undred of these 12,000 are enshrined in the Hall of Fame, the ultimate sign of success. This honor is reserved for greatness. These are the players that generations remember.

Unconventional, unsafe, unpopular ideas that lead to ultimate success are the concepts we remember. Christopher Columbus is a major figure in history for reasons we all know. The Spanish court was inclined originally to have him interned for heresy in claiming the world was r

Almost every person in the world takes a certain pride in being a reasonable person. They will make prudent choices based on their background and attitudes. The safe decision minimizes the chances of being wrong. No one likes to be wrong.

The safe decision, however, carries little upside reward benefits. You are expected to pay your bills. Pay your taxes. Drive responsibly. Not yell fire in a theatre. Doing these things nets you no special extras.

All of the great ideas or advances in history have evolved from unsafe, unconventional ideas. The non-conventional idea always offers the higher reward, as well as higher risk. It is not the norm to be unsafe. It takes vision and confidence in the face of the usual chorus of criticism, doubters and opponents.

George Bernard Shaw said:

“The reasonable man adapts to the world.

The unreasonable man adapts the world to him.

All progress depends on unreasonable man”.

I concur. We all know men that were unconventional thinkers before their time. Thomas Edison, Leonard Firestone, the Wright Brothers, Da Vinci, Machiavelli, Levi Strauss, William Wrigley, Colonel Sanders, Saint Augustine, Bill Gates and so many more: these are examples of visionary men that thought outside the box to the benefit of all humankind. Their products, philosophies and advances were considered of dubious value when created. They were considered small thinkers and creators of insignificance, until the world turned their little ideas into big ideas with great fame and/or riches to follow.

Think of the Baseball Hall of Fame. Tens of millions of little boys have played baseball since the game was invented in the mid-19th century. Only about 12,000 men have ever played in the Major Leagues. This is a great achievement. Nevertheless, only a few hundred of these 12,000 are enshrined in the Hall of Fame, the ultimate sign of success. This honor is reserved for greatness. These are the players that generations remember.

Unconventional, unsafe, unpopular ideas that lead to ultimate success are the concepts we remember. Christopher Columbus is a major figure in history for reasons we all know. The Spanish court was inclined originally to have him interned for heresy in claiming the world was ro

All of the great ideas or advances in history have evolved from unsafe, unconventional ideas. The non-conventional idea always offers the higher reward, as well as higher risk. It is not the norm to be unsafe. It takes vision and confidence in the face of the usual chorus of criticism, doubters and opponents.

George Bernard Shaw said:

“The reasonable man adapts to the world.

The unreasonable man adapts the world to him.

All progress depends on unreasonable man”.

I concur. We all know men that were unconventional thinkers before their time. Thomas Edison, Leonard Firestone, the Wright Brothers, Da Vinci, Machiavelli, Levi Strauss, William Wrigley, Colonel Sanders, Saint Augustine, Bill Gates and so many more: these are examples of visionary men that thought outside the box to the benefit of all humankind. Their products, philosophies and advances were considered of dubious value when created. They were considered small thinkers and creators of insignificance, until the world turned their little ideas into big ideas with great fame and/or riches to follow.

Think of the Baseball Hall of Fame. Tens of millions of little boys have played baseball since the game was invented in the mid-19th century. Only about 12,000 men have ever played in the Major Leagues. This is a great achievement. Nevertheless, only a few hundred of these 12,000 are enshrined in the Hall of Fame, the ultimate sign of success. This honor is reserved for greatness. These are the players that generations remember.

Unconventional, unsafe, unpopular ideas that lead to ultimate success are the concepts we remember. Christopher Columbus is a major figure in history for reasons we all know. The Spanish court was inclined originally to have him interned for heresy in claiming the world was r

l progress depends on unreasonable man”.

I concur. We all know men that were unconventional thinkers before their time. Thomas Edison, Leonard Firestone, the Wright Brothers, Da Vinci, Machiavelli, Levi Strauss, William Wrigley, Colonel Sanders, Saint Augustine, Bill Gates and so many more: these are examples of visionary men that thought outside the box to the benefit of all humankind. Their products, philosophies and advances were considered of dubious value when created. They were considered small thinkers and creators of insignificance, until the world turned their little ideas into big ideas with great fame and/or riches to follow.

Think of the Baseball Hall of Fame. Tens of millions of little boys have played baseball since the game was invented in the mid-19th century. Only about 12,000 men have ever played in the Major Leagues. This is a great achievement. Nevertheless, only a few hundred of these 12,000 are enshrined in the Hall of Fame, the ultimate sign of success. This honor is reserved for greatness. These are the players that generations remember.

Unconventional, unsafe, unpopular ideas that lead to ultimate success are the concepts we remember. Christopher Columbus is a major figure in history for reasons we all know. The Spanish court was inclined originally to have him interned for heresy in claiming the world was r

ubious value when created. They were considered small thinkers and creators of insignificance, until the world turned their little ideas into big ideas with great fame and/or riches to follow.

Think of the Baseball Hall of Fame. Tens of millions of little boys have played baseball since the game was invented in the mid-19th century. Only about 12,000 men have ever played in the Major Leagues. This is a great achievement. Nevertheless, only a few hundred of these 12,000 are enshrined in the Hall of Fame, the ultimate sign of success. This honor is reserved for greatness. These are the players that generations remember.

Unconventional, unsafe, unpopular ideas that lead to ultimate success are the concepts we remember. Christopher Columbus is a major figure in history for reasons we all know. The Spanish court was inclined originally to have him interned for heresy in claiming the world was r

undred of these 12,000 are enshrined in the Hall of Fame, the ultimate sign of success. This honor is reserved for greatness. These are the players that generations remember.

Unconventional, unsafe, unpopular ideas that lead to ultimate success are the concepts we remember. Christopher Columbus is a major figure in history for reasons we all know. The Spanish court was inclined originally to have him interned for heresy in claiming the world was round. Ultimately he convinced Queen Isabella to let him prove his theory and bring riches to the court. His success against huge odds is an excellent example of unsafe thinking leading to great entrepreneurial success for him and Spain.

Amerigo Vespucci arrived in the new-world second and, even though America is a turn on his name, he is a footnote in history. Martin Luther is famous still for his organizing the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century. The Hugenots, another Protestant sect, followed later in France. Who founded the Hugenots? Who remembers? It does not pay to be a follower.

Throughout history there are examples such as these where a person went out on a limb and society ultimately enjoyed the benefits. Safe decisions and following the crowd do not create opportunity.

Abraham Lincoln was a leader willing to broach unsafe thought. The mere idea that the Union could be sundered by the idea of freeing men from bondage seems absurd today. That a civil war resulted was a terrible price to pay. But Lincoln knew that slavery was vile and unsustainable for a modern, growing country. He is revered ‘til this day for his honesty, courage and steadfastness.

Fred Smith founded FedEx, the overnight package delivery service, with a very unsafe, unconventional idea. He wanted to take on Big Brother, the Federal Government, the classic snail mail service subsidized and delivered by the United States Post Office. He faced unimaginable hurdles. Huge capital formation needs, access to commercial airports, hard fixed overheads, licensing, etc. were huge barriers to entry. The idea was panned. He started with one, very sued plane.

Mr. Smith knew he had identified a niche that was completely under-served and corporations would run to utilize. The disruptive innovations FedE