Speaking of Vacuums That Suck...

40 replies
...this guy failed 5,127 times when trying to create a vacuum.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/smal...9dc2ad263286c7

Many people would use this to justify their own going around in circles for years. But obviously, his failures were all met with adjustments, not just continually doing the same old thing.

Mark
#speaking #vacuums
Avatar of Unregistered
  • {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11712337].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Jonathan 2.0
    Banned
    Interesting article: Thanks Mark.

    "Failure is interesting -- it's part of making progress. You never learn from success, but you do learn from failure." -- James Dyson, British inventor
    I actually disagree with that. For example when inventing his Vacuum ... There would be little "successes" (learned from "failure") that ultimately contribute to the successful invention. (That's how I look at it, anyway.) Generally, speaking, we can learn from "success" as well as "failure".

    Thoughts?

    "We have to embrace failure and almost get a kick out of it," he noted. "Not in a perverse way, but in a problem-solving way. Life is a mountain of solvable problems, and I enjoy that."
    Yup. Love that advice.
    : )
    Signature
    "Each problem has hidden in it an opportunity so powerful that it literally dwarfs the problem. The greatest success stories were created by people who recognized a problem and turned it into an opportunity."―Joseph Sugarman
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11712397].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author Claude Whitacre
      Originally Posted by Jonathan 2.0 View Post

      Interesting article: Thanks Mark.



      I actually disagree with that. For example when inventing his Vacuum ... There would be little "successes" (learned from "failure") that ultimately contribute to the successful invention.
      These kind of stories are often positioned as thousands of failures...with success coming in one "AHA" moment.

      I know the Dyson story. He is an inventor and engineer by training. I met him at a trade show decades ago.

      The story is actually closer to this...he invested in a company that made a vacuum cleaner called the Fantom (We used to sell it). It was very similar in design to the later Dyson vacuum. Dyson made a few improvements. The biggest improvement he made was in the advertising and marketing. He invented a slightly different way to circulate the air inside the vacuum cleaner.

      Dyson also "invented" several other...unrelated products, mostly by taking a product and making a tiny change to make it his own, and advertising that change as the reason it worked.

      But he didn't create the vacuum cleaner himself.....or even the bagless vacuum cleaner himself. By the way, the advantage of a bagless vacuum cleaner is the story...not the cleaner itself. Literally making something that is a little different than what was available before is the secret. It doesn't even need to be an improvement. Just different. And then you exploit that difference in the advertising.

      And because a product is seen as new, it avoids commodity pricing, and avoids most of the competition comparisons.

      So the story is inspiring...but not really what happened.
      Signature
      One Call Closing book https://www.amazon.com/One-Call-Clos...=1527788418&sr

      What if they're not stars? What if they are holes poked in the top of a container so we can breath?
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11712410].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author Jonathan 2.0
        Banned
        Thanks for the insight Claude.

        Actually, I remember my Dad saying something very similar a few years ago ... (I guess that's often how it works? A lot of it is in the Selling and Marketing etc.?)

        [Added=]
        What do you think of the Adage: "An Entrepreneur takes something from a low level of 'productivity' to a higher level of 'productivity'?" Ultimately -- what's wrong with what Dyson did? Surely it's somewhat innovative? Or is it just how the "story" is presented that is "questionable?"
        Signature
        "Each problem has hidden in it an opportunity so powerful that it literally dwarfs the problem. The greatest success stories were created by people who recognized a problem and turned it into an opportunity."―Joseph Sugarman
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11712412].message }}
        • Profile picture of the author Claude Whitacre
          Originally Posted by Jonathan 2.0 View Post

          What do you think of the Adage: "An Entrepreneur takes something from a low level of 'productivity' to a higher level of 'productivity'?" Ultimately -- what's wrong with what Dyson did? Surely it's somewhat innovative? Or is it just how the "story" is presented that is "questionable?"
          My Friend.

