Chester Carlson with the first model of his invention, the Xerox copier. Undated photograph. BPA2# ... [+]
It can be quite easy for leaders to be unaware of, or even blind to, their team members' contributions and ways of thinking. If you fail to build relationships with your team as a leader, it will be challenging to acknowledge the contributions of your team members or express gratitude for the difference they have made.
When it comes to their ideas and ability to see the big picture, it can also be difficult to determine whether or not the team members believe they are being treated fairly if you're aloof as their leader.
And what if they have an idea that could take your company in an entirely new and productive direction?
Your involvement as a leader with your team members can make a difference in how appreciated people feel about their workplace, depending on how you communicate, give credit, involve, collaborate, or develop ideas. If they're not feeling regularly respected, team members will find it challenging to be their best. And this may not only squash their imagination and innovation, but the very ideas they've come up with may also find themselves a home elsewhere.
The classic story of Chester F. Carlson offers further insight.
Throughout the 1930s, Carlson worked long hours at the New York electronics firm P.R. Mallory Company, where he worked in the patent department. Then, because his back hurt from arthritis and he was getting tired of writing out each patent's unique technical details by hand to make copies for other people, he came up with a plan.
Without the need for manual drawing, how might technology enable the production of facsimiles?
In other words, could Carlson possibly create the modern-day photocopier?
After a lot of research, testing, and stinky lab work in his apartment, he made the first electrophotographic image machine. Indeed, Carlson invented electrophotography – the photocopier.
He wasn't an idiot, either. Given where Carlson worked, he quickly patented the idea. Several other patents were to come from him as well, based on the technology he invented. Over a period of six years, he then went to over 20 different firms offering the rights to his invention. He got turned down every time. Even the famed National Inventors Council of the U.S. Government sent him packing. How valued do you think Carlson felt in those meetings?
In a 1965 interview with Joseph Ermenc, Carlson highlighted his ordeal.
"After talking to several people in the industry, I found that my little crude demonstration did not impress them. A technical person could usually understand it, but few saw its potential. People in business were not very impressed with it. It was hard to find anyone who could visualize what could be done toward the engineering development of the process. Some seemed interested but never entirely committed."
Over six years, 20 different firms—including the National Inventors Council—dismissed Carlson's idea. Not one of them appreciated his thinking.
Carlson became a multimillionaire, but it wasn't because he won the lottery. Instead, it was because in 1947, a company called Haloid bought the patent for his copying process. That company changed the term 'electrophotography' to 'Xerography' and eventually changed its name to Xerox.
Yes, Xerox.
In 1958, the first office copier found its way into the workplace. The rest is photocopier history. And it made Carlson a wealthy man.
It's critical to remember that many great ideas are not apparent at first but could be revolutionary over time. For example, your team members might not invent the world's first office copier. Still, if you take the time and make the space to appreciate and acknowledge their contributions and ideas, you may find something that will be very important for your organization in the future.
When you consistently value your team member's input, extra effort, and desire for open-ended "could this maybe work?" conversations, there is the possibility of positive spoils on the other end.
No matter what people do at your organization, whatever their role or title, you must believe they might possess great ideas and new thinking. Therefore, they must be valued for their contributions, whether potential or otherwise.
Which begs the question: As a leader, what are you doing to appreciate your employees' thinking and ideas?
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Pre-order my next book publishing in October, Work-Life Bloom: How to Nurture a Team That Flourishes, (You won’t want to miss digging in.)
