Edison on the Three Things That Are Most Essential to Achievement

With regards to the stupidity, the cluelessness, and the uncouthfulness of the general U.S. population (compared with the sophistication of the far wiser Europeans, not to mention the innumerable Nobel prizes that the latter have won which cause boundless jealousy and resentment among American scientists), it is helpful to recall that today is the birthday of Thomas Alva Edison; with regards to what the European social system promises its citizens, it is hardly useless to remember that the inventor (1847-1931) said that

The three things that are most essential to achievement are common sense, hard work, and stick-to-it-iv-ness.

In addition, he said that

There is no expedient to which a man will not go to avoid the labor of thinking.

Genius is one per cent inspiration and ninety-nine per cent perspiration. Accordingly, a "genius" is often merely a talented person who has done all of his or her homework.

Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.

Personally, I enjoy working about 18 hours a day. Besides the short catnaps I take each day, I average about four to five hours of sleep per night.

I never perfected an invention that I did not think about in terms of the service it might give others.

I find out what the world needs, then I proceed to invent.

My principal business is giving commercial value to the brilliant — but misdirected — ideas of others.

I never pick up an item without thinking of how I might improve it. I am not overly impressed by the great names and reputations of those who might be trying to beat me to an invention. Its their ideas that appeal to me

I readily absorb ideas from every source, frequently starting where the last person left off.

I am quite correctly described as "more of a sponge than an inventor."

A good idea is never lost. Even though its originator or possessor may die without publicizing it, it will someday be reborn in the mind of another.

The first requisite for success is to develop the ability to focus and apply your mental and physical energies to the problem at hand — without growing weary. Because such thinking is often difficult, there seems to be no limit to which some people will go to avoid the effort and labor that is associated with it

I never did anything worth doing entirely by accident.

Almost none of my inventions were derived in that manner. They were achieved by having trained myself to be analytical and to endure and tolerate hard work.

Sometimes, all you need to invent something is a good imagination and a pile of junk.

Most of the exercise I get is from standing and walking all day from one laboratory table to another. I derive more benefit and entertainment from this than some of my friends and competitors get from playing games like golf.

If we all did the things we are really capable of doing, we would literally astound ourselves.

Our schools are not teaching students to think. It is astonishing how many young people have difficulty in putting their brains definitely and systematically to work.

I have far more respect for the person with a single idea who gets there than for the person with a thousand ideas who does nothing.

Just because something doesn't do what you planned it to do doesn't mean it's useless.

Many of life's failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up

Results! Why, man, I have gotten a lot of results. I know several thousand things that won't work.

My main purpose in life is to make enough money to create ever more inventions.