          I don't know what to think of it...other than the statement is so broad that it may be meaningless. But maybe I'm missing something there.

          What's wrong with what Dyson did? Nothing that I can tell. I suppose it's innovative.

          But like with the vast majority of innovations 99% of the work has been done before the innovator takes a look at it.

          I don't even think of the story as questionable. It's presented in a light that makes it more motivational...more inspiring....and easier to accept.

          "He found a company that made a product that he added a few improvements to...then made money by positioning it as an invention". isn't as inspirational as the way the story was presented. I know this, Dyson worked tirelessly to promote his company. And determination can overcome many roadblocks.

          I love [B]Think And Grow Rich[B]. It holds plenty of real insights into what makes a person successful in business. But Hill invented most of the stories in his book. He really didn't interview Andrew Carnegie. And he didn't interview most of the people in the book.

          And throughout his life, Hill left a series of businesses gone bad, cheated investors, and failure. Hill died penniless.

          But the story in his books is what sells the ideas. And the ideas are mostly sound. And writing several books...and several complete courses....isn't nothing.

          I suspect that nearly all success stories are re-arranged, edited, emphasized, interpreted, and dramatized for effect.

          I used to have vacuum cleaner salespeople visit my store to see how I sold so many vacuum cleaners. I eventually stopped letting them visit. Why? Because the truth was boring. It looked like I was doing the same things they were, with very minor changes.

          These visitors were expecting to see a miracle, and what they got was competent selling and good marketing. Fun to read about...Boring as heck to watch in real time.

          I've met and talked in depth with dozens of highly paid speakers. Most were wealthy. Most were experts in some field. I was always struck by how ordinary these people were. How different from their public persona.

          The real take-a-way here is that it's the story that people want.....the magic. And even when it's not presented as magic, it's interpreted as magic. And that's why we get disappointed when we find the truth. Because we are looking for magic.

          By the way, Napoleon Hill wrote "There is no heroic connotation to the word persistence. But the quality is to the character of man what carbon is to steel". That sentence was first read by me when I was a teenager, and it made my heart race, and made my spine straighten a little more. It was just a sentence, out of a story. Sometimes the story is the most important part.
          Signature
          One Call Closing book https://www.amazon.com/One-Call-Clos...=1527788418&sr

          What if they're not stars? What if they are holes poked in the top of a container so we can breath?
          {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11712418].message }}
          • Profile picture of the author Jonathan 2.0
            Banned
            [DELETED]
            {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11712442].message }}
            • Profile picture of the author socialentry
              Banned
              Originally Posted by Jonathan 2.0 View Post

              "A cynic is a man who knows the price of everything, and the value of nothing."
              Your mission...


              is to accomplish...


              your mission...
              {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11712476].message }}
              • Profile picture of the author Mark Singletary
                Originally Posted by socialentry View Post

                Your mission...


                is to accomplish...


                your mission...
                I love that. Thanks.

                Mark
                {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11712482].message }}
              • Profile picture of the author Jonathan 2.0
                Banned
                Originally Posted by socialentry View Post

                Your mission...


                is to accomplish...


                your mission...
                Sorry -- just deleted that post. : (
                Signature
                "Each problem has hidden in it an opportunity so powerful that it literally dwarfs the problem. The greatest success stories were created by people who recognized a problem and turned it into an opportunity."―Joseph Sugarman
                {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11712594].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author DABK
        He also made them look different, the vacuum cleaners, more futuristic and more colorful.



        They stood out, and that helped too.




        Originally Posted by Claude Whitacre View Post

        These kind of stories are often positioned as thousands of failures...with success coming in one "AHA" moment.

        I know the Dyson story. He is an inventor and engineer by training. I met him at a trade show decades ago.

        The story is actually closer to this...he invested in a company that made a vacuum cleaner called the Fantom (We used to sell it). It was very similar in design to the later Dyson vacuum. Dyson made a few improvements. The biggest improvement he made was in the advertising and marketing. He invented a slightly different way to circulate the air inside the vacuum cleaner.

