Edison and Innovation Blog

Sometimes we look at a product or process and think, “that’s pretty good, I don’t think it can be improved. After all, it’s been done that way a long time and is convenient as it is.” There is, of course, another point of view. Today, I want to show you two familiar products and a well-known service that are still being innovated. Hopefully, after you look at these you will look around and see other products or services that need more innovation.

First, who would have thought that a faucet could be innovated? Well, as you may have already seen, they have been.

Second, innovation of the light bulb did not end with Edison. As this article shows there is still room for innovation in the production and distribution of light bulbs. To learn more Click here.

And finally the number 911 has saved countless lives and now it will even be better. To read about this Click here.

So look around and see what you can innovate. You may be able to find something to improve where you least expect it, and often it is the unexpected innovations that make all the difference.

This blog was originally posted August 16, 2011.

Last Sunday was Mother’s Day in the United States, a day when mothers and others are recognized for the influence that they have in our lives.  This influence can also apply to innovation.  Someone, and most likely numerous people, helped you get where you are today.  Parents, teachers, mentors and others can open up new ideas and opportunities for us to explore and give us the possibility to innovate.  Edison recognized this in those who helped him, especially his own mother.  After you read this quote, take the time to think about those who taught you to innovate.  It would probably be a good idea to take the time to thank them for what they have done as well.

Young Thomas Edison

“I did not have my mother very long, but in that length of time she cast over me an influence which has lasted all my life. . .I was always a careless boy, and with a mother of different mental caliber I should have probably turned out badly.  But her firmness, her sweetness, her goodness, were potent powers to keep me in the right path.  My mother was the making of me.  She was so true, so sure of me; and I felt I had someone to live for, someone I must not disappoint.”  (From Edison Inventing the Century by Neil Baldwin, 1995)

In our study of innovation, I came across Wikipedia’s definition of innovation that is very insightful.  It states, “Innovation is the creation of better or more effective products, processes, services, technologies, or ideas that are accepted by markets, governments, and society. Innovation differs from invention in that innovation refers to the use of a new idea or method, whereas invention refers more directly to the creation of the idea or method itself.” (to see the entire article click here)

This is a very broad definition that may include ideas that one might not consider innovative, but it captures the idea that innovation is more than creativity or a new and exciting idea or concept.   Innovation requires acceptance by the user.  It may be a small group, or even a group inside your organization, but it is the acceptance of the invention that is the final link in innovation.

Edison's Vote Recorder

Edison recognized this when he attempted to make an electronic vote tabulator.  It was a new product that he thought would be well accepted, but he could not get a legislature to accept it.  What politician wanted a record of how they voted?  After this experience Edison recorded, “Anything that won’t sell, I don’t want to invent. Its sale is proof of utility, and utility is success.”

So as you work on your invention, make sure you keep in mind the last step required for innovation. “Will my end user accept this product or idea?”  Considering the end utility of the idea early on may make all the difference.

New York City is getting a new taxi. It is obvious that many different people discussed problems and issues that one could have in a cab ride and came up with many ideas for improvement. The new design has a number of enhancements from more leg room, to even smelling better. But when I first saw the vehicle I asked myself the question, “Is it innovative?

Change is not necessarily innovation, even when it is change for the better. So take a look at the attached video and let us know what you think; is this innovation, or just a better cab ride?

Thomas Edison was the most successful innovator in history.  His records are filled with ideas about how to succeed as an innovator.  Quite a few of our blog posts are based on his ideas.  As many of you know, we have been writing these blogs for about two years.  While you have been reading our posts, we’ve been watching the items on the blog that draw the most attention.  Quotations from Thomas Edison are among the front runners.  Because these ideas of Edison are scattered throughout more than 100 blog posts, they are a little hard to find.

To make it easier, we’ve written a short E-book filled with quotes from Thomas Edison.  Our original intent was to offer the book for free through Amazon Kindle.  However, that idea was not attractive to Amazon, so instead we are releasing the book today for their minimum price of 99 cents.  We think you will find it inspirational and insightful.  It isn’t long, but it is filled with suggestions about how to improve your innovation skills.  The quotations cover a wide variety of Edison’s thoughts on a myriad of subjects.  We’ve organized the book around principles Edison used along the road he followed on the way to his remarkable successes in innovation. 

You can find it at: Click Here

Enjoy!

A few weeks ago, we asked if ketchup could be innovative. Now we are going to ask if a vegetable can be innovative. Why not?

Several months ago one of my children asked me where baby carrots came from. While this is a much easier question than where actual babies come from, it was a question I couldn’t answer. Recently I ran across the answer and I was truly amazed.

