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April 15, 2021
Work/Businesses

“If you cannot question it, it’s not science. It’s propaganda”

Some people try to end an argument by simply stating, "It's science!" However, the science can be questioned. "If you cannot question it, it’s not science. It’s…

October 7, 2015
Work/Businesses

“If you don’t fight for what you want, don’t cry for what you lose”

"If you you don't fight for what you love/want, (then) don't cry for what you lose/lost" is a saying that has been printed on posters. "If you don't fight for what you…

June 21, 2015
Work/Businesses

“If you don’t have a competitive advantage, don’t compete”

Jack Welch, the chairman and CEO of General Electric between 1981 and 2001, told Fortune magazine of March 27, 1989 his six rules, one of which was: "If you don't have a competitive…

September 26, 2011
Work/Businesses

“If you don’t know jewelry, know your jeweler”

"Know Your Jeweler" has been a slogan since at least the early 1920s, and "Know Your Jeweler if You Don't Know Diamonds" has been cited in print since at least 1927. The…

December 3, 2011
Work/Businesses

“If you don’t take care of your customers, someone else will”

"If you don't take care of your customers, someone else will" is a business saying that has been popular since at least the 1980s. The origin of the saying is unknown. Management…

August 10, 2014
Work/Businesses

“If you don’t take money, they can’t tell you what to do”

American photographer Bill Cunningham, best known for his work in the New York (NY) Times, was hired in 1982 by Details, an American men's monthly fashion magazine. He didn't like what he…

January 7, 2022
Work/Businesses

“If you don’t have a boob job, you should be able to collect boob unemployment”

A "boob job" means work done on a breast (boob). It is not an actual job, but there are jokes. "If boobjobs were actually jobs, I'd file for boobunemployment& the gov't…

June 9, 2018
Work/Businesses

“If you don’t like being a doormat, then get off the floor”

"If you don't like being a doormat, then get off the floor" is a motivational saying that has been printed on many images. The saying has been used by Al-Anon since at least October…

May 9, 2016
Work/Businesses

“If you don’t like where you are, move! You are not a tree!”

"If you don't like where you are, move! You are not a tree!" is a motivational saying that has been printed on many images. "If you don't like where you are, get out, or…

December 11, 2025
Food/DrinkWork/Businesses

“If you ever feel like giving up, just remember the last thing to grow on a fruit tree is the fruit”

"The last thing to grow on a fruit tree is the fruit" is a motivational saying that has been printed on many images. Authorship is unknown. "Not seeing results? Feel like giving up?…

May 21, 2019
Work/Businesses

“If you find a path with no obstacles, it probably doesn’t lead anywhere”

"If you find a path with no obstacles, it probably doesn't lead anywhere" is an inspirational saying that has been printed on many images. “If you find a path with no…

July 27, 2015
Work/Businesses

“If you hate waking up on Mondays, change your job”

"If you hate Mondays, you should change your job" was cited on Twitter on June 15, 2009. "If Sunday doesnot excite you ... Change your Friends. | if Monday doesn't motivate you…

September 8, 2015
Work/Businesses

“If you have no business in New York, you have no business being in New York”

New York City has a reputation as a business capital. Mark J. Bitter, a guitar business executive, said in 2015: “The family ownership decided to sell it, and the old saying is, ‘If you don’t…

November 2, 2022
Work/Businesses

“If you heard anything bad about me, believe all that shit and leave me the fuck alone”

"If you heard anything bad about me, believe all that shit and leave me the fuck alone" is a saying that has been printed on many images. "If you’ve heard anything bad about me,…

August 13, 2012
Work/Businesses

“If you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will believe that it is stupid”

A popular quote, attributed to German-born physicist Albert Einstein (1879-1955), is: "Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole…

January 30, 2020
Work/Businesses

“If you kick me when I’m down, you better pray I don’t get up”

"If you kick me when I'm down, you better pray I don't get up" (or "Never kick me when I'm down, because when I get back up...you're fucked") is a saying…

April 15, 2024
Time/WeatherWork/Businesses

“If you know someone who is effortlessly happy in the morning, that is a demon. You’re friends with a demon”

Many people are not morning people. "If you know someone who is effortlessly happy in the morning, that is a demon. You're friends with a demon" is a jocular saying that has been…

October 24, 2011
Work/Businesses

“If you live each day as if it was your last, someday you’ll most certainly be right”

Apple Inc. founder Steve Jobs (1955-2011) delivered an emotional and personal commencement address at Stanford University in 2005: "When I was 17, I read a quote that went something like:…

July 21, 2017
Work/Businesses

“If you look down, you will fall. If you look up, you will fly”

"If you look down, you will fall. If you look up, you will fly" is an inspirational saying that has been printed on an image. The saying was posted on Twitter on January 25, 2012.…

November 27, 2017
Work/Businesses

“If you operate a drill press, you have a boring job”

A pun on "boring job" was posted on the newsgroup alt.humor.puns on September 23, 2000: "If you operate a drill press, you have a boring job. (Pun of the Day)" "Digging…

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BARRY POPIK is a contributor to the Oxford English Dictionary, Dictionary of American Regional English, Historical Dictionary of American Slang, Yale Book of Quotations and Dictionary of Modern Proverbs. Since 1990 he has also been a regular contributor to Gerald Cohen's Comments on Etymology.

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