Go Fishing

There is a popular story about Thomas Edison.  It goes like this:

Edison went fishing most days for about an hour, but it was obvious that he wasn’t very good at it.  Day after day, he continued to go fishing, but he came home empty-handed.  

Edison never caught any fish!

To an outsider, it would seem that all of those hours fishing were a total waste of time.  His ongoing efforts just didn’t pay off.  

Everyone knew that Thomas Edison was a great inventor and creative thinker, but maybe fishing simply wasn’t his talent.

However, Edison had a surprising explanation for his dedication to his fishing habit.

When asked why he continued to fish, even though he never caught anything, he let the secret out:  he went fishing, true enough, but he did not use bait.  

Edison didn’t catch any fish, because he wasn’t trying to.

In fact, he didn’t go fishing for the typical reason.  Instead, Edison went fishing as a way to have quiet time to think.  People didn’t bother him while he fished, so he could relax and focus.

Maybe it was the effects of relaxing outdoors, enjoying the water, or just having an hour to break up the work day, that made fishing so important to Thomas Edison.  

Whatever the reason, it worked for him, and we should take notes.  We all need some quiet time to think and to renew our creativity.