--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The principal mark of genius is not…" description: "\"The principal mark of genius is not perfection, but originality.\" — Anonymous" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dcb/anonymous-1_creativity_the-principal-mark-of-genius-is-not-perf_1800274.jpg" --- # The principal mark of genius is not perfection, but… ![“The principal mark of genius is not perfection, but originality.” quote by Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dcb/anonymous-1_creativity_the-principal-mark-of-genius-is-not-perf_1800274.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dcb/anonymous-1_creativity_the-principal-mark-of-genius-is-not-perf_1800274.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dcb/anonymous-1_creativity_the-principal-mark-of-genius-is-not-perf_1800274.jpg) > “The principal mark of genius is not perfection, but originality.” [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Genius is defined by originality, not flawless execution. **In simple terms:** Originality defines genius. Key Takeaway Value creative thinking over perfection. Themes creativity originality genius Mood analytical inspirational Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - artistic work - innovation - problem solving Key Concepts philosophy psychology Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance originality with quality? - When is perfection essential? A Different Perspective Perfection can also be valuable in some fields. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Creativity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creativity/) [Excellence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/excellence/) [Genius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/genius/) [Genius Perfection](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/genius-perfection-2024619/) [Intelligence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intelligence/) [Mark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mark/) [Mark Genius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mark-genius-1504463/) [Not perfect](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/not-perfect/) [Originality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/originality/) [Perfection](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/perfection/) [Perfection Originality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/perfection-originality-2024618/) [Principal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/principal/) ## Related quotes > [You can perfect genius because genius is not perfection. On his level and his practice and his methodology, it's almost inhuman. So, that's been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benedict-cumberbatch/you-can-perfect-genius-because-genius-is-not-perfection-on-his-level/) [Benedict Cumberbatch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benedict-cumberbatch/) > [The principle mark of genius is not perfection but originality, the opening of new frontiers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-koestler/the-principle-mark-of-genius-is-not-perfection-but-originality-the/) [Arthur Koestler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-koestler/) > [The principal mark of genius is not perfection but originality, the opening of new frontiers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-koestler/the-principal-mark-of-genius-is-not-perfection-but-originality-the/) [Arthur Koestler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-koestler/) > [The mark of genius is an incessant activity of mind. Genius is a spiritual greed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/v-s-pritchett/the-mark-of-genius-is-an-incessant-activity-of-mind-genius-is-a/) [V. S. Pritchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/v-s-pritchett/) > [It is a mark of genius not to astonish but to be astonished.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aubrey-menen/it-is-a-mark-of-genius-not-to-astonish-but-to-be-astonished/) [Aubrey Menen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aubrey-menen/) > [A sense of timing is the mark of a genius.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-holzer/a-sense-of-timing-is-the-mark-of-a-genius/) [Jenny Holzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-holzer/) > [To do what is impossible for talent is the mark of genius.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-frederic-amiel/to-do-what-is-impossible-for-talent-is-the-mark-of-genius/) [Henri Frederic Amiel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-frederic-amiel/) > [Strive for excellence, not perfection.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/strive-for-excellence-not-perfection/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I'm Not Perfect, I Make Mistakes, But This Love I Have For You, Damn Sure Ain't Fake, Thru Ups & Downs, Thru Thick &…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-m-not-perfect-i-make-mistakes-but-this-love-i-have-for-you-damn/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [We're not perfect. None of us are. We fail. We make mistakes. We cry about it. We think its the end. But we're humans.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-re-not-perfect-none-of-us-are-we-fail-we-make-mistakes-we-cry/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Life is not perfect.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-not-perfect/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Aim for success, not perfection. Never give up because you will lose the ability to learn new things. Move forward with your life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/aim-for-success-not-perfection-never-give-up-because-you-will-lose/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It's very hard to grow up in a perfect family when you're not perfect.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-s-very-hard-to-grow-up-in-a-perfect-family-when-you-re-not-perfect/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I will make mistakes, after all I am not perfect, but I will do my best to make them up to you. I would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-will-make-mistakes-after-all-i-am-not-perfect-but-i-will-do-my-best/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I'm not perfect, I'm only human.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-m-not-perfect-i-m-only-human/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Anonymous > [And a tear rolled down her cheek, as she said goodbye; because she's walking away, and she's never looking back](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/and-a-tear-rolled-down-her-cheek-as-she-said-goodbye-because-she-s/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You'll seldom experience regret for anything that you've done. It is what you haven't done that will torment you. The message, therefore, is clear.