Summary: Innovate Like Edison

Book excerpt: The must-read summary of Michael Gelb and Sarah Caldicott's book: "Innovate Like Edison: The Success System of America’s Greatest Inventor" This complete summary of the ideas from Michael Gelb and Sarah Caldicott's book "Innovate Like Edison" shows that Thomas Edison is the greatest innovator in American history: he generated a record-breaking 1,093 US patents and 1,293 international patents over 62 successive years. He founded the world’s first research lab and General Electric. These have formed the basis of some of today’s billion dollar industries. This summary shows the results of the research of Edison’s competencies and strategies. It suggests that his exceptional innovations skills are based on five competencies and twenty-five best practices. It recommends such strategies as developing a solution-centered mindset, harnessing mastermind collaboration and focusing intensively on creating value. These general suggestions are broken down into practical measures: it explains how to create the best multi-disciplinary teams, and why you should recruit the best possible people. They believe in rewarding collaborators generously, and discuss the best ways to network. "Innovate like Edison" also includes tactical, long-term advice, such as when to consider up-scaling. Added-value of this summary: • Save time • Understand key concepts • Increase your business knowledge To learn more, read "Innovate Like Edison" and discover Thomas Edison's systemic approach, and how to implement it.