Thomas Edison is the epitome of persistence and creativity. With more than a thousand patents in his name, he never considered any of his failed experiments to be in vain because he "found 10,000 ways that don't work." He sought out patterns and connections to conceive life-altering inventions, like the incandescent light bulb, phonograph, motion picture camera and storage battery.
Last week, I was fortunate enough to attend the third annual TEDxPeachtree event in Atlanta, an enlightened forum for "ideas worth sharing." You can learn more about this amazing organization here.
One of the presenters was Sarah Miller Caldicott, a descendant of Edison, business consultant and author of Innovate Like Edison and Inventing the Future. Here are three bright ideas that Edison employed, followed by my comments.
- Draw Your Ideas. When you create an actual picture of what you want to manifest--whether it's an organization chart for your new business or a reward for success like a new car or home, images make it more real. Your subconscious mind will seek out opportunities and resources to prove that it's true. That's one of the reasons the practice of mind mapping is so powerful.
- Think in Analogies. When you compare two unlike things, you employ whole-brain thinking and trick it into providing new insights. Edison knew a lot about how a telegraph worked and wanted to know more about electricity, so he asked, "How is electricity like telegraphy?"
- Indulge in Science Fiction. Edison was a big fan of Jules Verne, the author of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and other sci-fi classics. Reading these stories increased his scope of what was possible. Try writing your own story as a science fiction novel to stretch your imagination and strengthen your problem-solving skills.
Taking breaks from work, talking with big thinkers, listening to classical music and deciphering puzzles are other ways to stay innovative. How do you come up with bright ideas?
Please take a moment to share your wisdom by posting it on my Facebook Page. As an added incentive, I will select one person at random to receive downloadable, electronic copies of both my "Divine Wisdom at Work" book and audio book. The deadline is Friday by 5 pm (ET). I love hearing from you!
Congratulations to James Barrett, for posting his affirmation and being last week's random winner.
To Your Wisdom,
Tricia
770.565.1231
www.triciamolloy.com
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