--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I believe that 99 percent of what anyone…" description: "\"“I believe that 99 percent of what anyone does can effectively be postponed.”\" — Amy Hempel" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/754/amy-hempel-6636_postponed_i-believe-that-99-percent-of-what-anyone_1023248.png" --- # I believe that 99 percent of what anyone does can… ![“I believe that 99 percent of what anyone does can effectively be postponed.” quote by Amy Hempel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/754/amy-hempel-6636_postponed_i-believe-that-99-percent-of-what-anyone_1023248.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/754/amy-hempel-6636_postponed_i-believe-that-99-percent-of-what-anyone_1023248.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/754/amy-hempel-6636_postponed_i-believe-that-99-percent-of-what-anyone_1023248.png) > ““I believe that 99 percent of what anyone does can effectively be postponed.”” [Amy Hempel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-hempel/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote suggests that most tasks can be delayed indefinitely, highlighting procrastination’s ease and the illusion of control over time. **In simple terms:** Most things can be postponed. Key Takeaway Recognize and address procrastination habits. Themes procrastination time management delayed action illusion of control Mood thoughtful urgent reflective Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - academic deadlines - home projects - personal goals - health appointments Key Concepts behavioral economics psychology of delay Questions to Reflect On - What tasks are you habitually postponing? - How can you create accountability to act now? A Different Perspective Delaying can lead to missed opportunities and stress. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Postponed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/postponed/) [Procrastination](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/procrastination/) ## Related quotes > [I believe 99% of success is never giving up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/coy-bowles/i-believe-99-of-success-is-never-giving-up/) [Coy Bowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/coy-bowles/) > [And apologies, once postponed, become harder and harder to make, and finally impossible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mitchell/and-apologies-once-postponed-become-harder-and-harder-to-make-and/) [Margaret Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mitchell/) > [Luckily, end of the world was postponed! thank GOD for another year..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mharwhyn/luckily-end-of-the-world-was-postponed-thank-god-for-another-year/) Mharwhyn > [The dynamics of capitalism is postponement of enjoyment to the constantly postponed future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-o-brown/the-dynamics-of-capitalism-is-postponement-of-enjoyment-to-the/) [Norman O. Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-o-brown/) > [Due to the lack of experienced trumpeters, the end of the world has been postponed for three weeks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/due-to-the-lack-of-experienced-trumpeters-the-end-of-the-world-has/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“There is no avoiding war, it can only be postponed to the advantage of your enemy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/niccolo-machiavelli/there-is-no-avoiding-war-it-can-only-be-postponed-to-the-advantage-of/) [Niccolò Machiavelli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/niccolo-machiavelli/) > [An optimist is a fellow who believes what's going to be will be postponed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kin-hubbard/an-optimist-is-a-fellow-who-believes-what-s-going-to-be-will-be/) [Kin Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kin-hubbard/) > [What I object to the current government intervention in so-called 'solving the crisis', they haven't solved anything. They've just postponed it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marc-faber/what-i-object-to-the-current-government-intervention-in-so-called/) [Marc Faber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marc-faber/) > [I got my first show at Blum & Poe because Paul McCarthy postponed his show, and they came to my studio and asked me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-grotjahn/i-got-my-first-show-at-blum-poe-because-paul-mccarthy-postponed-his/) Mark Grotjahn > [End-Of-The-World which was Scheduled for 2012 has been Postponed to 2052 due to some Technical Problems!!!! Plz Co-operate & CONTINUE Life with Spirit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jagjot-anand/end-of-the-world-which-was-scheduled-for-2012-has-been-postponed-to/) [Jagjot Anand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jagjot-anand/) > [I am not Failed my success is just Postponed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-am-not-failed-my-success-is-just-postponed/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Immortality is the only thing which doesn't tolerate being postponed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-kraus/immortality-is-the-only-thing-which-doesn-t-tolerate-being-postponed/) [Karl Kraus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-kraus/) > [Its so cold outside I saw 2 guys about to fight and they postponed it until' April.