        Dyson also "invented" several other...unrelated products, mostly by taking a product and making a tiny change to make it his own, and advertising that change as the reason it worked.

        But he didn't create the vacuum cleaner himself.....or even the bagless vacuum cleaner himself. By the way, the advantage of a bagless vacuum cleaner is the story...not the cleaner itself. Literally making something that is a little different than what was available before is the secret. It doesn't even need to be an improvement. Just different. And then you exploit that difference in the advertising.

        And because a product is seen as new, it avoids commodity pricing, and avoids most of the competition comparisons.

        So the story is inspiring...but not really what happened.
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11712588].message }}
        • Profile picture of the author Claude Whitacre
          Originally Posted by DABK View Post

          He also made them look different, the vacuum cleaners, more futuristic and more colorful.



          They stood out, and that helped too.
          Yup.

          And he changed many of the parts so they were not interchangeable with other manufacturers. Very smart. That way, dealers had to buy parts from Dyson, and nobody else. And they could set the prices.

          Also, he gave the machines a 5 year warranty, and a very well done instruction manual. Inexpensive ways to greatly boost perceived value.

          I was speaking to a group of vacuum cleaner dealers years ago, they were complaining about Dyson. I told them that they should thank Dyson. He is advertising vacuum cleaners are a much higher price point that other manufacturers. So Dyson (and now Shark) are changing the price expectations of consumers for vacuum cleaners....that makes sales of higher end machines easier for all of us that sell vacuum cleaners.

          Advertising a product for more than any of your competition is also a really good way to separate yourself from the pack. And Dyson was the first to do it in vacuum cleaners sold in stores. My hat is off to Mr. Dyson.
          Signature
          One Call Closing book https://www.amazon.com/One-Call-Clos...=1527788418&sr

          What if they're not stars? What if they are holes poked in the top of a container so we can breath?
          {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11712613].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author Vitor Copywriter
        Thank you for sharing Claude!
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11712787].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author Odahh
      Originally Posted by Jonathan 2.0 View Post

      Interesting article: Thanks Mark.



      I actually disagree with that. For example when inventing his Vacuum ... There would be little "successes" (learned from "failure") that ultimately contribute to the successful invention. (That's how I look at it, anyway.) Generally, speaking, we can learn from "success" as well as "failure".

      Thoughts?



      Yup. Love that advice.
      : )
      Honestly

      There are failures. Then there is trying 100 different ways to do something to find the way to get the best results.

      The one that was the clear winner doesn't make the 99 others failures. The failure would be not repeatly doing that process. And sticking with the first thing that works. When it might be far less productive. Just to avoid failure.


      If nothing worked and no improvement was made that is failure. If it takes 1000 experiments to find one that works and the product then goes on to make huge profits . Then the 999 way s that did not work where not failures they where just ways that did not work.

      If you are going to innovate or invent you are going to do many things that just don't work. If it results in a product that sells and makes a profit that is success. If no product is a result or the product does not make a profit that is failure

      Practice,testing,training
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11713502].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author Jonathan 2.0
        Banned
        Interesting perspective Odahh. Thanks : )

        You may have heard of it ... However your post reminds me of this quotation from Thomas Edison: "I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work." Also, Tony Robbins said: "There is no such thing as failure: There are only results."

        Personally, I think every "failure" is just an opportunity to learn something.
        Signature
        "Each problem has hidden in it an opportunity so powerful that it literally dwarfs the problem. The greatest success stories were created by people who recognized a problem and turned it into an opportunity."―Joseph Sugarman
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11713668].message }}
        • Profile picture of the author socialentry
          Banned
          Originally Posted by Jonathan 2.0 View Post

          Interesting perspective Odahh. Thanks : )

          You may have heard of it ... However your post reminds me of this quotation from Thomas Edison: "I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work." Also, Tony Robbins said: "There is no such thing as failure: There are only results."

