I’ve got a great freebie for you tonight!

I have partnered with the marketing firm Galactic Fed to give you a FREE MARKETING AUDIT. These are the folks behind leading brands like Quiznos and American Dream.

Simply sign up below, sit down with one of their experts for 20 minutes, and they will assess your strategy, identify best growth levers, and deliver to you a custom audit + action plan you can implement immediately. Sweet!

Breakthroughs happen in the most unexpected ways sometimes.

Today’s tale is one I’ve told before in my book The Big Idea, but it bears repeating because it illustrates one of the most important lessons for any entrepreneur:

You cannot do it alone. Sometimes, often, you need the right partner to see what you are missing.

Back in 1968, a scientist named Dr. Spencer Silver was working at 3M trying to create a super-sticky adhesive. He failed. Spectacularly. Instead of a super-sticky glue, he ended up with a "kinda-sticky" glue.

It could be reused without leaving a residue.

But who needs that?

For years, it was a solution looking for a problem. Silver showed it to everyone at 3M, but no one saw the point of a glue that didn’t actually stay stuck.

The Pal, The Hymnal, and the Church Choir

Enter Art Fry.

Art was a fellow scientist at 3M, but more importantly, he was a singer in his church choir. He had a constant, nagging problem: The little scraps of paper he used to mark the songs in his hymnal kept falling out. He was losing his place in the middle of the service.

Then one day, when all of his bookmarks fell out, he remembered Silver’s "failed" glue. Fry realized that if he applied that light adhesive to a piece of paper, he would have a bookmark that stayed put but wouldn't ruin the pages of the hymnal.

Eureka!

So he told Silver about his problem and solution and they agreed to team up to develop the idea.

The Power of the Pivot

3M was skeptical, but they agreed to try it and ended up launching “Press ‘n Peel” notes in four cities.

It flopped.

Nobody understood why they needed it.

But Silver and Fry didn't give up. They knew they had something. They decided to give the product away for free to office assistants in Boise, Idaho. And once people actually used the sticky little yellow squares, they were hooked. The reorder rate was a staggering 95%.

Yep, they invented Post-its.

They Changed the World

Fry and Silver didn't just find a use for the glue; they found a whole new way for people to communicate.

By 1980, Post-it Notes were a national sensation. Today, they are a multi-billion dollar staple in almost every office and home on the planet.

But it only happened because they had the right partner. Spencer Silver had the invention, but Art Fry had the application. Without each other, working together, that "kinda-sticky" glue would still be sitting in a beaker in a basement.

P.S.

As you know, this week I have been sharing my $17 Guide on how to start a newsletter in under 60 minutes, for free, and make money on day one.

I closed the cart last night, but lots of people wrote me, requesting access and, well, what kind of entrepreneur would I be if I said no? So I re-opened it. Like Art Fry to Spencer Silver, if you need a partner to help you launch your own newsletter already, let me be that guy. You can still get the Guide right now, here.

Overpaying for Growth?

 Get a Free Marketing Audit from the team behind 600+ growth campaigns!

As a Notes to an Entrepreneur reader, you've been selected for one of our limited 20-minute executive review spots.

You’ll meet with senior growth specialists who will:

1. Assess your strategy
2. Identify smarter growth levers
3. Deliver a custom audit + action plan you can execute immediately

Secure your FREE SPOT → HERE

The Takeaway

The Post-its lesson? Your “failure” might actually be a breakthrough waiting to happen. You just might need a fresh pair of eyes to help you see it. Success is rarely a solo sport.

Steal This Strategy

Newsletter: Launch Your First Newsletter in Under 60 Minutes: This is the same process I used to turn a simple idea into over $1,000 in sales in just a few days. If you have an idea and need a partner to show you the steps, this is it. You can grab it here for $17.

Video: Watch the hilarious scene from Romy and Michelle’s High School Reunion where Lisa Kudrow takes credit for inventing Post-its.

Read: 25 Creative Ways to Use Post-Its. Clean your keyboard? Who knew?

About Steve

Steve Strauss is the best-selling author of The Small Business Bible (and 17 other books), Inc.’s small business columnist, a lawyer (non-practicing), and an entrepreneur. He sold his last venture, TheSelfEmployed.com to Mark Cuban & Zen Business. Need a ghostwriter or a newsletter for your business? Contact Steve!