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Invention: A Life of Learning through Failure
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368 pages, Paperback
Published August 4, 2022
About the author
James Dyson
24 books79 followersSir James Dyson is a British industrial designer and founder of his company called Dyson.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 162 reviews
February 1, 2024
Could be my favorite autobiography by an entpreneur/inventor. There are so many insights into as to how to best create a thriving longterm business, how to live a creative life and how to go against the grain. James Dyson invented the cyclonic vacuum cleaner and went onto create a company worth 6.5 billion pounds (in 2022).
I couldn't help but think of how closely Dyson aligns in the key personality traits needed for a entrepreneur: high in openness, high in conscientiousness, low in neuroticicsm, high in extroversion and disagreeableness. I can't imagine starting a business in the middle of a recession but Dyson did it. Dyson perpetually values people who are willing to test new ideas over experienced careerists, going against the grain and long-term thinking which is made possible by owning your company. I just love his perspective and wish I could be able to live like that as well. Dyson also believes that if you build a product than is better than your competitors, the consumer will notice it. He doesn't believe in focus groups: he believes in testing your ideas directly on the market.
The book is also a portrait of the period in which he lived which is interesting. Growing up after the second world war without a father, you had to be able to care of yourself and not rely on other people. His mother, it would seem, was relentlessly resourceful. She managed to raise three kids and eventually get a diploma from Oxford. I suppose the book espouses traditional middle class values (i.e. those found in Benjamin Franklings autobiography).
The only downside was perhaps all the information on all his inventions. That did not really interest me (as I am not an engineer, quite the opposite!), being instead more interested in business, creativity and how to live your values.
I couldn't help but think of how closely Dyson aligns in the key personality traits needed for a entrepreneur: high in openness, high in conscientiousness, low in neuroticicsm, high in extroversion and disagreeableness. I can't imagine starting a business in the middle of a recession but Dyson did it. Dyson perpetually values people who are willing to test new ideas over experienced careerists, going against the grain and long-term thinking which is made possible by owning your company. I just love his perspective and wish I could be able to live like that as well. Dyson also believes that if you build a product than is better than your competitors, the consumer will notice it. He doesn't believe in focus groups: he believes in testing your ideas directly on the market.
The book is also a portrait of the period in which he lived which is interesting. Growing up after the second world war without a father, you had to be able to care of yourself and not rely on other people. His mother, it would seem, was relentlessly resourceful. She managed to raise three kids and eventually get a diploma from Oxford. I suppose the book espouses traditional middle class values (i.e. those found in Benjamin Franklings autobiography).
The only downside was perhaps all the information on all his inventions. That did not really interest me (as I am not an engineer, quite the opposite!), being instead more interested in business, creativity and how to live your values.
September 20, 2021
“We should be encouraging the young to become doers, rather than virtue signallers, to help them strive to solve the problems of their age while looking forward to a better future”
“I wasn’t even trained as an engineer or scientist. I did, however, have the bloody-mindedness not to follow convention, to challenge experts and to ignore Doubting Thomases”
Hear Hear
“I wasn’t even trained as an engineer or scientist. I did, however, have the bloody-mindedness not to follow convention, to challenge experts and to ignore Doubting Thomases”
Hear Hear
September 9, 2021
I was always a big fan of Dyson products and this book pretty much solidified my views about the company. They really care about engineerins details and will go against the grain if it means they might create a better product. They believe in family ownership of the company which I could not agree more. I see Dyson's values as a sort of hybrid between Apple and Patagonia.
Though there are many things I disagree with James - mainly patents. He thinks they should be easier to get and longer lasting to increase competitive advantage of companies / patent owners. I think this would increase patent trolls and be a huge net negative. He claims no one would invest time and money into producing things if patents would be less protected. But we only need to look at open source software or Wikipedia to see that is clearly not the case.
He's also a proponent for Brexit since he claims European countries always want to get their own way and since there is so much lobbying going on in EU that ends up hurting Dyson. While I agree that there's way too much lobbying and it being detrimental to EU citizens, it's naïve to believe same thing does and will not happen in UK alone. Also, precisely because UK always wants things their own way, is why we all ended up in this mess.