          Personally, I think every "failure" is just an opportunity to learn something.

          but wat if u u step on a landmine coz u were looking at ur iphone and die instantly
          {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11713702].message }}
          • Profile picture of the author Odahh
            Originally Posted by socialentry View Post

            but wat if u u step on a landmine coz u were looking at ur iphone and die instantly
            Typically it means your dead. It's most often the tragedies in life that happened in a moment. The good stuff usually takes a while to unfold
            {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11713783].message }}
        • Profile picture of the author Odahh
          Originally Posted by Jonathan 2.0 View Post

          Interesting perspective Odahh. Thanks : )

          You may have heard of it ... However your post reminds me of this quotation from Thomas Edison: "I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work." Also, Tony Robbins said: "There is no such thing as failure: There are only results."

          Personally, I think every "failure" is just an opportunity to learn something.
          The majority of the time actual failure just teaches you what not to do. But humans have the real bad habit of abandoning what works in their lives and putting their effort in trying to make things work that never will work.

          If Edison failed to invent the light bulb we would still have light bulb as several dozen people invented light bulbs about the same time. Air planes would have been invented without the write brothers.

          Edison not only had the team of inventors working for him he knew the value of a patent then he was also great at raising money and marketing.
          {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11713804].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Kay King
    What I learned from success is that it's a lot more fun than failure...
    Signature
    Saving one dog will not change the world - but the world changes forever for that one dog
    ***
    One secret to happiness is to let every situation be
    what it is instead of what you think it should be.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11712404].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Frank Donovan
    Of course you learn from success. You learn what works, you learn how to scale.

    Dyson learned from his success and went on to launch washing machines, hair dryers and air filters, to name a few.
    Signature


    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11712409].message }}
  • Although creating a vacuum is really an incredibly complex concept.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11712543].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author spartan14
    The key of succes its to never give up no matter what .People who are very succesful aply this strategy in their life
    Signature

    Admin note: Affiliate links are not allowed in paid user sigs

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11712599].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author Frank Donovan
      Originally Posted by spartan14 View Post

      The key of succes its to never give up no matter what .People who are very succesful aply this strategy in their life
      So do people who are unsuccessful. Perseverance only works if you persevere in the right direction.
      Signature


      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11712605].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author Jonathan 2.0
        Banned
        Originally Posted by spartan14 View Post

        The key of success its to never give up no matter what .People who are very successful aply this strategy in their life
        You understand it spartan14. And -- if you really apply that to your Life -- you will be super-successful.
        : )

        Originally Posted by Frank Donovan View Post

        So do people who are unsuccessful. Perseverance only works if you persevere in the right direction.
        Good point, Frank. However sometimes by taking action -- and not giving up -- a Person will discover the "right direction", as you said. As others have said: "You don't have to see the whole staircase -- just the first few steps."
        Signature
        "Each problem has hidden in it an opportunity so powerful that it literally dwarfs the problem. The greatest success stories were created by people who recognized a problem and turned it into an opportunity."―Joseph Sugarman
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11712608].message }}
        • Profile picture of the author Frank Donovan
          Originally Posted by Jonathan 2.0 View Post

          As others have said: "You don't have to see the whole staircase -- just the first few steps."
          Bit of a nuisance if those steps are taking you aboard the wrong plane.
          Signature


          {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11712609].message }}
          • Profile picture of the author Jonathan 2.0
            Banned
            Originally Posted by Frank Donovan View Post

            Bit of a nuisance if those steps are taking you aboard the wrong plane.
            Actually, that's a great point. I suppose what I meant was -- sometimes People find the right path/direction/etc. ... By taking action and persevering.
            Signature
            "Each problem has hidden in it an opportunity so powerful that it literally dwarfs the problem. The greatest success stories were created by people who recognized a problem and turned it into an opportunity."―Joseph Sugarman
            {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11712611].message }}
  • Always it is 'bout wherehence you may be sucked from outta emptiness.

