When people say “necessity is the mother of invention” they usually mean that someone invented something new out of a need or desire to make it easier or better. Whether the person needed an easier way to turn on and off lights (a la The Clapper), or help customers get cash whenever they need it (the ATM, automated teller machine), there are lots of examples.
But in recessionary times, when people are laid off, jobs are scarce, so the “necessity” in their case is income. What’s different in cases like those written up in this article, is that in a lot of cases people already have the idea for a product or a business, what they lacked wass the courage or the funding or the confidence to take the chance – and getting laid of provided the motivation, the necessity to get off the couch and do it. People who fall on hard times have their backs against the wall, so they have nothing to lose, so why not take the chance on the idea.
One of the things that I particularly like about some of the stories in the article, is that the people are very practical about the risks they are taking. In the case of Lisa Marie Grillos, she hasn’t gone out to raise venture capital money for some big idea, she has set it up so that every product she sells turns a profit. This isn’t so different from the micro-loan idea you hear about that has been so successful in emerging markets, especially with women. These people are, in many senses giving themselves micro-loans, and with so low risk, if they fail, their failure isn’t catastrophic.
I am not at all surprised to hear that these people are successful. My question is how we can encourage more people to think in micro-loan mentality in terms of pursuing that idea they have and taking small, low risk steps to move them forward. I am confident there are lots and lots of great ideas for great little (and in some cases big businesses) and if we could motivate people to take that chance, even to partner with people to execute on their ideas, we would see a lot of really interesting and useful products, and I think that would go a long way to reviving the message that anything is possible in this country, if you just take a little risk.
It would be very interesting to me to hear your thoughts on how we can motivate more people to pursue their ideas.
-Ric
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