But all in all it is a good autobiography and I can certainly recommend a read.
Though there are many things I disagree with James - mainly patents. He thinks they should be easier to get and longer lasting to increase competitive advantage of companies / patent owners. I think this would increase patent trolls and be a huge net negative. He claims no one would invest time and money into producing things if patents would be less protected. But we only need to look at open source software or Wikipedia to see that is clearly not the case.
He's also a proponent for Brexit since he claims European countries always want to get their own way and since there is so much lobbying going on in EU that ends up hurting Dyson. While I agree that there's way too much lobbying and it being detrimental to EU citizens, it's naïve to believe same thing does and will not happen in UK alone. Also, precisely because UK always wants things their own way, is why we all ended up in this mess.
But all in all it is a good autobiography and I can certainly recommend a read.
October 11, 2022
Kill me now ...
Faux modesty, tedious name-dropping, more tributes to 'wonderful people' than an Academy Award Ceremony ... utterly boring writing, interspersed with sales catalogue blurb.
I agree with his school teachers that English is not his strength.
This man whinges about the UK and tries to justify moving his manufacturing business out of the country whilst professing to be patriotic and praising all things Japanese.
A stunning lack of self-awareness from a man who clearly loves himself deeply.
Now I understand why so many women use rude, generic terms for men of a certain age. This is a good example of a supremely boring, self-satisfied individual.
Faux modesty, tedious name-dropping, more tributes to 'wonderful people' than an Academy Award Ceremony ... utterly boring writing, interspersed with sales catalogue blurb.
I agree with his school teachers that English is not his strength.
This man whinges about the UK and tries to justify moving his manufacturing business out of the country whilst professing to be patriotic and praising all things Japanese.
A stunning lack of self-awareness from a man who clearly loves himself deeply.
Now I understand why so many women use rude, generic terms for men of a certain age. This is a good example of a supremely boring, self-satisfied individual.
September 10, 2022
This was a difficult book to read. There is a lot of technical details in the book which makes some the chapters a bit dry. I also felt that there was too much marketing to the DYSON company which was something I did not like.
The author tells his story from a career point view with few personal stories. He talks about his inventions and technology advancement. There was defiantly some struggle in his story which may inspire the reader. The author cites that he tested and built 5127 hand-made prototypes in order to make his cyclonic vacuum. I guess he tried to make it sounds like when Thomas Adison tested 1000 lightbulb to reach the final invention of his lightbulb. Anyway, the author sees inventions as: “More about endurance and patient observation than brainwaves”. He believes that people will learn far more by trial and error than by conventional educations. He sees failure as a necessity in the development of the mind and personality.
James Dyson is clearly a practical man. He did not excel in his academic studies but was excellent “stuff Maker”, hard worker and very creative. These qualities probably compensated for his weak academic performance. He studied Industrial Design in the Royal College of Art in London.. (5 minutes’ walk from the Royal School of Mines which I studied in). So, he was not an engineer by background but became one by practice.
He discussed a lot of aspects in his career, like vacuum cleaners, designing electric cars, farming and other technology research. He did not hide his conservative views about European Union and why Britain should not be part of it. He also showed that a lot of his company researches are secretive and he cannot discuss the details of them in the book.
He also shared his views on education and how the education in the UK deteriorated after WWII. He discussed how the British stopped innovating after WWII because the urgency of innovation has stopped after the war was won. He even claimed that English people currently look down on science and technology. He aggressively criticized the British Education system which in his opinion is falling behind in technology and science.
One thing that caught my intention is his talk about how he lost his father at young age. He pointed out that 85% of British prime ministers, and 12 US presidents including (Barak Obama & George Washington) lost their fathers as children. Then he said: “ Perhaps early loss can sometime inspire people to great achievements?”… Being a reader of autobiographies myself, I can attest to this statement. The majority of famous and accomplished people I read about in books are indeed orphans which makes me wonder… is there a link between being an orphan and success? Who knows .. maybe !
Few Highlights:
No longer can we lead life by repeating what we have learned and what has worked in the past.
Learning by failure is a remarkably good way of gaining knowledge. Failure is to be welcomed rather than avoided. It is a part of learning. It should not be feared by the engineer or scientist or indeed by anyone else.
