Thomas Edison

The movie camera, voice recorder, automatic telegraph, and the lightbulb—these are just a few of Thomas Edison’s 1,093 contributions to the modern world.

Hailed by Forbes as the ‘Elon Musk’ of his time, Edison is the most well-known inventor of all time. Here’s how he got his start.

Edison grew up in the Midwest, the youngest of seven children. He said, “There is no substitute for hard work.”  Like Kate Spade, he was instilled with a solid Midwestern work ethic.

Unfortunately, illness pervaded his youth; at 12, Edison lost most of his hearing due to scarlet fever. While this would’ve rendered many disabled, his hearing loss sparked an interest in mechanics, which he believed he could use to hear better.

Despite his obvious intellect, Edison was a very poor student. His grades were so bad that his teacher called him “addled.” His mother was furious when she learned of the incident and pulled him out of school.

She decided to teach him herself, organizing lessons and reading programs for him. Edison’s mother was a defining feature in his early life; he credits her with “the making of me.” She instilled in him a strong curiosity that bred his later success as an inventor.

In 1859, at age 12, Edison earned a job selling newspapers on the railroad to Detroit. He set up his first lab in the train’s baggage car, including a printing press, which he used to publish a newspaper for the railway.

He collected all profits from his paper, illustrating his early entrepreneurialism. Unfortunately, Edison set a fire during one of his experiments and was forced to stop.

Edison’s curiosity yielded an opportunistic spirit: At 15, he rescued a child from a boxcar about to hit him. The child’s father offered Edison a reward, but the teenager didn’t want anything material. He wanted to learn. So, the boy’s father offered to teach him railroad telegraphy.

For the few years that followed, Edison bounced from city to city, taking jobs in telegraphy and working on inventions on the side.

Edison grew tired of his nomadic lifestyle and was eager to pursue his inventions full-time. In 1869, twenty-two-year-old Edison left his job to do just that. That year, he received his first patent for an electric vote recorder. Despite the model’s effectiveness, politicians were apprehensive about his machine and refused to buy it.

This failure taught Edison an important lesson: He wouldn’t invent things no one wanted to buy in the future.  

Following the loss, Edison went to New York City, where he met his first and most formative mentor, Franklin Leonard Pope. Pope let Edison live in his basement, and the two founded their company in 1869.

Throughout the 1870s, Edison and Pope worked on multiple vital inventions, including the automatic telegraph and the electric pen. His telegraph invention proved profitable, and he sold it to Western Union for $10,000 (nearly $270,000 today).

Leveraging profits from his inventions and exercising his business acumen, Edison opened his famous laboratory, nicknamed the “Invention Factory,” in 1876 in New Jersey.

Two years later, Edison began work on his most famous and impactful invention, the electric lightbulb. Initially inspired by the public’s reliance on gas and oil, Edison saw a need for something with indoor use.

His inventions failed countless times—poor life and insufficient current made them difficult to use. Inspired by his early failure, Edison sought to resolve these issues to ensure the product was usable.

In 1879, Edison met J.P. Morgan, a powerful businessman. Morgan believed in Edison’s vision and understood its profitability. The two formed the Edison Electric Light Company to make “electricity so cheap that only the rich will burn candles.”

Edison said, “Genius is one percent inspiration, ninety-nine percent perspiration.” After thousands of prototypes, Edison realized that a bamboo filament answered his usability question.

Eager to demonstrate his work, he fitted Morgan’s New York City home with hundreds of new lightbulbs. Soon, Edison was flooded with orders for his invention, which he patented in 1880.

Leveraging advantageous partnerships was a key reason behind Edison’s success. Under Morgan’s guidance, Edison General Electric, formed from his light company, merged with the Thomas-Houston Company, forming General Electric.

Edison’s new firm cornered 75% of the U.S. electric market and made Edison very wealthy. Despite his affluence, Edison wasn’t keen on quitting yet. After the lightbulb’s success, he pivoted to cameras and motion pictures, designing the first movie camera, fluoroscopy, and rechargeable batteries.

Edison passed away in 1931 with a modern net worth of $170 million. He founded fourteen companies, including General Electric, which is ranked 52nd on the Fortune 500 today.

Here’s what we can learn from Edison about curiosity, prototyping, and pragmatism.