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-ll-seldom-experience-regret-for-anything-that-you-ve-done-it-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Scrabble - The game is available in Braille. That’s a nice fact. This makes me feel better about humanity for some reason. I can’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/scrabble-the-game-is-available-in-braille-that-s-a-nice-fact-this/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Everyone needs someone to love, and I choose you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyone-needs-someone-to-love-and-i-choose-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Put on my J's and dance the whole night away Im naughty by nature like Im hip-hop hooray With my hands in the sky,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/put-on-my-j-s-and-dance-the-whole-night-away-im-naughty-by-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Me.. I have been through a lot, but I still manage to have a smile on my face. Im not worried about the past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/me-i-have-been-through-a-lot-but-i-still-manage-to-have-a-smile-on-my/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Distance is a test of love. many will fail for those who can't withstand it, but for those who can, theres only one answer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/distance-is-a-test-of-love-many-will-fail-for-those-who-can-t/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Im sorry I ever tried...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/im-sorry-i-ever-tried/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Being betrayed by the one you love is the worst feeling in the world...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-betrayed-by-the-one-you-love-is-the-worst-feeling-in-the-world/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Let children support their parents or be imprisoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-children-support-their-parents-or-be-imprisoned/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The only person I've ever purposely caused pain here is myself...By simply sharing, caring too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-person-i-ve-ever-purposely-caused-pain-here-is-myself-by/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Start a business, not a startup”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/start-a-business-not-a-startup/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The truth is, of course, that the curtness of the Ten Commandments is an evidence, not of the gloom and narrowness of a religion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-truth-is-of-course-that-the-curtness-of-the-ten-commandments-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Explore all 162,899 Anonymous quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More Creativity quotes > [The prophet who fails to present a bearable alternative and yet preaches doom is part of the trap that he postulates. Not only does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/the-prophet-who-fails-to-present-a-bearable-alternative-and-yet/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [“The Soviet “creative intelligentsia” - that is, people accustomed to thinking one thing, saying another and doing a third - is as a whole…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrei-amalrik/the-soviet-creative-intelligentsia-that-is-people-accustomed-to/) [Andrei Amalrik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrei-amalrik/) > [It’s so important to create in your own voice, to hold onto what makes you unique, and have faith in your vision.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lasseter/it-s-so-important-to-create-in-your-own-voice-to-hold-onto-what-makes/) [John Lasseter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lasseter/) > [A rock pile ceases to be a rock pile the moment a single man contemplates it, bearing within him the image of a cathedral.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/a-rock-pile-ceases-to-be-a-rock-pile-the-moment-a-single-man/) [Antoine de Saint-Exupery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/) > [You don't get lucky. You create lucky.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-sharma/you-don-t-get-lucky-you-create-lucky/) [Robin Sharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-sharma/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [“You are the end of beauty and creativity one must have created so far.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-f-moonzajer/you-are-the-end-of-beauty-and-creativity-one-must-have-created-so-far/) [M.F. Moonzajer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-f-moonzajer/) > [Jonah Lehrer is one of the most talented explainers of science that we’ve got. What a pleasure it is to follow his investigation of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-foer/jonah-lehrer-is-one-of-the-most-talented-explainers-of-science-that/) [Joshua Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-foer/) > [If you've got creativity, imagination, and intelligence, and you want to be hypnotised, then there's no reason you shouldn't be able to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-barry/if-you-ve-got-creativity-imagination-and-intelligence-and-you-want-to/) [Keith Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-barry/) > [“I believe in magic. As a writer, I create them on blank paper.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonnia-kemmer/i-believe-in-magic-as-a-writer-i-create-them-on-blank-paper/) [Sonnia Kemmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonnia-kemmer/) > [Creativity is like chasing chickens.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christoph-niemann/creativity-is-like-chasing-chickens/) [Christoph Niemann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christoph-niemann/) > [It is proposed that a form of free dialogue may well be one of the most effective ways of investigating the crisis which faces…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bohm/it-is-proposed-that-a-form-of-free-dialogue-may-well-be-one-of-the/) [David Bohm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bohm/) > [You always hear actors say, 'Theater is my first love,' and it is. It's a time when you really get to do what you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-landecker/you-always-hear-actors-say-theater-is-my-first-love-and-it-is-it-s-a/) [Amy Landecker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-landecker/) > [Create an environment for people to fail, to learn, and to grow. Their creativity and productivity will increase.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/create-an-environment-for-people-to-fail-to-learn-and-to-grow-their/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 13,625 Creativity quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creativity/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The principal mark of genius is not perfection, but originality.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Anonymous" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-principal-mark-of-genius-is-not-perfection-but-originality/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Creativity" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-principal-mark-of-genius-is-not-perfection-but-originality/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dcb/anonymous-1_creativity_the-principal-mark-of-genius-is-not-perf_1800274.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dcb/anonymous-1_creativity_the-principal-mark-of-genius-is-not-perf_1800274.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dcb/anonymous-1_creativity_the-principal-mark-of-genius-is-not-perf_1800274.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The principal mark of genius is not perfection, but originality.” — Anonymous", "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": "Anonymous", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The principal mark of genius is...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-principal-mark-of-genius-is-not-perfection-but-originality/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-principal-mark-of-genius-is-not-perfection-but-originality/#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 } } ] } ```