Unintended Benefits
By Peter LloydWhenever an innovation comes along, the conscientious inventor always should consider the unintended harm or disadvantages the invention might bring along with its benefits.
Insect repellants, food preservatives, the internal combustion engine, the ubiquitous cell phone, and leaf blowers all make our lives better but not without trade offs.
Most of us weigh the benefits against the drawbacks and decide whether or not we want any part of the latest new thing. Unfortunately there are those who resist change automatically and irrationally. And they seem to have no trouble rattling off the cautions connected with any innovation--from costs to catastrophe--real or imagined.
Sometimes a barrage of bugaboos can kill an innovator's creative spirit. It's almost impossible to address every objection to your new idea, especially the emotional ones. It's better to retaliate with your own barrage of your invention's unintended as well as intended benefits.
For example, colleagues of mine who advocate for equal access for people with disabilities have to address concerns about spending money to accommodate a minority. They've learned to point out that steps taken to help the disabled also help the able-bodied.
Curb ramps for wheelchairs also assist people pushing baby buggies and cyclists. I know that when I want to enter a downtown building with my bicycle, the automatic door button makes it a lot easier.
A natural insect repellant that contains what wild tomato plants use to repel pests, turns out to be almost as effective as the most effective repellant DEET. Drawback--it doesn't last as long as DEET, so you have to apply three times more often. But then it's natural and harmless, so the extra applications are not a problem.
We can take this innovation one unintended benefit further. Since it's natural, you not only have to use it more often, you just might want to. And when we encourage liberal, care-free application in places where mosquitoes deliver malaria, we could save lives.
Peter Lloyd is co-creator with Stephen Grossman of Animal Crackers, the breakthrough problem-solving tool designed to crack your toughest problems.