Are you getting the credit for your ideas?

Here is this fortnight's epic tip, epic thought and epic trivia.

EPIC Tip

We often assume that our ideas alone will lead to recognition, but the reality is that's just the initial stage.

The next step involves persuading others and ultimately ensuring they remember whose idea it originally was.

Innovation plus persistence equals recognition.

EPIC Thought

I am proud of what I've done. I believe as women, we need to own our achievements. Men do this all the time, even when they kill a mosquito you hear about it. Women need to, not boast exactly, but not shy away from what they've achieved. Malado Kaba - Former Minister of Economy and Finance of the Republic of Guinea

EPIC Trivia

In 1903, Lizzy Magie patented a board game known as the Landlord's Game, which laid the foundation for the popular board game Monopoly. However, she never received the credit for her invention. Years later, in 1932, a Philadelphia businessman, Charles Darrow, was introduced to a version of the game by friends, and Darrow later marketed it as Monopoly.

Lizzy held progressive political views and developed the Landlord's Game to convey her ideas about wealth accumulation and income inequality. Her game featured properties, play money, taxes, and a circular board, as well as two sets of rules: one anti-monopolist and another monopolist.

Although Lizzie patented her game in 1903 and published it in 1904, the monopolist version became more popular over the years. Charles Darrow later sold a version of the game to Parker Brothers, which achieved tremendous success, making him wealthy.

Lizzie received $500 for the patent rights, and her game was largely overshadowed. She eventually learned of Darrow's version of her game and publicly expressed her frustration. Despite this, her contribution remained obscure until Ralph Anspach's legal case against Parker Brothers in the 1970s.

Anspach's research uncovered Lizzie's vital role in the game's history, but Hasbro, Parker Brothers' parent company, continues to credit Charles Darrow as the game's inventor.

The story of Monopoly's origins highlights how getting credit and recognition for your ideas is never guaranteed.

Until next time,

Stay EPIC!!