--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If you hear a statistic, you will make up…" description: "\"If you hear a statistic, you will make up a story to go with it, because our brains are organized on narrative. And you may very well make up a wrong s..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8fd/gloria-steinem-277_because_if-you-hear-a-statistic-you-will-make-up_1029419.jpg" --- # If you hear a statistic, you will make up a story to go… ![“If you hear a statistic, you will make up a story to go with it, because our brains are organized on narrative. And you may very well make up a wrong story because you only have one fact, which is a statistic.” quote by Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8fd/gloria-steinem-277_because_if-you-hear-a-statistic-you-will-make-up_1029419.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8fd/gloria-steinem-277_because_if-you-hear-a-statistic-you-will-make-up_1029419.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8fd/gloria-steinem-277_because_if-you-hear-a-statistic-you-will-make-up_1029419.jpg) > “If you hear a statistic, you will make up a story to go with it, because our brains are organized on narrative. And you may very well make up a wrong story because you only have one fact, which is a statistic.” [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People instinctively create narratives around numbers, often fabricating misleading stories from a single data point. **In simple terms:** We turn stats into stories, sometimes wrong ones. Key Takeaway Question data before believing a statistic. Themes cognition storytelling bias statistics critical thinking Mood skeptical analytical curious Type analytical cautionary When to use this quote - media analysis - research - public speaking - education - decision making Key Concepts Narrative bias confirmation bias information processing Questions to Reflect On - How do you verify the story behind a statistic? - What safeguards can prevent narrative bias? A Different Perspective Stories can oversimplify complex data, leading to false conclusions. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Because](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/because/) [Brains](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brains/) [Fact](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fact/) [Fact Statistic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fact-statistic-2342076/) [Go](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/go/) [Hear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hear/) [Hear Statistic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hear-statistic-2342078/) [Make](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/make/) [Make up](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/make-up/) [May](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/may/) [Narrative](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/narrative/) [Only](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/only/) [Organized](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/organized/) [Our](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/our/) [Statistic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/statistic/) [Statistic Make](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/statistic-make-2342079/) [Statistics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/statistics/) [Story](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/story/) [Story Brains](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/story-brains-2342077/) [Story Fact](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/story-fact-942215/) [Storytelling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/storytelling/) [Up](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/up/) [Very](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/very/) [Well](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/well/) [Which](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/which/) [Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/will/) [Wrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wrong/) [You](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/you/) ## Related quotes > [If you don't know an answer, a fact, a statistic - make it up on the spot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-watson/if-you-don-t-know-an-answer-a-fact-a-statistic-make-it-up-on-the-spot/) [Paul Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-watson/) > [Well, you can't improvise story, which is a fact. If you could, the budget would be insane.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-pally/well-you-can-t-improvise-story-which-is-a-fact-if-you-could-the/) [Adam Pally](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-pally/) > [87% of people believe everything they are told in the form of a statistic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nate/87-of-people-believe-everything-they-are-told-in-the-form-of-a/) [Nate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nate/) > [Honestly, I've just been trying to improve all parts of my game, and a statistic is just a statistic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindsey-horan/honestly-i-ve-just-been-trying-to-improve-all-parts-of-my-game-and-a/) [Lindsey Horan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindsey-horan/) > [“The quotation falsely attributed to Stalin, 'One death is a tragedy; a million deaths is a statistic,' gets the numbers wrong but captures a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-pinker/the-quotation-falsely-attributed-to-stalin-one-death-is-a-tragedy-a/) [Steven Pinker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-pinker/) > [The key statistic is still to get to the foul line.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-smith/the-key-statistic-is-still-to-get-to-the-foul-line/) [Dean Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-smith/) > [First of all, this whole idea of this one percent versus the 99 percent, it's a false statistic. There's nobody that is wealthy saying,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-lovitz/first-of-all-this-whole-idea-of-this-one-percent-versus-the-99/) [Jon Lovitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-lovitz/) > [“single death is a tragedy; a million is a statistic.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-yancey/single-death-is-a-tragedy-a-million-is-a-statistic/) [Rick Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-yancey/) > [I'm a statistic in a system that a civil servant dominates.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-joel/i-m-a-statistic-in-a-system-that-a-civil-servant-dominates/) [Billy Joel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-joel/) > [The most interesting statistic, stunning statistic that came out of my research was that in 1942, as this war production effort is going on,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-l-herman/the-most-interesting-statistic-stunning-statistic-that-came-out-of-my/) [Arthur L. Herman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-l-herman/) > [Nobody knows me. Even though I'm always there. A statistic, a reminder of a world that doesn't care.