You don’t have to be crazy to work here, but it helps.

The line is a workplace joke that appears to be one instance of a broader fill‑in‑the‑blank pattern (“You don’t have to be X to do Y, but it helps”). Earlier printed examples from the 1920s apply the same structure to other activities (e.g., politics, detective work, golf, dancing). A 1933 newspaper profile of Walt Disney’s secretary reports Disney using the workplace version as a joking remark, and later it spread widely as a sign or motto.

It humorously suggests that the job environment is so hectic, odd, or demanding that being a bit unhinged would make fitting in easier, even though it’s not literally required.

You don’t have to be mad to work here, but it does help.