--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: History teaches us that many…" description: "\"History teaches us that many breakthroughs were happy accidents. Whether that's penicillin coming from Fleming neglecting to clean his laboratory befor..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/684/scott-d-anthony-6772_140-character_history-teaches-us-that-many-breakthroug_2990863.png" --- # History teaches us that many breakthroughs were happy… ![“History teaches us that many breakthroughs were happy accidents. Whether that's penicillin coming from Fleming neglecting to clean his laboratory before going on vacation or the team at Odeon trying a little side project that allowed people to communicate in real time as long as their message was…” quote by Scott D. Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/684/scott-d-anthony-6772_140-character_history-teaches-us-that-many-breakthroug_2990863.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/684/scott-d-anthony-6772_140-character_history-teaches-us-that-many-breakthroug_2990863.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/684/scott-d-anthony-6772_140-character_history-teaches-us-that-many-breakthroug_2990863.png) > “History teaches us that many breakthroughs were happy accidents. Whether that's penicillin coming from Fleming neglecting to clean his laboratory before going on vacation or the team at Odeon trying a little side project that allowed people to communicate in real time as long as their message was 140 characters or less (which ultimately of course became Twitter), the unintended is often the transformational.” [Scott D. Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-d-anthony/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Breakthroughs often arise from unexpected, accidental events rather than deliberate planning. **In simple terms:** Accidents can spark major innovations. Key Takeaway Embrace curiosity and explore unintended results. Themes innovation serendipity creativity risk learning Mood excited reflective Type inspirational analytical When to use this quote - research labs - product development - startup pivots - creative brainstorming Key Concepts systems thinking emergent behavior network effects Questions to Reflect On - How can you design environments that encourage serendipity? - What safeguards prevent harmful accidents? A Different Perspective Accidents may be rare and not reliably reproducible. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [140 character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/140-character/) [Accidents](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/accidents/) [Breakthrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/breakthrough/) [Breakthroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/breakthroughs/) [Breakthroughs Happy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/breakthroughs-happy-4699712/) [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Clean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clean/) [Communicate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communicate/) [Courses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/courses/) [Going on vacation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/going-on-vacation/) [Happy accidents](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happy-accidents/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [Innovation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/innovation/) [Laboratory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/laboratory/) [Littles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/littles/) [Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long/) [Long Message](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long-message-300945/) [Messages](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/messages/) [Neglect](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/neglect/) [Penicillin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/penicillin/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Projects](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/projects/) [Real](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/real/) [Real time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/real-time/) [Sides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sides/) [Teach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/teach/) [Team](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/team/) [Trying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trying/) [Twitter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/twitter/) [Twitter Unintended](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/twitter-unintended-4699710/) [Unintended Transformational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unintended-transformational-4699711/) [Vacation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vacation/) ## Related quotes > [Spending a long time writing a really long message then accidentally pressing the back button.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/green-monk/spending-a-long-time-writing-a-really-long-message-then-accidentally/) [Green Monk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/green-monk/) > [Many of us get many messages in our lives, or think we get them. As long as the message is regarding our own selves,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/many-of-us-get-many-messages-in-our-lives-or-think-we-get-them-as/) [Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/) > [No one can say just how long a message should be, but you rarely hear complaints about a speech being too short. The amateur…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-dale/no-one-can-say-just-how-long-a-message-should-be-but-you-rarely-hear-2/) [Edgar Dale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-dale/) > [No-one can say just how long a message should be, but you rarely hear complaints about a speech being too short. The amateur worries…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-dale/no-one-can-say-just-how-long-a-message-should-be-but-you-rarely-hear/) [Edgar Dale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-dale/) > ['Cause a musician, you can't tell me, "I've got this message I want share with the public," and it's three-and-a-half minutes long. That's not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/cause-a-musician-you-can-t-tell-me-i-ve-got-this-message-i-want-share/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [I told Leonard, in the immortal words of Tom Cruise in Mission Impossible 2, 'I'm going on vacation. If I tell you where I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shaquille-o-neal/i-told-leonard-in-the-immortal-words-of-tom-cruise-in-mission/) [Shaquille