One of the really important principles I learned to apply was changing only one thing at a time and to see what difference that one change made.
As Buckminster Fuller said, ‘You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.’
Learning by doing. Learning by trial and error. Learning by failing. These are all effective forms of education.
Education should be about problem-solving rather than retaining knowledge simply to pass exams.
I have got to the point where I truly worry if everything is going smoothly. It’s rather like being the US cavalry officer in an old western when he says, ‘I don’t like it, Sergeant − seems too quiet’ and immediately gets an arrow in the chest.
Those kind people totally missed the point. I didn’t work on those 5,127 vacuum cleaner prototypes or even set up Dyson to make money. I did it because I had a burning desire to do so
The author tells his story from a career point view with few personal stories. He talks about his inventions and technology advancement. There was defiantly some struggle in his story which may inspire the reader. The author cites that he tested and built 5127 hand-made prototypes in order to make his cyclonic vacuum. I guess he tried to make it sounds like when Thomas Adison tested 1000 lightbulb to reach the final invention of his lightbulb. Anyway, the author sees inventions as: “More about endurance and patient observation than brainwaves”. He believes that people will learn far more by trial and error than by conventional educations. He sees failure as a necessity in the development of the mind and personality.
James Dyson is clearly a practical man. He did not excel in his academic studies but was excellent “stuff Maker”, hard worker and very creative. These qualities probably compensated for his weak academic performance. He studied Industrial Design in the Royal College of Art in London.. (5 minutes’ walk from the Royal School of Mines which I studied in). So, he was not an engineer by background but became one by practice.
He discussed a lot of aspects in his career, like vacuum cleaners, designing electric cars, farming and other technology research. He did not hide his conservative views about European Union and why Britain should not be part of it. He also showed that a lot of his company researches are secretive and he cannot discuss the details of them in the book.
He also shared his views on education and how the education in the UK deteriorated after WWII. He discussed how the British stopped innovating after WWII because the urgency of innovation has stopped after the war was won. He even claimed that English people currently look down on science and technology. He aggressively criticized the British Education system which in his opinion is falling behind in technology and science.
One thing that caught my intention is his talk about how he lost his father at young age. He pointed out that 85% of British prime ministers, and 12 US presidents including (Barak Obama & George Washington) lost their fathers as children. Then he said: “ Perhaps early loss can sometime inspire people to great achievements?”… Being a reader of autobiographies myself, I can attest to this statement. The majority of famous and accomplished people I read about in books are indeed orphans which makes me wonder… is there a link between being an orphan and success? Who knows .. maybe !
Few Highlights:
No longer can we lead life by repeating what we have learned and what has worked in the past.
Learning by failure is a remarkably good way of gaining knowledge. Failure is to be welcomed rather than avoided. It is a part of learning. It should not be feared by the engineer or scientist or indeed by anyone else.
One of the really important principles I learned to apply was changing only one thing at a time and to see what difference that one change made.
As Buckminster Fuller said, ‘You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.’
Learning by doing. Learning by trial and error. Learning by failing. These are all effective forms of education.
Education should be about problem-solving rather than retaining knowledge simply to pass exams.
I have got to the point where I truly worry if everything is going smoothly. It’s rather like being the US cavalry officer in an old western when he says, ‘I don’t like it, Sergeant − seems too quiet’ and immediately gets an arrow in the chest.
Those kind people totally missed the point. I didn’t work on those 5,127 vacuum cleaner prototypes or even set up Dyson to make money. I did it because I had a burning desire to do so
March 8, 2022
Can you imagine 5,127 vacuum cleaners? Because I can’t. I have no idea how he managed to fail 5,126 times and yet continued for the 5,127th time. The degree of determination and resilience he shows is astounding.
I love this book because of how his passion for design, engineering and art oozes through the pages. I am a sucker for illustrations so to have accompanying pages of his sketches, blueprints and designs was a big plus.
I’ve always thought Dyson products were expensive and never truly understood why you’d pay so much for it. Now I understand.
