03014cam a2200361 i 4500 1709900159 TxAuBib 20250128120000.0 241003s2025||||||||||||||||||||||||eng|u 2024041606 9780593700570 HRD 28.00 0593700570 HRD 28.00 TxAuBib rda Chandler, Adam, author. 99% perspiration [BOOK] : a new working history of the American way of life / Adam Chandler. 99 percent perspiration. Ninety nine % perspiration. Ninety nine percent perspiration. First edition. New York : Pantheon Books, [2025] x, 293 pages ; 25 cm. txt rdacontent n rdamedia nc rdacarrier Includes bibliographical references and index. Columbia -- Exceptional and exceptionally vague -- Landfall -- Earn this -- Fording the river -- Right of way -- Bustle -- Hustle -- Worth -- Small normalcies -- Automatic for the people -- Blindness. "'Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration.' This phrase, arguably Thomas Edison’s most famous quote, has been drilled into the minds of generations of Americans. A fairly straightforward iteration of the idea that innovation, discovery, and ingenuity are the result of drive and grit above all, it has also come to represent much darker myths: that hard work always leads to success and that achievement is the product of individuals and not communities. In this model, those who come out on top are there because they earned it, and everyone else needs to buckle down, glove up, and, maybe one day, they’ll get there too. As the wealth gap widens, communities crumble, and Americans work more for less, Adam Chandler raises the question: What happens when perspiration isn’t enough? To answer it, he crisscrosses the country interviewing mayors, teachers, generals, pastors, construction workers, and entrepreneurs, to reveal just how untenable relying on 'perspiration' as a strategy has truly become. He also delves into America’s past to reveal how our government, education system, and culture at large have woven the idea of meritocracy deep into the fabric of American society and how some of history’s most famous so-called bootstrappers really built their wealth. From George Washington to Seattle,Washington, Jay Gatsby to Bill Gates, 99% Perspiration unpacks the misguided obsession with hard work that has come to define both the American dream and nightmare, offering insight into how we got here and hope for where we may go.". 20250128. Success United States. Success in business United States. Self-reliance United States. Income distribution United States.