Steve Jobs was an oxymoron like that, and this has never been more evident than it is in Jobs, the brand new biopic about his life. The movie paints Jobs as a laid-back tech visionary who didn't work well with others, and may have stepped on a few friends and colleagues on his way to fortune and fame. It was habits like this that got him pushed out of Apple -- the brand he built -- in 1985. But when Apple's stock was plummeting, the company realized they needed the passion and focus that got Jobs shafted in the first place. They brought him back as CEO and he brought the brand back with products like the iMac and iPod. Clearly, the man was indispensable, which is proven by the fact that you are most likely reading this on your iPhone or iPad right now.
Steve Jobs provided us not only with gadgets that changed our lives but lessons that can change our careers. So how can you build a business like his? Take a few tips from the man's many mistakes and successes shown in this film. Study up. Then go off and invent something.
1. Strive For Innovation
“You can’t look at your competitor and say, 'We are going to do it better.' You have to look at your competitor, and say, 'We’re going to do it differently.'” Wanting to surpass his competition was never enough for Jobs, which is why he was often late to jump on a bandwagon. What mattered to him was putting out a product that was innovative. What was the first MP3 player to come out and what was the most innovative one?
2. Watch Your Back
Jobs learned the hard way that even when you are at the top of a company, you are never safe. Even if you go out of your way to bring someone into the company, that person can turn around and get rid of you. It happened to Jobs, and he also did it to others. Don’t get too comfortable.
3. Everything Is A Pressing Issue
Steve felt very strongly about seeing each task as equally important. If you didn't feel like that, he reasoned, why would you bother completing anything but the most pressing one? We learned from the film that if he hadn’t been so adamant about this, we wouldn't have as many fonts to choose from. We know you can’t part with Comic Sans MS.
4. Simplicity Is Okay
You don’t need to work out of a fancy office or wear an expensive suit
to be taken seriously. In fact, you don’t even need shoes. What you do
need is confidence in a product that is actually good. Just look at
Apple; it started out as a handful of deadbeat-looking guys working in a
garage barefoot, but it was their idea and passion that sold the brand.
5. You Only Need One Person To Be Onboard
When Jobs and Wozniak first presented their product to a room full of techies, only one man showed a semblance of interest. While it was disheartening, they only needed one first customer. When Jobs called hundreds of people to try to find investors, and only one man answered, he became their first investor. Don’t get discouraged when only one person shows interest; it only takes one person to help you get past that first step.
6. Have Smart Friends
Friends who will buy you beers and let you crash on their couch are great, but will they be able to help you when you are on a deadline to fix a video game and you have no idea how to do it? We didn’t think so. Steve surrounded himself with brilliant people, including Steve Wozniak, who was his partner in inventing the personal computer. Surround yourself with minds who will inspire you to create and do great things. When you’re in a bind, you’ll be grateful to have a guy like Woz around.
7. You Don't Need An Ivy League Degree
We learned from Mark Zuckerberg that you don’t have to graduate from Harvard to become a success. But not only did Jobs drop out of college, he dropped out of a small liberal arts school. And after that, he invented Apple. Ivy League, schmivy league.
