When asked what his most important creation was, Steve Jobs didn't say it was the iPad or some other device. He said it was Apple Computer, because creating a lasting company was much more important than making a single product. Below are seven things he emphasized to remain successful.
1. Focus
In fact, when he returned to Apple after being ousted, he noticed that Apple was trying to make too many products at the same time, and that they needed to eliminate many of them in order to focus on the ones that mattered most. How does a leader know what matters most?
2. Vision
If you don't have a vision of what the most important things are for your company's products and services, for the employees, customers and stakeholders, it may be difficult to keep a business going for any length of time. It seemed as though Steve Jobs did consistently have vision, or was open to listening to key employees to find it.
3. Open-mindedness
For example, when he bought Pixar, it was a computer hardware company and made no animated films. The company was not doing very well, and Jobs considered selling it. However, Ed Catmull floated the idea of making an animated feature film, which was one of his personal dreams. Jobs had the open-mindedness to consider what must have seemed a very risky venture. He could have sold Pixar to Microsoft, but took the risk to make Toy Story.
4. Change Your Mind Quickly When Necessary
The willingness to change one's mind quickly, rather than clinging to established ways, is another beneficial practice. Pixar President, Ed Catmull said that Jobs had this ability, "For many people, changing course is also a sign of weakness, tantamount to admitting that you don’t know what you are doing. This strikes me as particularly bizarre–personally, I think the person who can’t change his mind is dangerous. Steve Jobs was known for changing his mind instantly in the light of new facts, and I don’t know anyone who thought he was weak."
5. Change the World
There is a tendency in the business world to obsess about profits, but forget why the company exists and that it operates in the context of a society where things like compassion, generosity and empathy are what matter most. Steve Jobs wanted to change the world for the better and succeed in business. Having a higher purpose does not interfere with success in business; meaning and purpose sustain successful businesses. "“He looked up at me and just stared at me with the stare that only Steve Jobs had and he said, ‘Come with me and change the world,’ and I just gulped because I knew I would wonder for the rest of my life what I had missed.” - John Sculley, former Apple CEO
6. Passion Has Its Place
Sometimes we may hear the instruction to 'be passionate', but passion seems to be something that can't be faked successfully. So it may not work to try to force oneself to be passionate about something if there isn't any true passion. Steve Jobs, by all accounts, waspassionate about creating very-well designed consumers products. If you aren't passionate, or a least genuinely interested in your work, it may be difficult to lead employees. A lack of passion might indicate it is time to try a different job or a whole new field.
7. Ship Product
Guy Kawasaki has a compelling insight on his blog about the fact that under Jobs, Apple had a zeal for making great products, but they also balanced that by shipping new products with a viable frequency, "For all his perfectionism, Steve could ship. Maybe the product wasn’t perfect every time, but it was almost always great enough to go. The lesson is that Steve wasn’t tinkering for the sake of tinkering—he had a goal: shipping and achieving worldwide domination of existing markets or creation of new markets. Apple is an engineering-centric company, not a research-centric one. Which would you rather be: Apple or Xerox PARC?"
If you don't have a vision of what the most important things are for your company's products and services, for the employees, customers and stakeholders, it may be difficult to keep a business going for any length of time. It seemed as though Steve Jobs did consistently have vision, or was open to listening to key employees to find it.
3. Open-mindedness
For example, when he bought Pixar, it was a computer hardware company and made no animated films. The company was not doing very well, and Jobs considered selling it. However, Ed Catmull floated the idea of making an animated feature film, which was one of his personal dreams. Jobs had the open-mindedness to consider what must have seemed a very risky venture. He could have sold Pixar to Microsoft, but took the risk to make Toy Story.
4. Change Your Mind Quickly When Necessary
The willingness to change one's mind quickly, rather than clinging to established ways, is another beneficial practice. Pixar President, Ed Catmull said that Jobs had this ability, "For many people, changing course is also a sign of weakness, tantamount to admitting that you don’t know what you are doing. This strikes me as particularly bizarre–personally, I think the person who can’t change his mind is dangerous. Steve Jobs was known for changing his mind instantly in the light of new facts, and I don’t know anyone who thought he was weak."
5. Change the World
There is a tendency in the business world to obsess about profits, but forget why the company exists and that it operates in the context of a society where things like compassion, generosity and empathy are what matter most. Steve Jobs wanted to change the world for the better and succeed in business. Having a higher purpose does not interfere with success in business; meaning and purpose sustain successful businesses. "“He looked up at me and just stared at me with the stare that only Steve Jobs had and he said, ‘Come with me and change the world,’ and I just gulped because I knew I would wonder for the rest of my life what I had missed.” - John Sculley, former Apple CEO
6. Passion Has Its Place
Sometimes we may hear the instruction to 'be passionate', but passion seems to be something that can't be faked successfully. So it may not work to try to force oneself to be passionate about something if there isn't any true passion. Steve Jobs, by all accounts, waspassionate about creating very-well designed consumers products. If you aren't passionate, or a least genuinely interested in your work, it may be difficult to lead employees. A lack of passion might indicate it is time to try a different job or a whole new field.
7. Ship Product
Guy Kawasaki has a compelling insight on his blog about the fact that under Jobs, Apple had a zeal for making great products, but they also balanced that by shipping new products with a viable frequency, "For all his perfectionism, Steve could ship. Maybe the product wasn’t perfect every time, but it was almost always great enough to go. The lesson is that Steve wasn’t tinkering for the sake of tinkering—he had a goal: shipping and achieving worldwide domination of existing markets or creation of new markets. Apple is an engineering-centric company, not a research-centric one. Which would you rather be: Apple or Xerox PARC?"
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