My way or the highway is a predominantly American idiom that dates back to the 1970s. It suggests an ultimatum like "take it or leave it" which indicates that the listener(s) (who are typically not in a position to challenge the options, e.g. employees or those lacking money) must totally accept the speaker's decision or suffer negative consequences such as being fired, asked to leave, or receive nothing. It may sometimes be seen with other pronouns, for example, her way or the highway. The idiom has been associated with narcissism and micromanagement.