Edison's Extreme Work Dedication

A story about Thomas Edison's obsessive work habits and how it mirrors addiction-like behavior.

"For Edison, the big thing that clicked for me was he was inventing so much that he was basically not eating. He was super skinny, super gaunt, wasn't washing his clothes, smelled bad, barely sleeping. He would invent and tinker until he fell asleep at his workbench, then wake up in the morning and start inventing again.

His family was worried about him, and that's when it clicked for me - substitute inventing for meth or heroin, and it'd be very clear this guy was an addict, that he was a junkie. That's when I realized all these people who are super successful have addictive personalities. It just happens that they're addicted to something that is considered positive."