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/its-so-cold-outside-i-saw-2-guys-about-to-fight-and-they-postponed-it/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Once you've postponed doing what's right, you become a big part of what's wrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-kelly/once-you-ve-postponed-doing-what-s-right-you-become-a-big-part-of/) [Elizabeth Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-kelly/) > [Problems postponed have a habit of solving themselves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flanagan/problems-postponed-have-a-habit-of-solving-themselves/) [John Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flanagan/) ## More by Amy Hempel > [Good leaders being scarce, following yourself is allowed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-hempel/good-leaders-being-scarce-following-yourself-is-allowed/) [Amy Hempel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-hempel/) > [Since his mother died I have seen him steam a cucumber thinking it was zucchini. That's the kind of thing that turns my heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-hempel/since-his-mother-died-i-have-seen-him-steam-a-cucumber-thinking-it/) [Amy Hempel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-hempel/) > [“A story happens when two equally appealing forces, or characters, or ideas try to occupy the same place at the same time, and they're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-hempel/a-story-happens-when-two-equally-appealing-forces-or-characters-or/) [Amy Hempel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-hempel/) > [“It is such a pretty story, told to me by a Cuban woman I met in a bar at the beach. She left the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-hempel/it-is-such-a-pretty-story-told-to-me-by-a-cuban-woman-i-met-in-a-bar/) [Amy Hempel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-hempel/) > [Journalism taught me how to write a sentence that would make someone want to read the next one. You are trained to get rid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-hempel/journalism-taught-me-how-to-write-a-sentence-that-would-make-someone/) [Amy Hempel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-hempel/) > [I had a mother I could only seem to please with verbal accomplishments of some sort or another. She read constantly, so I read…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-hempel/i-had-a-mother-i-could-only-seem-to-please-with-verbal/) [Amy Hempel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-hempel/) > [“Mrs. Linden was beautiful in spirit and in fact. Her wish, she told her daughter, was to be a beautiful woman and surprise people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-hempel/mrs-linden-was-beautiful-in-spirit-and-in-fact-her-wish-she-told-her/) [Amy Hempel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-hempel/) > [Then the children went to bed, or at least went upstairs, and the men joined the women for a cigarette on the porch, absently…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-hempel/then-the-children-went-to-bed-or-at-least-went-upstairs-and-the-men/) [Amy Hempel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-hempel/) > [“It comes back to the question, whom are you writing for? Who are the readers you want? Who are the people you want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-hempel/it-comes-back-to-the-question-whom-are-you-writing-for-who-are-the/) [Amy Hempel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-hempel/) > [An idea might spark an essay, but never a story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-hempel/an-idea-might-spark-an-essay-but-never-a-story/) [Amy Hempel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-hempel/) > [There’s so much I can’t read because I get so exasperated. Someone starts describing the character boarding the plane and pulling the seat back.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-hempel/there-s-so-much-i-can-t-read-because-i-get-so-exasperated-someone/) [Amy Hempel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-hempel/) > [The year I began to say vahz instead of vase, a man I barely knew nearly accidentally killed me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-hempel/the-year-i-began-to-say-vahz-instead-of-vase-a-man-i-barely-knew/) [Amy Hempel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-hempel/) > [I often feel the effects of people only after they leave me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-hempel/i-often-feel-the-effects-of-people-only-after-they-leave-me/) [Amy Hempel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-hempel/) > [“The psychic said I would have two children. This makes me shake my head. I know you are not supposed to leave a baby…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-hempel/the-psychic-said-i-would-have-two-children-this-makes-me-shake-my/) [Amy Hempel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-hempel/) > [“I read about a famous mystery writer who worked for one week in a department store. One day she saw a woman come in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-hempel/i-read-about-a-famous-mystery-writer-who-worked-for-one-week-in-a/) [Amy Hempel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-hempel/) [Explore all 93 Amy Hempel quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-hempel/) ## More Postponed quotes > [And apologies, once postponed, become harder and harder to make, and finally impossible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mitchell/and-apologies-once-postponed-become-harder-and-harder-to-make-and/) [Margaret Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mitchell/) > [Once you've postponed doing what's right, you become a big part of what's wrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-kelly/once-you-ve-postponed-doing-what-s-right-you-become-a-big-part-of/) [Elizabeth Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-kelly/) > [Its so cold outside I saw 2 guys about to fight and they postponed it until' April.