Eyes On the Stars, But Your Feet On the Ground
Theodore Roosevelt? Oscar Wilde? William Allen Harper? Ayn Rand? Casey Kasem? Question for Quote Investigator: High aspirations should be combined with a practical spirit to achieve greatness. This notion can be expressed with the following adage: Keep your eyes on the stars, but your feet on the ground. This statement has been attributed to U.S. …
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Quote Origin: Finish Every Day and Be Done With It. . . . Some Blunders and Absurdities No Doubt Crept In; Forget Them As Soon As You Can
Ralph Waldo Emerson? James Elliot Cabot? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Each day should be greeted with our optimism and aspirations. We should forgive ourselves for yesterday’s missteps. The transcendentalist philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson apparently made this point in a passage that begins with one of the following two phrases: Would you please help me …
Quote Origin: You’re Only As Good As Your Last Performance
James R. Quirk? Douglas Fairbanks? Walter Winchell? Louella Parsons? Barbara Stanwyck? Jack Osterman? Al Jolson? Walter Huston? Will Rogers? Hedda Hopper? Marie Dressler? Arthur Ashe? Laurence Olivier? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: The popularity and power of an entertainer, top athlete, or financial whiz can ascend vertiginously, but it can also decline precipitously. A harshly pragmatic …
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Quote Origin: The Difficulty Is To Persuade the Human Race To Acquiesce in Its Own Survival
Bertrand Russell? George Orwell? Arthur Koestler? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Humanity faces many existential dangers: hydrogen bombs, bioweapons, asteroid impacts, nanoplagues, and artificial intelligence. Yet, most of these dangers were created by humankind, and all can be ameliorated by wise decisions. The British philosopher Bertrand Russell once said something like: The question is how …
Quote Origin: Champagne To Our Real Friends, and Real Pain To Our Sham Friends
The Royal Toast Master? Supporters of U.S. President George Washington? William Makepeace Thackeray? Francis Bacon? Randall Munroe? An Anonymous Wit? Question for Quote Investigator: A brilliant toast uses antimetabole and a pun. Here are two versions: Would you please explore the provenance of this expression? Reply from Quote Investigator: The earliest match known to QI …
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Quote Origin: Don’t Bring the Negative to My Door
Maya Angelou? Odetta Holmes? Velma Gibson Watts? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: The prominent memoirist and poet Maya Angelou overcame great obstacles in her life, and she encouraged others to maintain a positive energetic perspective. She has been credited with this saying: Don’t bring negative to my door. Would you please help me to find …
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Quote Origin: Awaken People’s Curiosity. It Is Enough To Open Minds; Do Not Overload Them
Anatole France? George Pólya? George B. Hartzog Jr.? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Educators are tempted to cover numerous topics and present a farrago of facts, but this superfluity discourages many learners. A small number of well-chosen topics and pertinent examples can activate curiosity. The Nobel-Prize winner Anatole France has been credited with the following …
Quote Origin: The Fool Tries to Convince Me with His Reasons; the Wise Man Persuades Me with My Own
Aristotle? Robert T. Oliver? John Patrick Ryan? Loren Reid? Gerald M. Phillips? Julia T. Wood? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: The most effective way to persuade other people is to downplay your own motivations and appeal to their motivations. The following adage expresses this notion: The fool tells me his reasons; the wise man persuades …
Quote Origin: When One Door Closes Another Opens, But Often We Look So Long Upon the Closed Door That We Do Not See the Open Door
Helen Keller? Alexander Graham Bell? Johann P. F. Richter? Miguel de Cervantes? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: A venerable adage emphasizes the desirability of retaining a positive outlook and flexibility. Plans always encounter difficulties, and a successful person must be able to adapt. Here are two instances of a proverb that employs doorways figuratively: An …