    That is why carpets layah the ground beneath our feet like leaves from way tall trees dropped at random into nowan's apartments worldwide.

    My view?

    Guy got bought a snorkel as a kid an' was too scared to go actschwl swimmin'.

    I submit to evrywan here in muh logic.

    Hey, but dontchya jus' feel a tinge sumplace now I said 'bout the snorkel?

    Even if you nevah did, but you can't quite say for certain now what you might othahwisa didn't?

    Tellya, it is naht too difficult to track the mindset travail of a guy eschyood snorkels real young an' the same guy rockin' out on weirdsy noo science dooplicates of MOM dowin'your BEDROOM.

    Ain't it curvature always kinda bends stuff real straight?

    Tellya, if'n you gonna be sucked from outta emptiness, las' thing you want is no kinda parabola.

    (Less'n it so hot your sunglasses can't handle the light.)
    Signature

    Lightin' fuses is for blowin' stuff togethah.

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11712618].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Jamell
    Good point .He was building measuring and learning from his mistakes. In other words he was direct and intentional.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11712651].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author cars62
    Good article, thank you all, nice to meet you
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11713283].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Kay King
    "I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work."
    I have seen this quote posted so many times here - and on other platforms....but it's not an excuse for failure (which seems to be the point when it's posted).

    The failure isn't the point - it's that after 10k tries - he found a way to make it WORK. What the quote is saying is that AFTER you succeed, the number of prior failures is irrelevant.

    It doesn't mean if you have thousands of failures, you are right up there with Edison. His 10k failures would be totally irrelevant - and the quote nonexistent - had Edison not succeeded in the end.
    Signature
    Saving one dog will not change the world - but the world changes forever for that one dog
    ***
    One secret to happiness is to let every situation be
    what it is instead of what you think it should be.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11713872].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author Odahh
      Originally Posted by Kay King View Post

      I have seen this quote posted so many times here - and on other platforms....but it's not an excuse for failure (which seems to be the point when it's posted).

      The failure isn't the point - it's that after 10k tries - he found a way to make it WORK. What the quote is saying is that AFTER you succeed, the number of prior failures is irrelevant.

      It doesn't mean if you have thousands of failures, you are right up there with Edison. His 10k failures would be totally irrelevant - and the quote nonexistent - had Edison not succeeded in the end.
      Tesla succeeded in bringing the world alternating current. But failed at many other things and lived the last 30 years of his life in poverty.

      A success or a failure does not actually dictate the rest of the majority of people's lives . Or there are many people who attain success but then fail to translate that into permanent financial security.

      Take a Tom Brady has many successes and big failures. But the major accomplishment is avoiding repeated injuries and taking care of his health to continue to play at the level he does well past when other people abilities have declined
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11713886].message }}
      • Originally Posted by Odahh View Post

        Tesla succeeded in bringing the world alternating current. But failed at many other things and lived the last 30 years of his life in poverty.
        Who knows what were the turnin' points ran contrary to his othahwise inspired trajectory?

        Mebbe he was workin' on sumthin' coulda used one las' push.

        But he nevah figured the one las' critical detail.

        10 years into a rotten demise, an' he jus' run outtta the necessary spunk.

        Weird, bcs he was strugglin' with that next ideah nevah made it the day he stopped by the flea market.

        Was a guy there sold pictures.

        Nuthin' speshl, jus' birds an' stuff.

        An' sumtimes Tesla went without eatin' to buy one.

        Sum stoopid bird.

        An' he would look at it ovah an' ovah.

        An' nuthin' nevah happened inspirin'.

        Part from he was glad jus' to be lookin' at the bird.

        Till'n this day in the flea market.

        Bcs the market guy said, "gaht sumthin' speshl forya."

        What was Tesla expectin'?

        Anothah bird?

        He took one look at the rottin' flesh the market guy pulled outta a worn silvah tin, an' puked.

        "An ear?"