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/its-so-cold-outside-i-saw-2-guys-about-to-fight-and-they-postponed-it/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Immortality is the only thing which doesn't tolerate being postponed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-kraus/immortality-is-the-only-thing-which-doesn-t-tolerate-being-postponed/) [Karl Kraus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-kraus/) > [I am not Failed my success is just Postponed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-am-not-failed-my-success-is-just-postponed/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [End-Of-The-World which was Scheduled for 2012 has been Postponed to 2052 due to some Technical Problems!!!! Plz Co-operate & CONTINUE Life with Spirit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jagjot-anand/end-of-the-world-which-was-scheduled-for-2012-has-been-postponed-to/) [Jagjot Anand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jagjot-anand/) > [I got my first show at Blum & Poe because Paul McCarthy postponed his show, and they came to my studio and asked me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-grotjahn/i-got-my-first-show-at-blum-poe-because-paul-mccarthy-postponed-his/) Mark Grotjahn > [What I object to the current government intervention in so-called 'solving the crisis', they haven't solved anything. They've just postponed it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marc-faber/what-i-object-to-the-current-government-intervention-in-so-called/) [Marc Faber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marc-faber/) > [An optimist is a fellow who believes what's going to be will be postponed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kin-hubbard/an-optimist-is-a-fellow-who-believes-what-s-going-to-be-will-be/) [Kin Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kin-hubbard/) > [“There is no avoiding war, it can only be postponed to the advantage of your enemy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/niccolo-machiavelli/there-is-no-avoiding-war-it-can-only-be-postponed-to-the-advantage-of/) [Niccolò Machiavelli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/niccolo-machiavelli/) > [Due to the lack of experienced trumpeters, the end of the world has been postponed for three weeks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/due-to-the-lack-of-experienced-trumpeters-the-end-of-the-world-has/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The dynamics of capitalism is postponement of enjoyment to the constantly postponed future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-o-brown/the-dynamics-of-capitalism-is-postponement-of-enjoyment-to-the/) [Norman O. Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-o-brown/) > [Luckily, end of the world was postponed! thank GOD for another year..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mharwhyn/luckily-end-of-the-world-was-postponed-thank-god-for-another-year/) Mharwhyn > [Problems postponed have a habit of solving themselves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flanagan/problems-postponed-have-a-habit-of-solving-themselves/) [John Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flanagan/) > [Circumcision is obligatory for Jewish-born males - it must be performed on the eighth day after birth and is only postponed in the case…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-sherman/circumcision-is-obligatory-for-jewish-born-males-it-must-be-performed/) [Brad Sherman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-sherman/) [Browse all 38 Postponed quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/postponed/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I believe that 99 percent of what anyone does can effectively be postponed.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Amy Hempel" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-hempel/i-believe-that-99-percent-of-what-anyone-does-can-effectively-be/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Postponed" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-hempel/i-believe-that-99-percent-of-what-anyone-does-can-effectively-be/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/754/amy-hempel-6636_postponed_i-believe-that-99-percent-of-what-anyone_1023248.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/754/amy-hempel-6636_postponed_i-believe-that-99-percent-of-what-anyone_1023248.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/754/amy-hempel-6636_postponed_i-believe-that-99-percent-of-what-anyone_1023248.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I believe that 99 percent of what anyone does can effectively be postponed.” — Amy Hempel", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Amy Hempel", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-hempel/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“I believe that 99 percent of...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-hempel/i-believe-that-99-percent-of-what-anyone-does-can-effectively-be/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-hempel/i-believe-that-99-percent-of-what-anyone-does-can-effectively-be/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```