Creativity from the Military in Iraq - American troops in Iraq are using Silly String
(spray foam string for kids) to reveal hidden trip wires that trigger bombs. Before
entering a building or domicile, troops squirt a jet spray of the string about 10 to 12
feet across the room. If it falls to the ground, they know they have no problem. If it
hangs in the air, they know there is a trip wire. In darker rooms, these trip wires are
nearly invisible.

Soldiers have also reported using :
 - condoms and rubber bands to keep sand out of their rifle muzzles.
 - Medics often use tampons to plug bullet holes until wounded soldiers can be  
   properly treated.
 - welded scrap metal to the front of humvees for additional protection from land  
   mines. (This is referred to as "Hillbilly Armor" among the troops.)
 - attached old bulletproof glass frames around gunner position on top of Humvees  
    to give extra protection (Soldiers refer to this as "Pope's Glass" - a reference to
    the barriers that protect the Pontiff on his limosine.)

An associate had a unique problem and decided
to give PPO a try. His problem was that he and his wife
were having financial problems but his wife did not want
to work a full time job. He made up his cube and rolled it
twice. It came up with Fishing and Sales Psychology.
After a few minutes of thought, he realized in sales that
you have to give the customer what they want, and in
return they give you money! So he needed to sell his
wife on getting a job. In Fishing, you have to use bait. If
fish are hungry, they are willing to take the bait even
though they hate getting caught. His wife hated doing
house work. So he told his wife if she could get a
part-time job making $100 a week, they could take $50
and have maid service come in and clean the house for
her weekly. She loved the idea, took a part time job and
the problem was solved.

Henry Ford was s stickler for efficiency. He was constantly looking for
ways to reduce cost.

When the Model T was in production, his parts suppliers were obliged
to conform to his exact packaging specifications in order to receive
contracts. Crates had to be of uniform size, and bolted (rather than
nailed) together in a prescribed manner, using a predetermined type
of bolt. His suppliers thought he was out of his mind, but they
complied. When his orders arrived, Ford had the crates carefully
taken apart, then bolted into his cars as floorboards...using the free
parts his suppliers had so generously provided. He combined his
knowledge of packaging and his experience in materials management
and reduced his costs generating MORE profits.

Philo Farnsworth was born in a log cabin, rode to high school
on horseback and, without benefit of a university degree
(indeed, at age 14), conceived the idea of electronic television
— the moment of inspiration coming while he was tilling a
potato field back and forth with a horse-drawn harrow and
realized that an electron beam could scan images the same
way, line by line, just as you read a book. From this concept,
he created the first TV picture tube.

Bette Nesmith Graham, a single mother, was an executive
secretary for W.W. Overton who was the chairman of the board
of the Texas Bank & Trust in Dallas. That was about as high as
a woman in the 1940s and 50s could get in the business world.
She and other secretaries were having trouble with the new
electric typewriters. They had a different ribbon than the old
ones so it made mistakes harder to erase. While she was
painting the bank window for the holidays, she noticed how
artists just painted over the mistakes they made. Maybe she
could paint over her typewriting mistakes. She used a bottle of
white, water-based tempra paint and her watercolor
paintbrush. It worked. She tried to keep it a secret. For five
years she did just that but, still others found out about it.
Eventually, she marketed the product commonly know today as
Liquid Paper...and her son did okay too. He moved to
California and became a drummer for a new band called the
Monkees. His name was Michael Nesmith!

While Wilbur and Orville Wright were still in the stages of their "first flight"
design, they noticed a real problem. Flying straight was a matter of power
versus weight but turning was impossible. Every time they went to turn the
glider, the craft nosed into the ground and crashed. After some disappointing
testing at Kitty Hawk, they went back to their bike shop in Ohio. One day,
Orville was taking a tire tube out of the box. In the old days, these boxes were
like matchbook boxes...consisting of a tray and a slide cover tube with ends
open. He slid the tube tray out and held the outer cover in his hands. He put
fingers on each side and twisted it. He noticed that as one side torqued
down, the other torqued up! He ran to the design table and sketched out a
new wing design that allowed both wings to actively participate in the turning
process. The first test at Kitty Hawk allowed them to turn smoothly with no
dropping of altitude. This design has been replicated on almost every plane
since! They are called ailerons.  

_______________________________________________________

I am collecting PPO stories (like the ones below) for a future publication.
I would be very interested in hearing from you about your experiences
using PPO or stories that illustrate the concept. It's amazing to see what
people have come up with by ovelaying their personal knowledge.
Thank you for taking the time to read this website and I hope you have
found it beneficial. I hope through the awareness of Personal Pattern
Overlay, you will be more open to this way of thinking and will reap
benefits in better solutions, ideas and a happier life.

Thank you.
Ted Theodore
Founder of PPO

YAKWORKS
403 Hunters Hill Rd.
Simpsonville, SC 29680

email : tedagmar@juno.com