        The market guy tried summonin' Tesla ovah with a glint in his eye, but Tesla fled.

        "Dead artist!" called the market guy. "For sure gonna be big one day!"

        So Tesla nevah gaht to take that ear home.

        Nor place it on the mantel next to the pictures of birds he so loved.

        Nor eat it because he was starvin'.

        One protein hit from collectin' his next great ideah togethah, he meandered his way to what then transformed slowly an' terribly into inevitable doom.

        How else can nowan cuttin' off their own ear become a mattah of universal significance?
        Signature

        Lightin' fuses is for blowin' stuff togethah.

        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11713895].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author Jonathan 2.0
      Banned
      Originally Posted by Kay King View Post

      I have seen this quote posted so many times here - and on other platforms....but it's not an excuse for failure (which seems to be the point when it's posted).
      Hi Kay.

      I absolutely agree -- it shouldn't be used as an excuse for "failure" ... (That didn't actually occur to me.)

      Anyway, great point about the "failures" being irreverent after the ultimate success. : )

      That said, for me it also means that by figuring out what doesn't work, a Person can learn what does work. Also, was Edison's 10,000 attempts/experiments/etc. really "failures?" Or are they just part of the process of inventing something? (Similar to what Odahh said.) They're certainly not "personal failures" that many People attribute/experience.
      Signature
      "Each problem has hidden in it an opportunity so powerful that it literally dwarfs the problem. The greatest success stories were created by people who recognized a problem and turned it into an opportunity."―Joseph Sugarman
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11714055].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author Odahh
        Originally Posted by Jonathan 2.0 View Post

        Hi Kay.

        I absolutely agree -- it shouldn't be used as an excuse for "failure" ... (That didn't actually occur to me.)

        Anyway, great point about the "failures" being irreverent after the ultimate success. : )

        That said, for me it also means that by figuring out what doesn't work, a Person can learn what does work. Also, was Edison's 10,000 attempts/experiments/etc. really "failures?" Or are they just part of the process of inventing something? (Similar to what Odahh said.) They're certainly not "personal failures" that many People attribute/experience.
        I wonder if when people worry about failure or have fear of failure. The story they are telling themselves is that the failure. Will start a chain of events that ends up with the on the street in dirty clothes begging for spare change.

        That is more from drug use where people care more about the next high than doing anything to take care of themselves..

        You are far more optimistic than me about people. I see many people who are broken beyond the point that can functionally improve and I have befriended many who ended up passing on at young ages or around my age.

        I am blessed enough where what happened to me happened at younger age when enough research and information was available that I have been able to heal. I also didn't deal with any extreme traumatic events.

        Unless at this point I get hit by a car or get violently beaten to the point I suffer brain damage. I can improve the situation I am in. There are many people who are just broken and or in decline
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11714325].message }}
        • Profile picture of the author Jonathan 2.0
          Banned
          Hi Odahh: Thanks for the honest reply. : )

          Yeah I think you're right -- many times it's scenario/story People think in their minds about "failure" --- when most of the time it doesn't happen.

          I remember one time when I was having a breakdown and had to go to Hospital I said to my Dad over the phone: "Whatever happens, I'll be OK". And although it was another difficult time, ultimately I was OK. I honestly think People can come back from almost anything.

          Originally Posted by Odahh View Post

          Unless at this point I get hit by a car or get violently beaten to the point I suffer brain damage. I can improve the situation I am in. There are many people who are just broken and or in decline
          Exactly Odahh: That's a great way of looking at it. People can change their situations. No matter where a Person is in Life -- there's almost always something to be positive and grateful for.

          2C
          Signature
          "Each problem has hidden in it an opportunity so powerful that it literally dwarfs the problem. The greatest success stories were created by people who recognized a problem and turned it into an opportunity."―Joseph Sugarman
          {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11714343].message }}
          • Profile picture of the author Odahh
            Originally Posted by Jonathan 2.0 View Post

            Hi Odahh: Thanks for the honest reply. : )


            I remember one time when I was having a breakdown and had to go to Hospital I said to my Dad over the phone: "Whatever happens, I'll be OK". And although it was another difficult time, ultimately I was OK. I honestly think People can come back from almost anything.

