Inspiration from Steve Jobs
Does Steve Jobs inspire you? Do you want to be like him? A lot of people are likely to instinctively say yes. They think about the captivating visionary they would see on stage, single handedly introducing revolutionary new products and changing the game. It’s easy to think that emulating this will naturally lead you to success.
There’s a lot more to Steve Jobs though, and that’s what I’d like to explore here. I think it’s safe to say that you could never act like he did in an organisation you weren’t leading.
It’s almost like there were two sides to him. Apple insiders often half-joked about ‘which Steve they would be dealing with’. Let’s compare them now and work out what we can learn from this fascinating figure. What we can take on to inspire us.
The good side of Steve Jobs
It’s almost like he’s become the very essence of what an entrepreneur and tech leader should be. Many people have spoken about the ‘reality distortion field’ that seemed to form around him. How his natural charisma made people believe anything was possible.
As I said at the start, when you think of him it’s probably at a time he was on stage launching a new product. Just him, his signature black turtleneck and jeans and a compelling story. His legacy is also safely defined, with a string of breakthrough products that include the iMac, iPod and iPhone.
He also staged what is often justifiably referred to as the greatest second act in business. After being forced out of Apple in the 1980s, he returned to save them from bankruptcy in the late 1990’s when they brought his company, NeXT. The main cause of their decline had been that they were simply producing too many average products.
In the years that followed, he streamlined their range and focussed on quality and innovation. His work with designer Jony Ive is almost legendary. Corners simply weren’t cut.
When the screen on an iPhone prototype was scratched by the keys in his pocket, he insisted it had to be updated with strengthened ‘Gorilla Glass’. His team, and particularly the then Chief Operating Officer Tim Cook, faced a frantic, six-month scramble to ensure this was all in place at launch. That’s just one story.
People see him as a great leader and a visionary. This, combined with his hippy-like approach in the early years and apparent rejection of material things created a compelling story. The son of Syrian immigrants, who was adopted and rose far beyond his modest upbringing. I think there’s more we should consider though.
The bad side of Steve Jobs
That reality distortion field often appeared to turn inwards as well. There are so many negative accounts of Steve Jobs. Examples include parking in disabled bays at the Apple campus, igniting bitter feuds with rivals and even throwing an iPod prototype into a fish tank. This was apparently done to show his team it could be smaller, as there were air bubbles.
Then there was the time he simply told people they were ‘holding the iPhone 4 wrong’ in response to a serious design flaw. My personal favourite was when he casually told us we just had to buy our movies again on iTunes when he removed the disc drive from the first MacBook Air.
All of this gives us a glimpse at someone who appeared to think rules didn’t really apply to him.
One thing that has always stuck with me is that he seemed to be aware of this. It appeared to frustrate him as well. In Schlender and Tetzeli’s book, Becoming Steve Jobs there are clear accounts of him reaching out for help with this. It’s like he couldn’t stop himself shooting from the hip and being so direct.
People also forget about the things that weren’t so good. For every iPhone launch, there was an iPod Hifi. A very long, detailed presentation about a product that didn’t really excite people and achieved very little. It’s also clear that Steve Jobs was keen to take credit and more than a little reluctant to share spoils. Just ask the team at Pixar, after he made a lot of money selling that company to Disney.
Hopefully, none of this is anything you aspire to. As I said at the start, I think it’s safe to say that you could never act like he did in an organisation you weren’t leading.
What should inspire us
The big question. If Steve Jobs set so many bad examples, why am I writing this?
It’s simple, as I look up I see two things that are on my desk in front of me. An original iPhone and a G3 iPod. Both of them reflect what was great about Steve Jobs. Beautiful, inspiring devices that exist because corners weren’t cut. For me, they symbolise that drive for perfection and refusal to compromise.
I use them to inspire me when I’m creating things. To do my best to produce something special. That’s how Steve Jobs inspires me.
We can also be inspired by those negative things. Remind ourselves that we can’t go down that road. That we can lose other things that are important. I know what it’s like to come across people who threaten what you’re passionate about. Steve Jobs genuinely inspires me to take a breath and find another way. Often, it’s about being diplomatic and searching for understanding.
Steve Jobs should inspire all of us to break the mould and dare to dream. To be behind something that matters. He should also inspire us to be people worthy of admiration. Someone they want to act like. We should set the right example, and lead them on their way.
More importantly, we need to make sure we find the right balance when we do this.