An 1887 edition of the Leather Gazette called it the "one special thing engaging the attention of inventors and the interest of manufacturers...more than any other."

Throughout the previous decades, machinery had been devised for every aspect of the shoe industry except one: shoe lasting. In shoe production, a last was a wooden model of a human foot. The laster set the upper (the leather body of the shoe) over a last and stretched it to work out any looseness or irregularities in the leather. Once the upper was ready, the laster tacked the  innersole at the proper place along the edges of the upper and trimmed off the excess leather. Because every piece of leather is unique, engineers faced great difficulty trying to mechanize the lasting process.

In the closing decades of the 1800s, machine firms were investing vast sums to engineer a lasting machine, but their efforts were to no avail. The process seemed too difficult to mechanize, until Jan Matzeliger's unit was built. With so much money being spent by large corporations, shock waves spread throughout the world when the first successful lasting machine was finally a reality thanks to an individual named Jan Matzeliger.

Jan Earnst Matzeliger (1852-1889)   Jan Matzeliger revolutionized the show-making process because of his ability to see a need and meet it with the supplies at hand. The shoe lasting machine Matzeliger invented was a success. Within a few years, his project was at the heart of a $20 million industry, largely due to his ability to make use of that which others discarded.

A person can grow physically and emotionally tired, yet still be interested in seeing the job through. A study of great military leaders throughout history will demonstrate the power of interest in an objective despite emotional and physical fatigue. This ability to foster persevering interest in a job that needs doing is a distinctive mark of diligence.

Matzeliger was born in Suriname (then Dutch Guiana). By age 24, he had found his way to Boston, Massachusetts, and settled in the nearby town of Lynn. It was in Lynn that Matzeliger was hired to operate a sole-stitching machine and was introduced to the shoe business. Young Matzeliger was a hard worker, scrupulously honest, notably kindhearted, and very poor. He was also resourceful.

It was early in 1880, after watching the hand-lasters at their craft, that Matzeliger began to build a machine in his tiny apartment. He collected scraps of wood, discarded cigar boxes, and pieces of wire. With items salvaged from disposal, he constructed his first model. It was crude, but it was enough to satisfy him that his idea would work. Next, he focused on building an iron prototype.

Collecting old castings and broken machine parts, Matzeliger forged, filed, machined, and fitted the pieces himself. It took him four weary years, but in early 1885, hes machine was ready for a factory test. To the amazement of all, his machine successfully lasted a record 75 pairs of women's shoes in one day. With further refinements, that number rose to between 150 and 700 per day, as compared to the usual 50 pairs a day by hand.

When Jan Matzeliger had his idea, he initially lacked the resources to make it a reality - but he had resourcefulness. He knew what his machine needed to do, and he looked for available objects that would service those functions. Rather than insisting on a "real" machine hinge or a "real" clamp, Matzeliger procured available objects that would accomplish his purposes.

Through resourcefulness, Matzeliger startled the world by transforming a collection of worthless scraps into a machine that was worth millions of dollars to the shoe industry.

RESOURCEFULNESS ON THE JOB

There are two sides of resourcefulness. On one hand, resourcefulness is starting with an available object and discerning the value of it. On the other hand, resourcefulness is starting with a need and finding an available object to meet it. It is in this latter sense that Jan Matzeliger exhibited particular resourcefulness. Rather than insisting on getting the "real thing," resourceful Matzeliger found readily available alternatives.

When facing a need, avoid buying too quickly. Consider your options. The resourceful solution may be as simple as buying generic rather than name brand, or it may be more creative: rigging your own solution from scrap parts, as Jan Matzeliger did.

Consider what it is that you actually need to accomplish. Think about various ways the goal might be accomplished using tools and resources already available. Find and procure the parts that allow you to develop your solution resourcefully and inexpensively.

RESOURCEFULNESS WITH BALANCE

Anything worth doing is worth doing well. Resourcefulness is about getting the job done in the most efficient and practical manner possible. It is not about skimping on quality.

Matzeliger never could have built his shoe lasting machine if he had not been resourceful. But when greater financial resources became available, it would have been foolish for him to try to market a line of machines built from scraps. In order to have a quality product for marketing, he needed to invest in custom-forged parts.

Resourcefulness must be exercised in balance with diligence. Diligence is "investing my time and energy to complete the task assigned to me." It is investing whatever is necessary to get the job done right.

Being diligent to use what is available to you to finish the job well means being resourceful with little and being willing to invest much.

RESOURCEFULNESS VS. WASTEFULNESS

Finding practical uses for that which others would overlook or discard.

The English word source comes from the Latin word surgere, meaning "to rise, get up, stand up; to grow up, spring up; to guide, direct" (related to surge). The word surgere indicates a carrying up from beneath, as water comes from a spring (its source) underground.

Someone who is re-sourceful takes those items that are believed to be without value and re-sources them. That is, although an item may have already finished its expected cycle of life, the resourceful person brings it up again with new life and new usefulness.

re·source·ful·ness n 1: the ability to deal with problems promptly and effectively 2: cleverness in finding resources 3: capability of devising ways and means

Resourcefulness is  recognizing the value that others overlook in people, objects, and ideas; it is identifying practical uses for the resources, and maximizing available resources to furnish present needs.

INDEXING CHARACTERISTICS

Resourcefulness is alertness to the various characteristics of an object that make it useful for various functions. For example, paper is porous; thus, ink will soak into its fibers and stain it, making it a suitable surface for writing. Yet paper is also flammable; therefore, it can be used as a fuel.

Another characteristic of paper is its weight. In thin sheets, it is lightweight; in large stacks, it is heavy. Therefore, paper makes excellent packing material when crumpled into airy balls. It also makes a solid anchor when a carton of new paper is set on the vase of a teetering floor lamp.

By being alert to the characteristics of the things around you every day, you build up an archive of resources to draw upon if and when a need should arise. When facing a need, consider what conditions you require in a solution. Then consider what objects you know of that would meet those conditions.

CONSERVATION

Resourcefulness is a fundamental quality behind environmental protection. By tying policies such as environmentalism back to character qualities, we have a universal foundation for balance.

Resourcefulness stands in opposition to both free exploitation and the idea of "locking up" natural resources. Resourcefulness is maximizing present resources, finding the wisest use of what is available, and developing creative alternatives in order to avoid damage.

THINK RESOURCEFULNESS 1. What are the two sides of resourcefulness? 2. How have you personally benefited from Jan Matzeliger's resourcefulness? (Hint: Look at your feet!) 3. What is a purchase you are presently facing at home or on the job that you might be able to avoid by thinking resourcefully about what is already available to you? “A penny saved is a penny earned.” - Benjamin Franklin

RESOURCEFULNESS AT HOME

Have a child make a list of a few things he or she would like to get. Come up with creative ideas on ways to obtain  or substitute some of them. You may be able to make some of them yourselves. A thrift store may be the answer for others. Perhaps trading with a friend who likes something your child has would be a resourceful alternative (after making sure parents of both children approve any trades, of course).


Character definitions and information used by permission. Copyright Character Training Institute. www.characterfirst.com
 

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