‘Necessity is the mother of all inventions’. This statement has been true over the course of history. There was the need for fire, so man created it. There was the need for a stake to be used to catch fish and wild animals, so man came up with it. Then someone saw the need for a wheel, so this was created. On the internet and on books one can read millions of stories of inventions that have changed the course of history which improved the lives of humans and have even changed the world. Can you imagine what the world would be like today if electricity was never discovered or harnessed? We can clearly see that all inventions were firstly imagined by people, who dared to be different and then were created into products. Therefore man by nature is an inventor.
Out of the need to solve a problem an individual may encounter everyday or he sees regularly, he thinks deeply about this problem and formulates a solution in his mind. This solution may be a tool or gadget to solve a problem or a series of problems. The solution may be a different way of doing steps or processes to solve problems. Either way, problems are solved or lives of individuals are improved. An individual can have an idea for a solution to a problem in his mind, write it on paper, draw a diagram and explain the steps. Many people see these ideas as pictures in their minds, so it is easy to put these on paper. If he does not have the manufacturing capability, he can partner with a manufacturing company to get the product built and brought to customers.
We all know about great inventors like Thomas Edison, Nikola Tesla, Henry Ford, Karl Benz, Alexander Graham Bell, Benjamin Franklin, Leonardo De Vinci, Eli Whitney, George Washington Carver, Johannes Gutenberg and Alfred Nobel just to name a few. I will recommend to the readers of this book to research on the internet a list of names of great inventors and read their biographies to get an idea how they lived their lives, how they think and how they come up with solutions to practical and theoretical problems. Once you get an understanding of their lives, you will be able to understand how they became great inventors. Plus you will be able to apply some of their wisdom and perspectives to solve problems, instead of seeing problems and no solutions or creating problems for yourself and others.
The right frame of mind will enable anyone to solve a problem. Once an individual develops a solution oriented frame of mind, he can easily see solutions instead of problems. The average person around the world is quick to complain, find faults, nag and annoy others with existing real or imagined problems. The perspective of such individual is such that he cannot see beyond any problem, cannot offer any solutions or even make any attempt to solve any problem. You would know who they are in the community and at the workplace. On the other hand, a minority of individuals around the world who can see beyond an existing fault and problem, will postulate solutions in their minds and make an attempt to solve these problems. Hence, this is the mindset of any inventor.