Lessons

Create space for continuous curiosity. Edison said, “To invent, you need a good imagination and a pile of junk.” I emphasize imagination: Throughout his life, Edison cultivated a strong imagination. Like Naval Ravikant and Taylor Swift, he cultivated imagination and curiosity through reading, which he enjoyed. But more importantly, he designed processes to center imagination and continued curiosity. When he announced his invention factory, Edison promised the public “a minor invention every ten days and a big thing every six months or so.” This factory was Edison’s curiosity playground; he stocked materials of all kinds to ensure the steady flow of potentially valuable ideas. Creating and differentiating a creative space was among the key reasons behind Edison’s success: His factory represented the reliable output of strong inventions cultivated by his curiosity and inventive mind. It also allowed for the congruence of work and the free exchange of ideas critical to maintaining a curious perspective.

Use mentorship to learn insights you can’t glean from schooling. It’s a wonder how Thomas Edison became so successful and widely regarded without a middle school education. Rather than traditional knowledge, Edison sought mentorship, believing it just as valuable, if not more so, than conventional schooling. Edison’s first notable mentor was his mother, whose wisdom and encouragement sparked his curiosity at a young age. As he grew older, he found mentorship in Franklin Pope, who allowed the struggling young inventor to sleep in his basement after days of tinkering with ideas. Pope shared Edison’s belief that “Nothing is impossible. We merely don't know how to do it yet,” the two formed a mutually advantageous partnership, designing the improved telegram together. Edison valued mentorship so much that he paid it forward and took Henry Ford under his wing. Edison was Ford’s hero, and he encouraged the future car champion to continue working at his craft.  This is one of the most important takeaways for people today: Mentorship allows users to hone in on their mentor’s mistakes and plan around them. Some of the most successful people in our age leverage mentorship: Mark Zuckerburg was mentored by Roger McNamee, and Elon Musk looked to Ben Franklin for wisdom. Mentorship provides insights traditional learning can’t. Those leveraging it glean otherwise inaccessible wisdom, yielding success.

Incorporate rapid prototyping to validate or dismiss ideas. Edison’s mind was iterative and always focused on continuous improvement. More so than many, he cultivated spaces and practices that allowed for rapid prototyping: He and his team created multiple (sometimes more than 50) prototypes of an invention, tested them all simultaneously, and improved those with solid qualities. Then, he started the process over again with another set. An iterative, carefully crafted design process centers the product at all times, allowing the user to discuss and develop optimal qualities that align with a given goal. This is one of the most essential features of Edison’s success: Rapid prototyping aligned with a critical goal dramatically optimized time. The practice also harnessed multiple feedback processes, furthering Edison’s goal of a useful product. Perhaps more importantly, the practice leveraged notions of failure, as quick failures revealed product design mistakes. While working on the lightbulb, Edison used this practice extensively, saying, “I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work.”

Use usability and pragmatism to filter ideas. More so than many other creatives, Edison’s upbringing and early failures instilled in him a pragmatic approach to his inventions. He believed, “Anything that won’t sell, I don’t want to invent. Its sale is proof of utility, and utility is a success.” His belief wasn’t necessarily rooted in financial notions but in his regard for the greater good. Edison sought to create inventions that were widely usable and beneficial to large audiences—he wanted as many people to benefit from his mind as possible. Things that “won’t sell” would’ve remained unused and unhelpful to the public. Edison’s goal aligns with many business owners: Provide tangible value and better consumers. This is one of the most important takeaways for curious people living today: While curiosity is a powerful tool of inspiration, it’s not rooted in practicality. Instead, balancing visionary thinking with reasonability is crucial: Maintaining a clear vision and a rational goal while exploring opportunities and tangential ideas yields more success than visionary thinking alone. As Edison said, “Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration.” Within that 99% perspiration is a concentration on practicality and market examination—these must supersede inspiration and curiosity.

Choose partners who possess the skills you don’t. Edison was known for his confident attitude, which sometimes bordered on arrogance. Despite this, he possessed a strong-than-usual estimation of his skills and competencies, undoubtedly a symptom of self-reflection. To that end, Edison chose employees and partners whose skills drastically contrasted with his own. For example, Edison’s business and people skills were relatively weak, and he struggled to monetize his inventions. He partnered with J.P. Morgan, a finance powerhouse with a robust network of New York’s elite, to commercialize his lightbulb invention. Even then, Edison knew he was only as strong as his partnerships. Partnerships in which the pair’s strengths contrast are often the strongest and most fruitful. Without Morgan’s input and influence, his invention might’ve remained a dream.

Thomas Edison Quotes

On hard work: “We often miss opportunity because it's dressed in overalls and looks like work”​

On success: “The three great essentials to achieve anything worthwhile are, first, hard work; second, stick-to-itiveness; third, common sense.”​

On satisfaction: “​Show me a thoroughly satisfied man and I will show you failure.”

