Above The Line Article:
Innovate Like
Edison
By Erik Carlson
 I
love a good biography. When I can read of the lives of
people doing extraordinary accomplishments, I get
inspired. I also love a great motivational book, a book
filled with tried and true principals that I can glean
from to get better. “Innovate Like Edison” was written
by Thomas Edison’s great grand niece, and a friend and
colleague of mine, Sarah Caldicott Miller.
The thing I like about this book is the
one-two punch; the combination of a great biography,
combined with life principals spelled out for me that
helped an ordinary man to invent thousands of patents,
which economically impact the world today to the tune of
hundreds of billions of dollars.
In these short paragraphs, I cannot do
justice to the magic within the books pages, but here
are a few bullet points I took from the book:
- Edison’s Mission: “To surprise
nature into a betrayal of her secrets by asking her
the same question a hundred different ways” (I loved
this!)
- Edison’s Outlook on his fellow man:
Edison was not just concerned with his inventions,
but to “apply them for the happiness of man”. For
example, his goal was to make a light bulb less
expensive than a candle, so everyone could enjoy the
gift.
- Edison on Encouragement: Edison
became a national figure; His efforts helped
encourage the nation through tough times.
- Edison on Failures: As many
people know, Edison failed hundreds if not thousands
of trials in his pursuit of solutions for his
inventions. His attitude toward what many would call
‘failures’ is profound: The outcomes of Edison’s
experiments were considered ‘Neutral’ by him and his
team, rather than negative or positive. This is
brilliant insight for business people or sales
professionals today. If a sale goes south, or a
customer complains, but the professional can learn
from the experience, then it should not be viewed as
negative, because it brings that professional closer
to reaching his or her potential.
- Edison draws from contemporary Winston
Churchill: “Success is going from failure
to failure without loss of enthusiasm” and
“Resilience in the face of adversity is the greatest
long-term predictor of success for individuals and
organizations”
- Edison on Goal Setting: Edison
points out that a goal “must connect the emotional
component with its rational component”. This
dramatically enhances the likelihood that the goal
will not be put aside, but actually be met with
enthusiasm. I know for myself, I don’t set goals
because they aren’t exciting. If I can intentionally
set ones that I am emotionally attached to, I’ll get
more excited about them, and will actually WANT to
attack them.
- Edison on Success: Edison claimed
that he “continues to find my greatest pleasure, and
so my reward, in the work that precedes what the
world calls success.” This reminds me of the great
John Wooden, the basketball wizard who won more NCAA
basketball championships than any other coach, would
continually claim during retirement, that he missed
the practices more than the games. It’s not the
destination, but the journey.
To further whet your appetite, the
book is organized around Edison’s 5 competencies of
Innovation:
- Solution-centered Mindset
- Kaleidoscopic Thinking
- Full-spectrum Engagement
- Master-mind Collaboration
- Super-value Creation
I like books like this, in which you can pick
and choose your topic of interest; not having to necessarily
read the book cover to cover to gain valuable lessons. I
encourage you, if you work for a company that can use a kick
in the pants in any of these 5 areas, or on innovation in
general, to either share this book with your company, or
better yet, to have Sarah come and speak to your company.
She is available, and has an uncanny ability to share
Edison’s approach, and tie it into 21st century challenges.
That is her gift; not to mention being a descendant of the
Edison family lineage.
Have a great month, and fight to stay above the line.
We need you there!
Erik
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