“Focus on the problem to be solved and find a solution, without ever being afraid of failure. This is how a creative process is born and develops,” he says. Tony Fadell, serial inventor with an endless resume, with some highlights that weigh more than others, such as the invention of the iPod and the co-invention of the iPhone. “I create revolutionary products because I have focused on the problem and the solution. When I was a DJ, I didn’t like carrying records with me, that’s why I invented the iPod,” Fadell tells WIRED on the occasion of his participation in the World Business Forum (WOBI , for its acronym in English), in Milan, Italy.
To succeed, you have to fail
Fadell is director of the Build collective and author of best-seller Build: An Unorthodox Guide to Building Your Success (Build: An Unorthodox Guide to Building Your Success)a manual to learn how to create objects that leave a mark. “The creative process is never linear, I have failed many times, I have learned from those mistakes and I have tried again. Doing, failing and learning is how I have become the builder and innovator that I am,” emphasizes Fadell. He adds that failure is not only valuable, but also essential.
Addressing young inventors, indicates that “if you don’t fail, you’re not trying hard enough, and if everything works easily, what you’re doing probably isn’t all that innovative.”. The failure that matters is the one that serves a greater good, the solution to a real problem. He tells WIRED that the best failures of his career are the ones that forced him to completely rethink something and dissect the problem in a different way: “Of course it’s annoying, but it’s a process that leads to great progress.”
The ability to question one’s own beliefs goes hand in hand with team management skills. Because no one is a complete genius and nothing is done alone: ”Honesty is the best policy: the best teams have confidence. When I face a great difficulty, instead of thinking too much and wasting time trying to unlock it, I start to divide it into smaller pieces that, as a team, we can start to address. He affirms that on difficult days is when you have to work side by side the most; Even small struggles are victories: “Solving problems is difficult. If innovating were easy, everyone would do it.”
According to the Kinshasa government, materials from mines controlled by armed groups are used in mobile phones and other devices. Apple denies any involvement.
How you choose where to invest
Tony Fadell is also a respected investor in startupsHowever, it is not a piece of cake to convince him to bet on a launch. “I want to see how they think about the problem they want to solve; understand when and how they have failed and why. This is how success is born. I am looking for an all-star team: I am not talking about people with an extensive CV, but rather people who are passionate the problem so much that they can’t leave it until they solve it. He looks for founders who are persistent in difficult times, who know how to accept criticism, and “people willing to accept the challenge even when things don’t look good.”
“Team strength is no substitute for a good idea. You need a great team with the right problem to solve,” he reflects. Just because you have a great team doesn’t necessarily mean they are working on an important problem. And vice versa, a great idea does not equal the success of a mediocre team.
Many speculate about what the next frontier of technology will be. Fadell says: “The climate.” If we do not take big steps forward, life as we know it here on Earth is in danger.” He concludes that, even if we create technologies that help us solve problems, we will have to change human behavior at its roots. “It is not about trends or AI: we have to address what threatens our very existence, the depletion of resources and the destruction of the planet.
Article originally published in WIRED Italyadapted by Alondra Flores.
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