I just finished reading Walter Isaacson's incredible biography of Steve Jobs, and it was even better than I thought it would be. There are so many great insights in this book that it almost demands a second reading.
I came away from this book totally convinced that Jobs was one of the great visionaries of the 20th century. That's not to say that I think Jobs was a moral man....far from it. He was a total asshole to most people (including to his closest friends, apparently). I'm absolutely amazed that all those ye
ars of Zen training and Hindu spirituality--that he obviously took quite seriously--made absolutely no impact on the way he dealt with other human beings.
What impresses me about Jobs is that, in an age where people are content to mass produce crap solely for the sake of profit, he was motivated primarily by an exquisite aesthetic sensibility that drove him to create beautiful, well-made products that people loved to use.
I remember when I got my first Ipod about seven years ago. From the moment I opened the box (which itself was a thing of beauty) and saw the black shiny device, I was madly in love. And unlike the Microsoft products that I had formerly used, which were so damned buggy, the Ipod always worked like a dream, synching perfectly with the extensive music collection I had on my computer. The Ipod wasn't just a toy, it was a work of art.
There's so much more I could say about Jobs and this book. Instead, I'd encourage you to read it for youself and form your own impression.
FROM STEVE JOBS BY WALTER ISAACSON:
The people who invented the 21st century were pot smoking, sandal-wearing hippies from the West Coast…, because they saw differently….The sixties produced an anarchic mind-set that is great for imagining a world not yet in existence. (Bono, quoted in Steve Jobs)
I hate the way people use slide presentations instead of thinking. People would confront a problem by creating a presentation. I want them to engage, to hash things out at the table, rather than show a bunch of slides. People who know what they are talking about don’t need Powerpoint.
Some people say, ‘Give the customers what they want.’But that’s not my approach. Our job is to figure out what they’re going to want before they do. I think Henry Ford once said, “If I’d asked customers what they wanted, they would have told me, ‘A faster horse!’” People don’t know what they want until you show them. That’s why I never rely on market research. Our task is to read things that are not yet on the page.
You always have to keep pushing to innovate. Dylan could have sung protest songs forever and probably made a lot of money, but he didn’t. He had to move on, and when he did, by going electric in 1965, he alienated a lot of people….The Beatles were the same way. They kept evolving, moving, refining their art. That's what I’ve always tried to do—keep moving. Otherwise, as Dylan says, if you’re not busy being born, you’re busy dying.
I came away from this book totally convinced that Jobs was one of the great visionaries of the 20th century. That's not to say that I think Jobs was a moral man....far from it. He was a total asshole to most people (including to his closest friends, apparently). I'm absolutely amazed that all those ye
ars of Zen training and Hindu spirituality--that he obviously took quite seriously--made absolutely no impact on the way he dealt with other human beings.What impresses me about Jobs is that, in an age where people are content to mass produce crap solely for the sake of profit, he was motivated primarily by an exquisite aesthetic sensibility that drove him to create beautiful, well-made products that people loved to use.
I remember when I got my first Ipod about seven years ago. From the moment I opened the box (which itself was a thing of beauty) and saw the black shiny device, I was madly in love. And unlike the Microsoft products that I had formerly used, which were so damned buggy, the Ipod always worked like a dream, synching perfectly with the extensive music collection I had on my computer. The Ipod wasn't just a toy, it was a work of art.
There's so much more I could say about Jobs and this book. Instead, I'd encourage you to read it for youself and form your own impression.
FROM STEVE JOBS BY WALTER ISAACSON:
The people who invented the 21st century were pot smoking, sandal-wearing hippies from the West Coast…, because they saw differently….The sixties produced an anarchic mind-set that is great for imagining a world not yet in existence. (Bono, quoted in Steve Jobs)
I hate the way people use slide presentations instead of thinking. People would confront a problem by creating a presentation. I want them to engage, to hash things out at the table, rather than show a bunch of slides. People who know what they are talking about don’t need Powerpoint.
Some people say, ‘Give the customers what they want.’But that’s not my approach. Our job is to figure out what they’re going to want before they do. I think Henry Ford once said, “If I’d asked customers what they wanted, they would have told me, ‘A faster horse!’” People don’t know what they want until you show them. That’s why I never rely on market research. Our task is to read things that are not yet on the page.