In the mid 1980’s a California carrot farmer named Mike Yurosek was frustrated with the number of carrots he couldn’t take to market. A large percentage of carrots do not grow in the proper shape, the one we see Bugs Bunny nibbling on. These carrots are deformed or “ugly carrots.” Industry estimates are that one-third of carrots are not pretty enough to sell in stores. But, like many people, while they are not attractive on the outside, they are still great on the inside.

Yurosek searched for a way to sell the “ugly carrots.” He knew he needed to change their looks. At first he worked by hand. Soon he combined an industrial green bean cutter with an industrial potato peeler and created a small peeled product which he named baby carrots. He sold them to some stores and the baby carrots became an immediate hit. It is now estimated that baby carrots are a 400 million dollar a year product. To succeed, Yurosek left the path that everyone else followed and was clearly rewarded.

So yes, a carrot can be innovative. Yurosek used what was considered waste and with the help of a new process he created a new product that he took to market. Not as flashy as innovating in the high tech area, but still incredibly innovative. So, the question we should ask ourselves is what do we have sitting around or are throwing away that could become the great new innovation?

This blog was originally posted April 19, 2011

We often work with people who want to be more innovative and ask what they can do to become more innovative today.  While there are a number of skills and practices that can be improved, there is one activity that can quickly make the most difference.

This activity is closely related to creativity and imagination.  It is internal and difficult to judge.  It is the skill and discipline of taking time to think, ponder and use your imagination.  The world we live in moves pretty fast.  Information comes at us all the time from multiple sources and we can even carry it with us all the time.  But there is a cost to being plugged in all the time.  It can become dominating and addicting.  We take time to take in the information, but not necessary enough time to process it and ponder new and creative ideas.  Innovation takes time, but are we willing to take the time?  Edison said,  “The best thinking has been done in solitude. The worst has been done in turmoil.”

Here are several simple steps we can take to improve our ability to think, ponder and imagine: 

1. Unplug – This does not mean all the time, but  on a regular basis we do need to take occasional breaks from the onslaught of fast-paced information.   Create a time when you will not be interrupted and when you don’t feel you have to check your phone or email.
2. Go for a walk without the iPod – Let your mind spend some time without stimulation, get a little air, clear your head and see what can come from that.
3. Read something you enjoy – Read something that is not mindless, yet still gives you the opportunity to clear your mind and be open to new possibilities.
4. Take time to daydream – Innovators are dreamers.  Spend time in your imagination and dream of new possibilities and solutions.

 These simple steps can put you on a path to greater innovation.  They are simple in explanation but hard in implementation.  It you spend some time doing one of them you will be greatly rewarded.  So pick one and give it a try.  Send us a note and let us know how you do.

We have all heard stories about innovations that happened by accident.  Someone stumbles onto a solution to a problem they did not even know they had.  They turn this accident into a valuable innovation.  A question reasonably follows, “How can I have an accidental innovation?” 

As the video below shows, there seem to be two factors that usually contribute to an accidental innovation: 

1. The innovator is working hard at something.
2. The innovator looks at what he has found and is willing to be creative in application and open to a new idea. 

So how can you find your accidental innovation?  Keep working, you aren’t going to find your accident by just dreaming or sitting on the couch.  Then, once you find something new or unusual, be open to new possibilities.  You may have just found penicillin, Velcro or the next microwave.

One of Edison’s most famous quotes is “Genius is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration.”  Perspiration and work are common themes from Edison.  He put in long hours and stayed focused on the project at hand.  Edison also expected that those who worked with him and for him would work equally as hard as well.

But Edison was not just focused on the act of working.   He also focused on having a plan and executing the plan.  If one approach did not work, then he would come up with another one and try it.  Edison stated, “Being busy does not always mean real work. The object of all work is production or accomplishment and to either of these ends there must be forethought, system, planning, intelligence, and honest purpose, as well as perspiration. Seeming to do is not doing.”   To have value, work has to be focused, planned, and have a purpose.

So ask yourself the question, “Am I just busy or does my work have a purpose?”  If you are working hard without focus and purpose, then all your perspiration is just getting you wet.

In this blog and in our innovation programs we don’t emphasize leadership.  But leadership and innovation are tied closely together.  Steve Jobs stated that “Innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower.”   In fact, all successful innovators are leaders.  In addition, innovation is a key for a company to be a leader in the marketplace. 

That innovation leads to market leadership is easy to see.  The iPad is the best current example of how innovation can create a market leader.  The iPad was able to get into the tablet market first and everyone else is still trying to catch up. 

Innovation creates leaders.  For the most part, the study of innovators is the study of leaders.  To take your invention to market you will almost always need a team, and teams need leaders.  Edison is thought of as an innovator, rather than a leader.  But, he led everything from small research teams to multinational corporations.

So as you take time to improve your ability to innovate, look at yourself, your company or your team.  Are you prepared to lead innovation?  Improving your leadership may be the part of innovation that you are missing and the key to your success.