On staying busy: “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, honest purpose, and perspiration. Seeming to do is not doing.”

On the future of science: “Science works slowly, even though it discover the marvelous, the unlooked for.”

On character: “What you are will show in what you do.”

On courage: “Be courageous. I have seen many depressions in business. Always America has emerged from these stronger and more prosperous. Be brave as your fathers before you. Have faith! Go forward!”

Weekly Challenge

Edison said, “Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.” This week, consider Edison’s lessons and determine how you can harness them into your life.

1. On continuous curiosity.
   • How do you currently cultivate curiosity?
   • What keeps you curious?
   • Identify 1-3 things you’re curious about. Determine a method to explore those as hobbies.

2. On mentorship.
   • Identify 1-3 mentors, dead or alive. Research them in depth.
   • Curate a few takeaways from that person’s life.
   • What will you gain from mentorship?

Speeches

• Interview with Thomas Edison on his birthday in 1931—One of a few remaining videos of the inventor.
• The Diary of Thomas Alva Edison—Edison’s diary transcript.
• Books by Edison, Thomas A. (Thomas Alva)---Edison’s surviving world.
• Thomas Edison on the Development of Electricity—A brief speech.
• Thomas Edison: Original Letters & Documents—Copies of Edison’s surviving letters.
• Speeches by Thomas Edison - 1929—A breif remaining speech.
• Oct 1888 -Thomas Edison "Around the world" speech (Remastered w/ transcript)---A speech transcript.

Videos

• Thomas Edison - Inventor | Mini Bio | BIO—A brief documentary.
• The Story of Thomas A. Edison—An extensive documentary.
• How Thomas Edison Changed The World—Edison’s cultural impact.
• Thomas Edison | Inventor and Entrepreneur Video—A PBS profile.
• Thomas Edison Documentary The Wizard of Menlo Park–A long-form documentary.
• American Icons: Thomas Edison | Full Documentary–Examines Edison’s life and career.
• Thomas Edison: America's Greatest Inventor | Biography Documentary—An extensive professional biography.
• A Day with Thomas A. Edison—Video footage of the inventor.

Book Recommendations

• Innovate Like Edison: The Success System of America's Greatest Inventor—Edison’s secrets of success.
• Thomas Edison: A Life From Beginning to End (Biographies of Business Leaders—An exhaustive biography.
• Edison—The inventor’s bestselling biography.
• Empires of Light: Edison, Tesla, Westinghouse, and the Race to Electrify the World—Edison’s most famous invention.
• The Florida Life of Thomas Edison—Edison’s dealings in Florida.
• Edison: A Biography—A classic biography.
• Edison: Inventing the Century–Includes insights from Edison’s notes and journals.
• Edison & the electric chair : a story of light and death—Edison’s most famous invention and failings.

Further Readings

• Edison's Early Years–Chronicles Edison’s childhood and early career.
• The medical mystery that helped make Thomas Edison an inventor–Key turning point.
• LESSONS FROM THOMAS EDISON—LinkedIn user examines lessons learned.
• Thomas Edison: The Electric Spark in an Industrial Era—Edison’s cultural impact.
• electricity—A history of Con Edison, Edison’s firm.
• Thomas Edison's Inventive Life—Edison’s career and major inventions.
• What Thomas Edison Can Teach Us About Perseverance, Hard Work & Time—Lessons learned.
• Thomas Edison—A brief professional profile.
• Edison the Man and His Life (Part One): The First 30 Years–Edison’s early life.
• Business: The Quintessential Innovator—Edison’s business genius.
• Edison Biography—Edison’s life and career.
• Thomas Edison's Near-Death Experience Set Him on the Road to Fame—Key facts and turning points.
• Thomas Edison—Extensive personal and professional biography.
• Thomas Edison, B.C. Forbes And The Mystery Of The Spirit Phone–Edison and networking.
• Thomas Edison: The Elon Musk Of His Era?---Forbes details key lessons.
• Lessons from the Fatal Business Mistake Thomas Edison Vowed to Never Make Twice—Edison’s major business failure and recovery.
• The Myth of the Edison-Tesla Spirit Phone Rivalry—Edison’s rivalry with Tesla.
• Thomas Edison—An extensive biography.
• The Real Nature of Thomas Edison’s Genius—The Atlantic details Edison’s success.
• Thomas Edison—MIT examines Edison’s impact.