You don’t need another list about Apple’s best gadgets, biggest failures, or trivia – there’s plenty of sources for that. But due to the significant event of Steve Jobs resigning from Apple, writing about his impact on the computer industry and in many ways our digital lifestyle, it would be silly to not at least reflect on his influence.
Thank you Mr. Jobs, for the Mac, the iPod and much more, but also thank you for the lessons we have learned from your life…
To Win, You have To Roll The Dice
By this statement, we don’t necessarily mean you have to gamble. But you do have to take a risk, or in other words, take the plunge in order to achieve your goals. Too many times we find ourselves talking about an idea and talking about how we can accomplish our ideas instead of actually doing them. Think about how Jobs, with a barely working prototype in 1976, shopped – and got 50 pre-orders for – his and partner Steve Wozniak’s Apple I. That takes initiative.
You need to be Single Minded
Jobs has always wanted to be the boss, and he has only had eyes for technology. Family? Not so much. Instead of being a father, he denied paternity of his daughter for years. A career change? Instead of moving onto a different industry when he was kicked out of Apple, he tried to start a company that would (unsuccessfully) surpass it (NeXT). Every choice he made was so that he could be a significant force in computing (from hardware to software, Pixar CGI etc.) and guess what – it got him back to the top job at Apple.
You Need to be Okay with Making Mistakes
There is never any guilt, nor regrets, on Job’s face. Ever. As many incredible products Apple has produced since his return in 1996, they have also released quite a few clunkers. In big picture terms, Jobs has certainly made significant blunders as a human being and sometimes as a CEO. But will he ever admit to them? It doesn’t matter. Instead of becoming introspective, he continues to keep moving, finding the silver lining with every error, and improving shortcomings (or abandoning them) in the next round. You can argue that he has the money to make mistakes, but it takes real character to not succumb to embarrassment.
It’s Not Over until It’s Over
Make no mistake. Steve chose to move on. With his ailing health, the probability that his winning steak would not last, and the definitive prospect that things can’t always stay the same, he has probably known for a long time that stepping down was inevitable. But, in true fashion, he did it on his terms, at a time when people actually least expected it, and with little fanfare.
What did you learn – good or bad – from Steve Job’s? Let us know in the comments!
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