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ub40/nobody-knows-me-even-though-i-m-always-there-a-statistic-a-reminder/) [Ub40](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ub40/) > [One death is a tragedy; one million is a statistic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-stalin/one-death-is-a-tragedy-one-million-is-a-statistic/) [Joseph Stalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-stalin/) > [Over 90% of people go home at the end of the day feeling unfulfilled by their work, and I won't stop working until that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-sinek/over-90-of-people-go-home-at-the-end-of-the-day-feeling-unfulfilled/) [Simon Sinek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-sinek/) > [If You Don’t Claim Your Humanity, You Will Become A Statistic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/if-you-don-t-claim-your-humanity-you-will-become-a-statistic/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [One death is a tragedy; a million is a statistic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-stalin/one-death-is-a-tragedy-a-million-is-a-statistic/) [Joseph Stalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-stalin/) ## More by Gloria Steinem > [People waste more time waiting for someone to take charge of their lives than they do in any other pursuit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/people-waste-more-time-waiting-for-someone-to-take-charge-of-their/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [Nothing will happen automatically. Change depends on what you and I do every day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/nothing-will-happen-automatically-change-depends-on-what-you-and-i-do/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [Women are never again going to be mindless coffee-makers or mindless policy-makers in politics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/women-are-never-again-going-to-be-mindless-coffee-makers-or-mindless/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [The state of female artists is very good. But the very definition of art has been biased in that 'art' was what men did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/the-state-of-female-artists-is-very-good-but-the-very-definition-of/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [We will live to see the day that St. Patrick's Cathedral is a child-care center and the pope is no longer a disgrace to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/we-will-live-to-see-the-day-that-st-patrick-s-cathedral-is-a-child/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [Just when you thought multi-nationals and crazed consumerism were too big to fight, along comes Naomi Klein with facts, spirit, and news of successful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/just-when-you-thought-multi-nationals-and-crazed-consumerism-were-too/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [I don't know Beyoncé, but I have the impression that she's sincere, that she really is a feminist and wanted to put the word…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/i-don-t-know-beyonc-but-i-have-the-impression-that-she-s-sincere-that/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [I started out life as a writer, and writers write in part because they don't want to talk.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/i-started-out-life-as-a-writer-and-writers-write-in-part-because-they/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [Proust's tea cake has nothing on one hour in a college dorm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/proust-s-tea-cake-has-nothing-on-one-hour-in-a-college-dorm/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [Sadomasochiasm - which we know very well doesn't exist in societies that don't have child abuse - is regarded some sort of natural sexual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/sadomasochiasm-which-we-know-very-well-doesn-t-exist-in-societies/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [Behave like everything you do matters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/behave-like-everything-you-do-matters/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [“Part of traveling over years means coming back to the same place and knowing it for the first time.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/part-of-traveling-over-years-means-coming-back-to-the-same-place-and/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [If you say, I'm for equal pay, that's a reform. But if you say. I'm a feminist, that's a transformation of society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/if-you-say-i-m-for-equal-pay-that-s-a-reform-but-if-you-say-i-m-a/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [I think that part of everybody's success is due to their looks, but it just works in different ways. If you're whatever society calls…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/i-think-that-part-of-everybody-s-success-is-due-to-their-looks-but-it/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [Of course, we can change. We're very adaptable. But it takes a while.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/of-course-we-can-change-we-re-very-adaptable-but-it-takes-a-while/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) [Explore all 766 Gloria Steinem quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) ## More Because quotes > [One is a painter because one wants so-called freedom; one doesn't want to go to the office every morning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-duchamp/one-is-a-painter-because-one-wants-so-called-freedom-one-doesn-t-want/) [Marcel Duchamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-duchamp/) > [I gave my archive to Emory University because there's a really dear friend who teaches there, Rudolph Byrd, and he's the editor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/i-gave-my-archive-to-emory-university-because-there-s-a-really-dear/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [Because of the womb being a central phenomenon in the feminine body, the whole psychology of woman differs: she is non-aggressive, non-inquiring, non-questioning, non-doubting,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/because-of-the-womb-being-a-central-phenomenon-in-the-feminine-body/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [I love casting against type and doing things you wouldn't expect, because I think you get more interesting performances that way. 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I like to bang the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elmore-leonard/it-took-me-20-years-to-buy-an-electric-typewriter-because-i-was/) [Elmore Leonard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elmore-leonard/) > [I was also known as Frodo because I was an early adopter of 'The Lord of the Rings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-perrotta/i-was-also-known-as-frodo-because-i-was-an-early-adopter-of-the-lord/) [Tom Perrotta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-perrotta/) > [I believe in taxation and health care that is outside the usual libertarian mandate, because I don't want people to have to suffer. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-peart/i-believe-in-taxation-and-health-care-that-is-outside-the-usual/) [Neil Peart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-peart/) > [It's like saying French shouldn't be taught because you don't understand it because it's new. Shakespeare is just like learning a new, exciting language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-barnett/it-s-like-saying-french-shouldn-t-be-taught-because-you-don-t/) [Samuel Barnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-barnett/) > [Whether it was Little League or playing with your brothers or sisters, that was always a problem. If I would lose - because I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-ripken-jr/whether-it-was-little-league-or-playing-with-your-brothers-or-sisters/) [Cal Ripken, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-ripken-jr/) > [Sometimes, when full and in fear that I will continue to eat unwanted food just because it's staring at me, I will place my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-nichols/sometimes-when-full-and-in-fear-that-i-will-continue-to-eat-unwanted/) [Rachel Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-nichols/) > [I didn't want to do 'Fashion Police' because I thought, 'This is stupid, this is beneath me, who wants to talk about fashion?' 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