O'Neal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shaquille-o-neal/) > [It seems strange to say this, but it is true: Coming back to Vegas to work is like going on vacation for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celine-dion/it-seems-strange-to-say-this-but-it-is-true-coming-back-to-vegas-to/) [Celine Dion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celine-dion/) > [I remember going on vacation for two weeks once and one of my clients who was very clinically depressed really could not handle it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-carlin-mccall/i-remember-going-on-vacation-for-two-weeks-once-and-one-of-my-clients/) [Kelly Carlin-McCall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-carlin-mccall/) > [I definitely have an eye on doing more work in features and playing different characters, but I am also a big fan of going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bailey-chase/i-definitely-have-an-eye-on-doing-more-work-in-features-and-playing/) [Bailey Chase](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bailey-chase/) > [As the Democrats get revved up at their convention in Boston, President Bush is fighting back the only way he knows how: by going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-kilborn/as-the-democrats-get-revved-up-at-their-convention-in-boston/) [Craig Kilborn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-kilborn/) > [I think people care. If not, why do so many people spend money going on vacations to see architecture? They go to the Parthenon,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-gehry/i-think-people-care-if-not-why-do-so-many-people-spend-money-going-on/) [Frank Gehry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-gehry/) > [Around the holidays, or anytime I'm going on vacation, I try to bump up my cardio or lose a pound before leaving.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacy-keibler/around-the-holidays-or-anytime-i-m-going-on-vacation-i-try-to-bump-up/) [Stacy Keibler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacy-keibler/) > [Find what brings you joy and go there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jan-phillips/find-what-brings-you-joy-and-go-there/) [Jan Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jan-phillips/) > [The thing I love most about going on vacation is that I get to leave behind any kind of schedule. My entire life is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-clarkson/the-thing-i-love-most-about-going-on-vacation-is-that-i-get-to-leave/) [Kelly Clarkson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-clarkson/) > [We don't really want a huge house, but we want the house to be slightly bigger than our neighbors, and a car that is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-ariely/we-don-t-really-want-a-huge-house-but-we-want-the-house-to-be/) [Dan Ariely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-ariely/) ## More by Scott D. Anthony > [I think the most important thing to do is to recognize the fundamentally different circumstances of pursuing growth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-d-anthony/i-think-the-most-important-thing-to-do-is-to-recognize-the/) [Scott D. Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-d-anthony/) > [Document, evaluate, focus, test.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-d-anthony/document-evaluate-focus-test/) [Scott D. Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-d-anthony/) > [It's very easy to skip steps when documenting an idea.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-d-anthony/it-s-very-easy-to-skip-steps-when-documenting-an-idea/) [Scott D. Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-d-anthony/) > [Every leader needs to watch what teenagers or startup companies - or startup companies headed by teenagers - are doing today, because many of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-d-anthony/every-leader-needs-to-watch-what-teenagers-or-startup-companies-or/) [Scott D. Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-d-anthony/) > [In the strengthening the core job, a leader can draw on their past experiences. After all, in most cases they did the job of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-d-anthony/in-the-strengthening-the-core-job-a-leader-can-draw-on-their-past/) [Scott D. Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-d-anthony/) > [If you are a large company and you want to do something unique, you almost by definition have to tap onto the core business…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-d-anthony/if-you-are-a-large-company-and-you-want-to-do-something-unique-you/) [Scott D. Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-d-anthony/) > [You still want to be thoughtful about what you do, no doubt, but you have to learn through trial-and-error experimentation as well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-d-anthony/you-still-want-to-be-thoughtful-about-what-you-do-no-doubt-but-you/) [Scott D. Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-d-anthony/) > [It takes a great deal of humility to recognize you have made a wrong turn on the road to successful innovation, but better to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-d-anthony/it-takes-a-great-deal-of-humility-to-recognize-you-have-made-a-wrong/) [Scott D. Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-d-anthony/) > [“Creating a new business from scratch is hard, but executives of incumbents have the dual challenge of creating new businesses while simultaneously staving off…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-d-anthony/creating-a-new-business-from-scratch-is-hard-but-executives-of/) [Scott D. Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-d-anthony/) > [The most important thing here is to largely ignore what customers say, and instead watch what they do or track where they spend money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-d-anthony/the-most-important-thing-here-is-to-largely-ignore-what-customers-say/) [Scott D. Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-d-anthony/) > [Make sure that you take the time to think about how other companies might respond to your idea, both those companies already in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-d-anthony/make-sure-that-you-take-the-time-to-think-about-how-other-companies/) [Scott D. Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-d-anthony/) > [Aside from the equivalent of blowing up the lab or letting a pathogen escape, the only failure is spending too long or too much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-d-anthony/aside-from-the-equivalent-of-blowing-up-the-lab-or-letting-a-pathogen/) [Scott D. Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-d-anthony/) > [Mucken Singh works VERY hard on his brawler's physique!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-d-anthony/mucken-singh-works-very-hard-on-his-brawler-s-physique/) [Scott D. Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-d-anthony/) > [Most startup companies have two people, and they figure out creative ways to swarm problems. They move faster and have more impact.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-d-anthony/most-startup-companies-have-two-people-and-they-figure-out-creative/) [Scott D. Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-d-anthony/) > [Three of our core corporate values are inclusiveness, collaboration, and humility.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-d-anthony/three-of-our-core-corporate-values-are-inclusiveness-collaboration/) [Scott D. Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-d-anthony/) [Explore all 97 Scott D. Anthony quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-d-anthony/) ## More 140 character quotes > [The public square is more public than ever, but minds are rarely changed in 140 character bursts and by selfies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-godin/the-public-square-is-more-public-than-ever-but-minds-are-rarely/) [Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/) > [It was clear to me that the White House's solemn atmosphere would not civilize Trump. But the merciless nepotism with which he conducts politics,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-schulz/it-was-clear-to-me-that-the-white-house-s-solemn-atmosphere-would-not/) [Martin Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-schulz/) > [I don't really mess with Instagram much, but I get why people love it. Because to me, it's better to tell a story through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rashida-jones/i-don-t-really-mess-with-instagram-much-but-i-get-why-people-love-it/) [Rashida Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rashida-jones/) > [It's hard to predict what will happen as reading on screen becomes more of a universal norm, and when the formats dictated by social…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bierut/it-s-hard-to-predict-what-will-happen-as-reading-on-screen-becomes/) [Michael Bierut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bierut/) > [There's no reason to tweet when you are in the midst of a great moment; they are few and far between. So pay attention…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-black/there-s-no-reason-to-tweet-when-you-are-in-the-midst-of-a-great/) [Lewis Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-black/) > [“Thought for the day: Twitter...140 character limit...must be a great tool for fortune cookie writers...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-a-bucchianeri/thought-for-the-day-twitter-140-character-limit-must-be-a-great-tool/) [E.A. Bucchianeri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-a-bucchianeri/) > [“Critics first discounted Twitter’s 140-character message limitation as gimmicky and restrictive. But little did they realize the constraint actually increased users’ ability to create.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nir-eyal/critics-first-discounted-twitter-s-140-character-message-limitation/) [Nir Eyal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nir-eyal/) > [When will it be acceptable to walk away from someone after they reach their 140 character limit?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikhil-saluja/when-will-it-be-acceptable-to-walk-away-from-someone-after-they-reach/) [Nikhil Saluja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikhil-saluja/) > [Who would have thought that a means of communication limited to 140 characters would ever create misunderstanding?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/who-would-have-thought-that-a-means-of-communication-limited-to-140/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Twitter is sort of version of labeling, except with 140 characters instead of a labelmaker. It's the way of calling things out for what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-brownstein/twitter-is-sort-of-version-of-labeling-except-with-140-characters/) [Carrie Brownstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-brownstein/) > [Speaking of Twitter, I don't even know if I composed a blog entry in 2009, as I was too busy parceling my every thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diablo-cody/speaking-of-twitter-i-don-t-even-know-if-i-composed-a-blog-entry-in/) [Diablo Cody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diablo-cody/) > [I love how the 140 character limit on twitter forces girls to get to the damn point.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikhil-saluja/i-love-how-the-140-character-limit-on-twitter-forces-girls-to-get-to/) [Nikhil Saluja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikhil-saluja/) > [NC passed law against global warming science, therefore it's not happening. So I'm ignoring Twitter's 140-character limit, so it's not happ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/nc-passed-law-against-global-warming-science-therefore-it-s-not/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [Kyle had to give her credit; it took skill—plus no heart and a serious abuse of the English language— to break up with someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-james/kyle-had-to-give-her-credit-it-took-skill-plus-no-heart-and-a-serious/) [Julie James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-james/) > [The challenge CEOs will face three to five years from now is the same one that they face today. That is engagement. It's hard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-yaeger/the-challenge-ceos-will-face-three-to-five-years-from-now-is-the-same/) [Don Yaeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-yaeger/) [Browse all 55 140 character quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/140-character/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "History teaches us that many breakthroughs were happy accidents. Whether that's penicillin coming from Fleming neglecting to clean his laboratory before going on vacation or the team at Odeon trying a little side project that allowed people to communicate in real time as long as their message was 140 characters or less (which ultimately of course became Twitter), the unintended is often the transformational.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Scott D. 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