Though Nikola Tesla was known for his outlandish ways as much as he was for the amazing contribution he made to technology, there are a number of lessons to be learned from a man like himself. He may not have been your typical gregarious and successful businessman, but he understood about having a strong value for one’s self and fighting for deserved recognition (which if you’ve ever had a good idea, you’ve probably suffered this). Tesla wanted to impact technology in a way that all could benefit from it, but it was a long and difficult journey getting to that point. Here’s what we’ve gathered about how he did it.

“All that was great in the past was ridiculed.”
As unfortunate as it may be, he was right about that fact. All brilliant ideas and concepts have to persevere through an enormous amount of tests and ridicule before proving themselves to be true. Let’s face it, no matter how great the change may be, humans simply don’t like change. Nine times out of ten we’d rather remain in our routine, but inefficient ways, than have to adjust to something unfamiliar, but advantageous. Does this mean change should be avoided? Absolutely not! Great minds like that of Nikola Tesla not only embrace change, but seek it out. So above all—don’t allow ridicule to stop your momentum.

“I have not failed, I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.”
Tesla was certainly resolute. If he felt something could be done, it then had to be done. No matter what scientific ‘fact’ it went against, he was up to the challenge. Nikola Tesla was so confident in his own ideas that he is even famous for going up against his financiers, and not slowing down when others doubted him.

“The scientific man does not aim at an immediate result.”
Every successful entrepreneur needs one thing: patience. It’s unfortunate the amount of people that quit right before success strikes. Many inventors lack this important quality. They dream up a quick idea, and in the peak of their excitement, they attempt their invention. But not always does it end with the result they expect. Rather, Tesla believed in constructing and testing things in his mind until he was fully prepared to turn it into something physical. “It is better to make mistakes now, before we begin,” he stated. By demonstrating patience in all aspects of his career, Tesla saved himself time and resources.

“I do not think you can name many great inventions that have been made by married men.”
Okay, so he may have been solitudinous to a fault. But there are several lessons we can learn from this aspect of his personality. First of all, he had great value for himself and his time. He once stated: “Most persons are so absorbed in the contemplation of the outside world that they are wholly oblivious to what is passing on within themselves.” Fortunately, this was not a problem for Tesla. He was a lone wolf who loved his solitude. But like all things, it’s important we find a balance with this. While his isolated lifestyle proved useful for his work, he did show some feelings of regret towards it later on in his life.

Nikola Tesla demonstrated some of the profound qualities of a successful entrepreneur. He was relentless in his ideas, but patient when it came to executing them. But it takes more than just a strong sense of motivation to make someone a success. We believe it takes the one thing Tesla lacked: a team. Click one of the links below to learn more about making your company more productive as a whole, or contact us to see how our solutions can optimize your time.