I love experiments! When I say that at an event, executives often react with astonishment. Experiments – aren't those done in school, where they constantly go wrong? That has nothing to do with developing a company, right? But it does! And not just if you happen to work in the chemical industry. Natural science and experiments are engines for motivation and innovations. For every company. Why? Quite simply:
Experiments require courage
"I'd rather not touch that! Who knows what might happen there!" If you think like that, you can't experiment. Not in the physical sense and not in terms of innovations either. When I conduct an experiment, no matter how small, I take action. I abandon my passive attitude and dare to step out of my comfort zone a bit – this happens to me every time, even though I really do a lot of experiments professionally. With the Physikanten, we have reached over a million people – and often at the end of our shows, lectures, or moderations, we hear the feedback: "I'll try that out too!" This attitude is the best thing that can happen to a company. That is pure motivation.
Seen a thousand times? The familiar in a whole new light
Did you know that you can build a keyboard from bananas? Or that the water carbonator in your company's tea kitchen not only spits out carbon dioxide, but also a ball of dry ice? Now you know – and you will probably see your tea kitchen with different eyes tomorrow. Those who experiment look at the world differently. This applies to the big, spectacular experiments we show on stage, but also to the exciting phenomena in everyday life from our book "Physics is When It Bangs" (Heyne). Over the past twenty years, I have had the luxury of seeing incredibly many exciting topics with a different perspective. We have developed experiments and shows for the automotive industry, mechanical engineering companies, energy providers, banks, educational institutions, theaters, and television productions. We not only bring experiments from the respective customer's field of expertise to the stage, but also always something from the world beyond the horizon. This way, even the most seasoned expert has an aha moment – and even astronauts and PhD physicists are amazed by the effects. Through experiments, you get to know your field of expertise in a new light.
Experiments can fail
Sure: Not every experiment works immediately. And that's the best part about experimenting. Sounds strange? But it's true! For a television production, we were supposed to lift a person with vacuum cleaners. It didn't work at first. It was only because of that, that we understood that the vacuum cleaners of the brand we used were so incredibly powerful that one suction device would have been enough – the problem was the too small suction area. Could we have calculated that without experimenting? Probably. But then we would have had less courage and innovation.
Fun despite professionalism
When executives hear that I love experiments, besides skepticism, there is often another reaction: A sigh along the lines of "I'd like that job too!" You know what? You can have it – at least a little bit in your own everyday life. We bring the experiments, and you will be amazed at what you can do with natural science. Besides, it's a lot of fun.
