Day 22: Isaac Newton

Note: I  found this unpublished post on Gerard’s site and have decided to publish it. Gerard was certainly a giant- using other people’s ideas to get ahead and stay motivated. After his accident, he read and re read the stories he has written and took inspiration from Sir Isaac Newton himself. Sue (Gerard’s wife)

Isaac Newton is famous for his 3 laws of motion.

What has not been so well known until recently is that this great scientist had a 4th law.

The 4th law is about a particular type of motion. It is about the motion called progress.

Sir Isaac was an outstanding scientist and mathematician. He literally changed the way we think about the world.

He revolutionized our ideas about. He invented the world’s first reflecting telescope.

He had an amazing insight into gravity as the sticky stuff that holds the universe together.

He invented calculus, making it possible for people to measure curved areas, determining the rate at which things change.

With his insights world knowledge took a giant step forward.

When he was pressed to explain how he could make so many important discoveries and inventions Isaac revealed how he practised the 4th law himself.

In the reply to the question he explained: “If I have been able to see further than others it is because I have stood on the shoulders of giants.”

There it is, in all its simple glory – a strategy for getting ahead from one of the greatest minds of all time.

Newton never belonged to the Wheel Re-Inventors Club. He saw no reason to start his thinking from scratch about anything.

He was not trying to re-invent the wheel. Other people had great ideas. He was happy to start his own thinking with those great ideas. He made phenomenal progress in his fields of thinking because he started with the very best ideas and worked from there. He got a new perspective on things by climbing up on the shoulders of giants.

Want to get ahead? Then find your giants. Don’t just admire them. Take their insight, their courage, their spirit of adventure and determination and make it your own.

One more thing you might like to consider. What was Isaac Newton doing under the apple tree? It would seem he was just sitting there letting his mind wander. He was not on Facebook or Twitter. If you are not coming up with deep, creative ideas maybe because you’re not allowing your mind to wander.

© 2020 well imagine that pty/ltd

All rights reserved. This story, or any part of it, cannot be copied or transmitted in any form without written permission from the author.

This story is an extract from one of the four books written by Gerard Stevenson.