Your dream is worth as long as it takes.
Welcome back!
When Chester Carlson was 14 years old he worked as a chief after school and on weekends to support of his family. At 17 years old he lost his mother to tuberculosis.
As a teenager he got a job working for a local printer, he traded his labor for a beat up old small printing press. He used the press to publish a little magazine for amateur chemists.
Carlson got his degree in physics and entered the job market; it was during the beginning of depression. Carlson applied to 82 companies for a job and he finally landed a job at the Bell Telephone Laboratories as a research engineer for $35 a week. Later during the height of the depression, he was laid off from Bell. Carlson earned a law degree as a patent attorney while working during the day. Eventually Carlson got a job at the Mallory’s patent department. At his work Carlson noted that there were not a lot of carbon copies patents. At the time the choices were limited to sending for expensive photo copies, or having the documents retyped. A thought came to Carlson: “It might be beneficial to an office to have a device that would accept a document and make copies of it in seconds”. For many months Carlson spent his evenings at the New York Public Library reading all he could and he began to experiments in his kitchen. It was then Carlson discovered electrophotography –later to be named xerography in his patent application filed in September, 1938.
Carlson began his work in putting his theory to practice working at his Lab, which was a rented room above a bar. His team was a German refugee named Otto Kornei and himself.
Carlson was the alone in seeing the value of xerography, he pounded the pavement for years in search of a company that would develop his invention. Between 1939 to 1944 Carlson’s invention was turned down by more than 20 companies. Even the National Inventors Council dismissed his work. Years went by without a serious nibble, he became discouraged and several times Carlson decided to drop his invention completely. But each time he returned to try again.
Finally in 1947, a small photo-paper company called Haloid (later to be known as Xerox), agree to develop a xerographic machine. It was not until 1959, twenty-one years after Carlson invented xerography, that the first convenient office copier using xerography was unveiled. It was a phenomenal success.
Today, xerography is a foundation stone of the worldwide copying industry, including Xerox and other corporations which make and market copiers and duplicators producing billions and billions of copies a year.
Carlson earned well over $150 million dollars from his remarkable invention. His determination kept him in the game for 9 years in order to find a developer for his invention, and another 12 years just to see his invention come to live. Total of 21 years of struggle, Carlson was called crazy over and over again. Then finally it pays off with fame, wealth and honor.
Your dream is worth as long as it takes.
Giovanna Garcia
Imperfect Action is better than No Action
Hi Gio .. I love that story.. perhaps there were so many ’spare’ people able to help the war effort and be available that companies obviously didn’t see the need.
Having started life as a secretary having to use carbon paper, then roneo machines (wax copies) I was so pleased when copiers came in .. it just made such a difference - and now just having one here at home for a few copies is so usfeul.
Thank you Mr Carlson!
All the best
Hilary Melton-Butcher
Positive Letters
Great post, as always. This is a great story and you make a really important point here. Sometimes dreams take awhile, but we should never give up. No matter how long they take, dreams are worth it. Thanks for the reminder!
http://positivelypresent.typepad.com
This reminds me of all the best selling authors who persisted despite hundreds of rejection letters.
Another lovely story. How many people would send out 82 applications, and walk the streets endlessly for a supporter for their idea? Great example here.
Giovanna, you find the best stories. That’s why I keep coming back. Never give up and ignore the detractors!
wow, what a story.takes a long time, but it makes it worth it. Probably not about the money aspect, but to proud of self.
This is a great story of sticking with your dreams… of never giving up on that which you believe in. Wonderful! Thanks so much, Giovanna, for sharing this!
Hi Giovanna, this is an inspiring story. How the power of determination leads us to reach our dream. Thanks for sharing, Giovanna.
Hi Giovanna,
Yet another inspiring story from you.
Someone once said that success consists of two percent inspiration and ninety-eight percent perspiration. Carlson’s story represents a wonderful example of what the ‘perspiration’ side of the equation can accomplish.
Another great example of an “Overnight Success” Thanks for sharing.
Hi Hilary
Im glad you liked the story.
It’s amazing how far we have come in this world. We wouldn’t be as far advanced as we are today technilogically if there weren’t people out there in this world motivated to succeed and their refusal to give up.
Giovanna Garcia
Imperfect Action is better than No Action
Positively Present
All dreams are worth it, no matter how big or small.
As you said, we need to keep going and never give up.
Thank you for your comment and for sharing your thoughts with us.
Giovanna Garcia
Imperfect Action is better than No Action
Hi Vered…
That’s right! You never know when you’re going to get that”YES”.
Thanks for your comment, and for sharing.
Giovanna Garcia
Imperfect Action is better than No Action
Hi Daphne,
It’s all about persistance, and how badly you want something.
It means a lot to me to have support from kind people, such as yourself.
Thank you for your comment and for joining the conversation.
Giovanna Garcia
Imperfect Action is better than No Action
Hi Dave,
What makes these stories great is the people behind them. They are the true motivators.
Thank you for your comment and for sharing your thoughts with us.
Giovanna Garcia
Imperfect Action is better than No Action
Hi Marius,
It is worth it! To be proud of yourself, and to never give up, is worth it!
Thank you for you comment and for joining the conversation.
Giovanna Garcia
Imperfect Action is better than No Action
Hi Lance,
Thank you for your comment and for sharing your thoughts with us.
That’s right….never give up. We all need to stick to our dreams.
Giovanna Garcia
Imperfect Action is better than No Action
Hi Arswino,
We can achieve anything if we are motivated and determined to succeed.
It means a lot to me to have support from kind people, such as you.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts with us.
Giovanna Garcia
Imperfect Action is better than No Action
Hi Andrew,
It means a lot to me to have support from kind people, such as you.
Thank you for your comment and for sharing your thoughts.
Giovanna Garcia
Imperfect Action is better than No Action
Hi Mark
It doesn’t matter how long it takes, sometimes it’s all about the journey to success.
Thank you for your comment and for sharing your thoughts with us.
Giovanna Garcia
Imperfect Action is better than No Action
Another great one - I swear you are a great “sister” site to mine. I love these!
Hi Christopher
You know it brother
I thought of you when I did this post, I am glad you like it.
Thanks for your comment and your support.
Giovanna Garcia
That’s a really good way to put it in perspective “your dream is worth as long as it takes.”
Maybe the lesson is that it’s the pursuit of dreams that matters more than the dream itself … and it’s what you become in the process.