This book shares many important lessons. From the importance of keeping your designs yours, to finding the right people to work with, to believing in yourself. And even if you get all those things right, there are political mazes to navigate, layers of bureaucratic red tape, politicians who are all talk with no action. His struggle with the British system and views on manufacturing (a path frowned upon and viewed as second class) is definitely smthg he feels strongly for and is eager to see change.
I like this book because I like what James Dyson stands for.
I love this book because of how his passion for design, engineering and art oozes through the pages. I am a sucker for illustrations so to have accompanying pages of his sketches, blueprints and designs was a big plus.
I’ve always thought Dyson products were expensive and never truly understood why you’d pay so much for it. Now I understand.
This book shares many important lessons. From the importance of keeping your designs yours, to finding the right people to work with, to believing in yourself. And even if you get all those things right, there are political mazes to navigate, layers of bureaucratic red tape, politicians who are all talk with no action. His struggle with the British system and views on manufacturing (a path frowned upon and viewed as second class) is definitely smthg he feels strongly for and is eager to see change.
I like this book because I like what James Dyson stands for.
Want to Read
September 5, 2021WSJ review, by Henry Petroski:https://www.wsj.com/articles/inventio... (Paywalled. As always, I'm happy to email a copy to non-subscribers)
Excerpt:
The fact that James Dyson himself did not get a degree in engineering disproves the idea that Britain cannot produce some outstanding engineers. It certainly did so during the Industrial Revolution, the Victorian era, and World War II. What Mr. Dyson’s almost unique bootstrap achievement does confirm is his contention that the existing educational system in the West is not living up to its potential.
Maybe? Possibly TMI? I'll have a look, when the library gets a copy. I'm lukewarm about our Dyson stick-vac. PITA to empty the thing! And clumsy to use, as a Dust-buster. It does a good job, but I much prefer a bag.
Excerpt:
The fact that James Dyson himself did not get a degree in engineering disproves the idea that Britain cannot produce some outstanding engineers. It certainly did so during the Industrial Revolution, the Victorian era, and World War II. What Mr. Dyson’s almost unique bootstrap achievement does confirm is his contention that the existing educational system in the West is not living up to its potential.
Maybe? Possibly TMI? I'll have a look, when the library gets a copy. I'm lukewarm about our Dyson stick-vac. PITA to empty the thing! And clumsy to use, as a Dust-buster. It does a good job, but I much prefer a bag.
April 1, 2025
Perhaps the most inspiring and admirable entrepreneur and creator i’ve ever read about. a man who believes anything is possible and puts his heart and soul into his every endeavor.
i particularly appreciate the fact that he’s stayed married to Deirdre since 1968. it seems an extreme rarity that a man of such prominence and success would remain loyal to the woman he began building his life with.
i want to be like James Dyson when i grow up. :)
i particularly appreciate the fact that he’s stayed married to Deirdre since 1968. it seems an extreme rarity that a man of such prominence and success would remain loyal to the woman he began building his life with.
i want to be like James Dyson when i grow up. :)
September 7, 2025
I usually try to always finish a book that I purchased, can't finish this tho.
the problem for me i feel like the book tells about the technical and engineering side of the products, which for me I am more interested in the business side of things. I am not an engineer so it's hard to imagine the machinery.
furthermore the whole book feels like James Dyson just being smug saying his product is the best his point of view is the most correct and it just feels annoying for me at the time. This is a problem because James write this personally. Comparing it to Jobs book that written by other people, Jobs books feels more neutral with the book discussing the positive and negative of Jobs and the up and down of apple.
this feels like a marketing piece
the problem for me i feel like the book tells about the technical and engineering side of the products, which for me I am more interested in the business side of things. I am not an engineer so it's hard to imagine the machinery.
furthermore the whole book feels like James Dyson just being smug saying his product is the best his point of view is the most correct and it just feels annoying for me at the time. This is a problem because James write this personally. Comparing it to Jobs book that written by other people, Jobs books feels more neutral with the book discussing the positive and negative of Jobs and the up and down of apple.
this feels like a marketing piece
April 28, 2025
Fascinating story with nuggets of wisdom, but at points glosses over the early days (the multi-year “5,127 prototypes” process was covered in just a couple paragraphs) and at others felt like settling scores with critics and doubters in the British press.
