---
title: "“Who would pay for a message sent to nobody in particular?”"
canonical: https://jimcarroll.com/2011/01/who-would-pay-for-a-message-sent-to-nobody-in-particular/
updated: 2021-02-01T11:13:48+00:00
---

# “Who would pay for a message sent to nobody in particular?”

One of the biggest challenges in being an innovator is keeping faith in your belief as to where trends are going to take you.

/2011/01/who-would-pay-for-a-message-sent-to-nobody-in-particularYou’ll find no shortage of people who will detract you from your goals, using one of the most effective [innovation killer phrases](innovation-inspiration/the-innovation-killers/): “*that’s the dumbest thing I ever heard*.”

Certainly history has taught us this lesson! Consider how some have reacted in the past to what proved to be very significant, transformative developments:

- “*There will never be a bigger plane built*.” A Boeing engineer, after the first flight of the 247, a twin engine plane that carried ten people.

- “*There is not the slightest indication that nuclear energy will ever be obtainable. It would mean that the atom would have to be shattered at will*.” – Albert Einstein, 1932

- “*Computers may weigh no more than 1.5 tons*.” – Popular Mechanics, 1949

- “*There is no reason anyone would want a computer in their home*.” – Ken Olson, president of Digital Equipment Corp. 1977

- “*This telephone’ has too many shortcomings to be seriously considered as a means of communication*.” – Western Union memo, 1876

- “*No imaginable commercial value. Who would pay for a message sent to nobody in particular?*“- David Sarnoff’s associates in response to his urging investment in the radio in the 1920’s.

- “*The bomb will never go off. I speak as an expert in explosives*.” – Admiral William Leahy, U.S. Atomic Bomb Project.

- “*Airplanes are interesting toys, but they are of no military value whatsoever*.” – Marechal Ferdinand Fock, Professor of Strategy, Ecole Superieure de Guerre

- “*While theoretically and technically television may be feasible, commercially and financially it is an impossibility*.”- Lee DeForest, inventor

- “*Radio has no future. Heavier-than-air flying machines are impossible. X-rays will prove to be a hoax*.” – William Thomson, Lord Kelvin English scientist, 1899

- “*Nuclear powered vacuum cleaners will probably be a reality within 10 years*.” – Alex Lewyt, quoted in the New York Times, 1955

- “*Video won’t be able to hold onto any market it captures after the first six months. People will soon get tired of staring at a plywood box every night*.” — Darryl F. Zanuck, Head of 20th Century-Fox Studios, 1946

When in a period of transformative change — as many industries now find themselves – it is all too easy to use disbelief to cling to the past. In order to be innovative, you’ve got to be willing to ignore the naysayers!