You always have to keep pushing to innovate. Dylan could have sung protest songs forever and probably made a lot of money, but he didn’t. He had to move on, and when he did, by going electric in 1965, he alienated a lot of people….The Beatles were the same way. They kept evolving, moving, refining their art. That's what I’ve always tried to do—keep moving. Otherwise, as Dylan says, if you’re not busy being born, you’re busy dying.
You have the wrong heroes!
ReplyDeleteBatman is my hero
Delete...superman's better
DeleteYou're are right that Jobs was an asshole. Did you know that he exported most of Apple's jobs to China? Some great visionary! I don't understand why anyone would look up to this guy. At least Bill Gates has a social conscience.
ReplyDeleteAs does almost every other company, especailly technology companies! He's left an impact on many people with his business outlooks and ideologies. If you really feel that way, then don't buy Apple products, and try and find something made domestically to use...please.
DeleteSteve Jobs may not have been the best role model, but he was one of the world's greatest visionaries. What we can take from him does not have to be how he lived his life or how he treated others, but rather how he thought and how he saw the world with limitless boundaries. He revolutionized the music industry, the phone industry, and kick-started the tablet industry. An amazing innovator who will certainly be missed.
ReplyDeletei completely agree with you!
DeleteThis comment highly motivated me
DeleteI completely agree with this post. Steve Jobs was an amazing business man. even though he screwed people over (even his friends) he still succeeded in making money and thats really all he set out to do
ReplyDeleteI find that he is a brilliant man. If you were to ask a group of people if they have/had any Apple product, I can almost guanrantee you that 2/3 people will say Yes. He has always been a step ahead of anyone else. Also, I agree with the point about the powerpoint slides. If you are fully confident in what you are saying or demostrating and have complete knowledge of it, you should be able to explain it to a group of people without showing pictures. During a speach, these pictures are mostly distractions. The exception of this is if there is a use of a chart or a list of statistics for example.
ReplyDeleteI can see how at first steve comes off as an asshole but if you really think about it he was right about everything he said and in the way he did things. He is a real master of persuasion and he was concise and direct, he was able to create something amazing. If you think about it, in a room of 20 people at least 14 have a product made by apple. so all tho people say he is an ass he made millions by acting the way he did.
ReplyDeleteIndeed.
Deleteshama-lama-ding-dong
I feel the exact same way as you... Steve Jobs was a great icon of the 21st century. He transformed the technological industry, as seen Apple's market dominance. Most importantly, though, he has left an impact on many people (myself included). It's a shame it had to wait until his passing for his life story to reach everyone's ears.
ReplyDelete@nygfan
DeleteJ-E-T-S JETS JETS JETS
Steve Jobs might have been a jerk at times, but who isnt? Especially a man that has created if not the best, but one of the best companies of all time. If you travel the streets of New York City you would see people listening to their IPods and a majority of people talking on their IPhone. Steve Jobs revolutionized the way people act these days, without him we might still be listening to cd players.
ReplyDeleteWow! What a great response! I was highly motivated and inspired by such a beautiful comment. I'm tearing up a little =')
Deletei don't care if Jobs was an asshole or not. He is the reason why we have such great IPODs, computers and other great technological products for our entertainment. I respect him for everything he has done; his story is truly motivating. He shows that in order to get ahead in life you can't just go with the flow
ReplyDelete#ipodflow
DeleteMaybe Steve Jobs was a complete jerk to the people around him, but he was a business man (and a good one,too). His goal was to grow his company to become the largest and most well known in the world. The purpose of growing a company is to make money, and Jobs did just that. He understood how to develop products that people would fall in love with, and look at how many people out there have iPhones, iPods, Macs, etc... He was an extremely successful, brilliant minded man, and regardless of his personality, he is one of the greatest innovators of our time.
ReplyDeleteSometimes you have to be a tool to get the job done. He may have seemed like a jerk, but I honestly think if he wasn't a jerk and didn't get down to business, his products wouldn't be as effective as they are. Looks to me like he got rid of the normal fluff most companies go through, put his social conscience aside and created products no one else could ever create. But anyway, as a person, in the business world your required to be cut throat to be successful, and he was extremely successful. Soo if you wanna be successful in the business world, go ahead try being a tool; it works sometimes.
ReplyDelete