Knowledge & Creativity: That Time Henry Ford's Argued In Court That He Wasn't Stupid

Kaizen Creativity: The Science of Creativity & Innovation

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4+ y ago 7:02

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In the summer of 1919, Henry Ford was placed on the witness stand ready to be questioned by a defense attorney for the Chicago Tribune. It was an odd case to be in court, even by today’s standards. Ford was suing the Chicago Tribune for slander. Specifically, for being called an ignorant anarchist.

The defense set out to prove that Henry Ford was ignorant by asking him questions about American History, questions that Henry Ford was rarely able to answer. The court transcripts become popular reading at the time. People love it when the rich and powerful stumble and fall.

What’s weird is that, in general, the Chicago Tribune was probably right. Henry Ford knew fewer basic facts than the average American. But basic knowledge isn’t what made him creative or successful.

Ford’s ability to innovate wasn’t born out of general knowledge that you could pick up in high school. It came from working with machines his entire adult life.

Knowledge can be broken down into 2 categories: General knowledge, like math and science, and domain-specific knowledge. As the name implies, domain-specific knowledge is highly specialized knowledge. Domain-Specific Knowledge forms the building blocks of a creative idea. Without it, you won’t know enough about your industry to understand what problems need to be solved; You won’t understand the pros and cons of different ways of solving problems; You wouldn’t know the needs of the customers you served.

Your creativity isn’t determined by how many facts you know or what you can score on an IQ test. Your creativity is determined by how much knowledge you have about your industry and your willingness to think creatively with that knowledge. You need both. You need the building blocks as a raw material and you need the creative skills to work with that raw material.

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