September 4, 2021
A very good book I enjoyed reading it James Dyson is a fantastic British inventor I never thought Dyson had so many things I had never heard of Dyson farming a recommend read 10/10
October 26, 2023
Usually love these kinds of books but didn’t vibe with it. Found it an absolute chore to get through. Felt like a bit of a Dyson ad the entire time too
August 26, 2024
Arti 5*, jei būtų, tai būtų 4,5*
Viena geriau sukaltų asmeninių enterprenerio biografijų. Dyson'as mato pats asmeninės rankos pridėjo į savo biografijos rašymą - tą įrodo, kad Audible įdėta jo paties įgarsinta audio versija (nepatingėjo). Knygoje tikrai yra nemažai savo produktų promo, bet geras balansas su niuansais, kaip produktai buvo kurti, kurie politikai kaišiojo pagalius į ratus; viskas apvilkta ir gana ryškia asmenine nuomone apie pasaulio tvarką, politikus, verslo sąlygas ir pan. Nėra per daug savygyros ir gana mažai detalių - daug biznio ir kas aplink.
Viena geriau sukaltų asmeninių enterprenerio biografijų. Dyson'as mato pats asmeninės rankos pridėjo į savo biografijos rašymą - tą įrodo, kad Audible įdėta jo paties įgarsinta audio versija (nepatingėjo). Knygoje tikrai yra nemažai savo produktų promo, bet geras balansas su niuansais, kaip produktai buvo kurti, kurie politikai kaišiojo pagalius į ratus; viskas apvilkta ir gana ryškia asmenine nuomone apie pasaulio tvarką, politikus, verslo sąlygas ir pan. Nėra per daug savygyros ir gana mažai detalių - daug biznio ir kas aplink.
October 25, 2026
Dyson has had an interesting life, and the story of the Dyson company is fascinating. But the technical detail about completely unrelated products was absolutely punishing. Hard to get through.
September 20, 2024
Interesting first half about the beginning of Dyson. But lost interest towards the end.
October 11, 2021
In itself, nothing wrong with this biography.
However, it is hard to distinguish between the biography of James Dyson himself and that of his company.
I do enjoy the occasional business story, many excellent books in that category I’ve read before. This one though, you can tell it is written by the man himself. It is fairly dry, interesting in a clinical sort of way, pragmatic in how he regards the world and folks around him, and a very technological telling of the evolution of his company. Oh, right… it’s supposed to be a personal biography. It is, in a way, but what it seem to do.. is seem to be a 300 page commercial for all things Dyson. And it is hard not to admire in a way, because he is obviously passionate about it.. but it just seems so full of salesmanship, although that in itself is something he dislikes in an activity for himself.
As he has approached His business throughout the years, is simply explaining how his things work. He does this.. in depth.. all throughout the book. It took me longer to get through because I just kept losing interest, and I had two other very interesting books on the go. (I started and finished both during the period I had this book open).
I have a Dyson, yes it’s good, but I didn’t pick this book up to learn about how it was made. What’s next.. a book about how my microwave was built next? Pass.
On to an adventure.
However, it is hard to distinguish between the biography of James Dyson himself and that of his company.
I do enjoy the occasional business story, many excellent books in that category I’ve read before. This one though, you can tell it is written by the man himself. It is fairly dry, interesting in a clinical sort of way, pragmatic in how he regards the world and folks around him, and a very technological telling of the evolution of his company. Oh, right… it’s supposed to be a personal biography. It is, in a way, but what it seem to do.. is seem to be a 300 page commercial for all things Dyson. And it is hard not to admire in a way, because he is obviously passionate about it.. but it just seems so full of salesmanship, although that in itself is something he dislikes in an activity for himself.
As he has approached His business throughout the years, is simply explaining how his things work. He does this.. in depth.. all throughout the book. It took me longer to get through because I just kept losing interest, and I had two other very interesting books on the go. (I started and finished both during the period I had this book open).
I have a Dyson, yes it’s good, but I didn’t pick this book up to learn about how it was made. What’s next.. a book about how my microwave was built next? Pass.
On to an adventure.