            2C
            Unless there is severe trauma or drug damage that permanently alters the brain and someone can't come back.

            I don't want to be to harsh or excessively descriptive. As the other option is that some people choose to stay nasty and filthy. So no amount of outside help or money or attempt to help them improve.

            You are far more optimistic and hopeful about people than me. Being around these people and exposed to the reality. The casualties of a failed 50 year war on drugs and a failed 60 year war on poverty.

            Now the average job now lasts a few years. That is just the reality of the work environment today. Or is that failure.

            What it the average success for a modern entrepreneur or small business person includes a completely different business or way of doing business every few years

            So moving the conversation from failure/ failure to working in today's environment where almost all success will turn into failure. So there is a need to innovate and tinker and keep the failures small

            Ps my brother just called one of the people who was a friend growing up but I have not talked to much in almost 10 years. Died of a drug overdose on Monday. I think he was 43 . Was not actually shocked at all. He's been trying to die for quite a long time. No real loss to me just an example of why I think some people just can't be helped
            {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11714344].message }}
            • Profile picture of the author Jonathan 2.0
              Banned
              You're right Odahh. Some People can't be helped ... However many of them can.
              Signature
              "Each problem has hidden in it an opportunity so powerful that it literally dwarfs the problem. The greatest success stories were created by people who recognized a problem and turned it into an opportunity."―Joseph Sugarman
              {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11714353].message }}
              • Profile picture of the author Odahh
                Originally Posted by Jonathan 2.0 View Post

                You're right Odahh. Some People can't be helped ... However many of them can.
                Depends on your definition of help. Is it help that gets someone through the day . Or help that gives them a way to have a maintainable improved quality of life. That doesn't foster dependency
                {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11714354].message }}
                • Profile picture of the author Jonathan 2.0
                  Banned
                  Originally Posted by Odahh View Post

                  Depends on your definition of help.
                  My favourite definition is: "Make it easier or possible for (someone) to do something by offering one's services or resources."

                  Thoughts?
                  Signature
                  "Each problem has hidden in it an opportunity so powerful that it literally dwarfs the problem. The greatest success stories were created by people who recognized a problem and turned it into an opportunity."―Joseph Sugarman
                  {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11714355].message }}
                  • Profile picture of the author Odahh
                    Originally Posted by Jonathan 2.0 View Post

                    My favourite definition is: "Make it easier or possible for (someone) to do something by offering one's services or resources."

                    Thoughts?
                    What is the intended result of the help and what do you get from providing the help.

                    The world we live in is rapidly improving the basic standard of living for the majority of the people on it to where many poor people have greater conveniences and comforts than the majority of royalty and rich around the world through known history.

                    The range of spices and the amount of meat where would have cost a fortune just a few hundred years ago. Think about cellphones laptops free WiFi and low cost streaming services..

                    If houseing was not the main store of and only wealth that the majority of people in the western world have. We would easily find ways to provide low cost shelter to everyone. Covid blasted away many artificial limits that where causing health care to just get more expensive.

                    For people interested and actively working to improve their lives there are plenty of very profitable ways to help them.

                    For those not there is some charity you can give to to provide daily comfort and ease through a very tough situation.

                    People like dyson . The guy who created the instapot. Or the kuerig or air fryers. Even Jeff bezos with Amazon. Have probably done more to help people.
                    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11714455].message }}
                    • Profile picture of the author socialentry
                      Banned
                      Originally Posted by Odahh View Post


                      People like dyson . The guy who created the instapot. Or the kuerig or air fryers. Even Jeff bezos with Amazon. Have probably done more to help people.

                      but wat about vladimir putin
                      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11714516].message }}
Avatar of Unregistered

Trending Topics