The Blunder that Founded 3M
Not only do blunders often stimulate innovative ideas, many times they also mark the beginning of highly innovative companies. One such company, which is known for its innovativeness is 3M (Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company).
3M was founded in 1903 on a gigantic mistake by a doctor, a lawyer, two railroad executives, and a meat-marketing manager. They invested in a piece of land which supposedly contained corundum (an abrasive used for manufacturing sandpaper). It was only after they started mining that they found that what they had was a worthless mineral with no use to sandpaper manufacturers. The only way to survive for the company was to invent uses of whatever it had - which it did by innovating products such as abrasive cloth for metal finishing, waterdry sandpaper, etc.
It is not surprising that many of the 3M's 62,000 innovative products have emerged from mistakes (e.g., post-it pads), and its corporate philosophy was described by its erstwhile CEO, Lew Lehr:
"We have continued to accept mistakes as a normal part of running business... It's important to add, however, that we expect to have originality in our mistakes. We can afford almost any mistake once."
*****
| 