December 30, 2023
Invention is James Dyson’s autobiography and story of how he failed over 5K times to design his ideal vacuum cleaner and how be built the company of Dyson we know today. It was a time when British ingenuity was in decline and a revamping of the education system was in order. Dyson worked tirelessly to start a university, drive innovation and research (even when it ran counter to the maximization of profit). Don’t get me wrong he worked hard to make sure he was profitable, but he was willing to take a risk that might not pan out when others would have taken the safer course. His foray into electric cars was well ahead of its time and his other technological ventures were a far wider portfolio than I expected having only know about the vacuum cleaner. He writes well with crisp prose and chapters that are focused. It is an interesting story and one that touches on many areas of life reflecting the changing mood of Britain throughout modern history. His foray into the United States was marked by costly litigation that was eventually settled out clearing the way for him to sell. Very interesting story for those interested in business history, technology and the idea of invention.
September 18, 2025
Terrible book. For what it's worth, it's not even a book: it's an extended advertising leaflet for Dyson the company. The first Dyson's book ("Against the Odds") was a typical honest, motivating, and somewhat egocentric account of a self-made entrepreneur that was at least interesting to read. This waste of paper is a weird concoction of autobiography, policy statements, and Dyson comparing the work of his employees and scholars to every great invention since sliced bread. I don't know who told him we wanted a regurgitated watered down second edition but apparently sometimes the ego takes hold.
December 26, 2023
This book needs heavy editing, just couldn’t read it at all.
Not recommended, it was mostly about technical side of dyson products in book.
Learnings:
Most important principle James applied was changing only ONE THING at a time and to see what difference that one change made.
You start off by making one change at a time, you start to understand what works and what fails.
2) Learn as you go, James institute also applies it they learn academically then work PRACTICALLY on difficult live projects.
Not recommended, it was mostly about technical side of dyson products in book.
Learnings:
Most important principle James applied was changing only ONE THING at a time and to see what difference that one change made.
You start off by making one change at a time, you start to understand what works and what fails.
2) Learn as you go, James institute also applies it they learn academically then work PRACTICALLY on difficult live projects.
September 16, 2021
An excellent lookninto the life of one of the great modern inventors. The author's passion and drive rings through on every page. Although most will relate to the Dyson vaccum I found the other areas which Dyson have branch into even more interesting. Education, farming, cars; James thirst for the improvement of these areas is inspirational. Onwards and upwards! Thank you James for sharing your story.
November 12, 2022
I have found his designs interesting, ground breaking technologically and aesthetically. His struggles along the way show the perseverance and grit it takes to be a successful entrepreneur and I agree with many of his thoughts on technical education. A bit braggy but that seems true of almost all autobiographies.
March 13, 2023
The book is a great read for engineers, designers?m, inventors etc. it is very technical. You will learn how the Dyson hairdryer is done, how the car is constructed or how wasching machine’s production was too expensive to put it in the market.
But it’s not motivational. It will not let you how to run a business as such, rather it will tell you - be yourslef, do what you belive in.
But it’s not motivational. It will not let you how to run a business as such, rather it will tell you - be yourslef, do what you belive in.
February 15, 2022
History of different Dyson products development. Kind of boring. The only thing I find interesting is the writing of Dyson’s wife at the end of the book. The description by his wife gives me some insight into Dyson’s character, which is what I’m mainly interested in.
April 25, 2022
Simply put, this book was not for me. It would definitely be a great read for someone who enjoys mechanical engineering. I was not interested in learning the ins and outs of how My. Dyson's inventions were created.
February 3, 2023
I absolutely loved this book and James Dyson the person. His passion, persistence, style, approach, and desire to create are inspiring! I really enjoyed this read and hope to learn more about him in the future.
September 25, 2021
Boring at some parts. But great inventor journey
April 23, 2022
Gets a lot of bad stick, but he's such an inspiration! I think we could all learn a lot from his work ethic, curiosity, and pure optimism.
August 27, 2023
Good story, strong message and a lot of details
January 22, 2024
Truly a very inspiring journey of a down to earth inventor. Worth a read for those who pursue their passion in building a meaningful life.
September 6, 2024
Nothing against James Dyson but the book reads like a massive sales pitch lol
Displaying 1 - 30 of 162 reviews