If it weren’t for Thomas Edison, where would we be?
What’s surprising is the man many consider to be the world’s greatest inventor was also the world’s greatest innovator. So what lessons can he teach us that we can still use today?
Despite being known for saying “Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration,” the true secret to his success, according to his great-grandniece, Sarah Miller Caldicott, was his approach to team-building.
This except in Fast Company from her book, Midnight Lunch: The Four Phases of Team Collaboration Success from Thomas Edison’s Lab, breaks it down:
Step 1: Capacity — build diverse teams of two to eight people.
What worked for Edison: To create the lightbulb, Edison’s team had to include chemists, mathematicians, and glassblowers.
Modern counterpart: Facebook’s small, collaborative coding teams.Step 2: Context — after a mistake, step back and learn from it.
What worked for Edison: At age 22, he had his first flop–the electronic vote recorder, which legislators failed to adopt. From there, he changed his focus to the consumer.
Modern counterpart: At Microsoft, Bill Gates took intensive reading vacations each year.Step 3: Coherence — when team members disagree, step in and make a decision.
What worked for Edison: Groundbreaking work in electricity isn’t easy to come by. Fights and frustration followed; overarching vision kept creation on track.
Modern counterpart: Whirlpool has “collaboration teams” to spark dialogue between departments.Step 4: Complexity — when the market shifts, change your direction–or face the consequences.
What worked for Edison: It was the era of electricity. Inventors ignored that at their peril.
Modern counterpart: The implosion of Kodak, which failed to adapt to market changes.