On October 5, 2011, a sad news for technology practitioners worldwide came that the most outstanding innovator globally, the founder of apple inc, Steve Jobs passed away at his home in Palo Alto, California at the age of 56. Since then, on every October 5th, a large number of apple fans have been commemorating the death of Steve Jobs.

Steve Jobs' life can be described as legendary. In the first decade of Apple (1975-1985), he rose to fame with the product Apple II, becoming a leading figure in the computer industry at that time. However, the young and rebellious Jobs did not understand how to operate a company or how to manage a publicly traded company that was rapidly growing. In 1985, he was forced to leave the apple inc that he founded.

The 12 years from Jobs' departure from apple inc in 1985 to his return in 1997 were a key period in his career. He evolved from an immature 'genius' product manager to a mature business operator during this time, also gradually refining his innovative ideas on personal computers. Without these 12 years of experience, apple inc could not have become the global representative of innovative enterprises.

During these 12 years, Jobs founded two companies: the computer company NeXT and the animation company Pixar. These two companies struggled until around 1993, which made the young and brash Jobs truly understand the hardships of entrepreneurship. He learned how to combine lofty goals with practical work, how to cope, how to be patient and understanding, how to manage and motivate innovative teams. The vision, wisdom, and patience displayed by Jobs in the last ten years of his life were all gained from continuous experimentation and exploration during these 12 years.

At the end of 1996, apple inc acquired NeXT, bringing Jobs back to apple inc, where he became the CEO in 1997. At that time, the personal computer industry was in a period of rapid development. Apple inc was facing bankruptcy and gradually becoming a 'marginal player' in the market. Jobs "revived" it in two years, and led Apple to become a unique presence in the global technology and business community over the last ten years of his life.

Recently, it has been the 13th anniversary of Jobs' passing. On this occasion, 'Li Shi Business Review' specifically compiled 100 of Jobs' musings, covering his insights in various fields such as innovation, entrepreneurship, product design, management, and life experiences, to express homage to this globally outstanding innovator.

1. Insights on Innovation

One of the founders of Xerox, Edwin Land, once said, "Only those who can stand at the intersection of humanity and technology, taking the strengths of both, are the pillars of society." He is my idol, and I aspire to become such a person. (Steve Jobs biography)

Technology alone is not enough; it must be a combination of technology, humanities, and humanization, which is becoming increasingly important in the post-PC era. (Speech by Jobs at the iPad 2 launch event in March 2011.)

The internet has no emotions; it is just information. Apple hopes to stand at the intersection of technology and humanity, bringing human elements to these technological tools. (Interview with Japanese media by Jobs in 2001.)

Greatness brews in chaos. (Steve Jobs biography)

Great works of art do not need to follow trends; they can lead trends themselves.

Pablo Picasso once said, "Good artists copy, great artists steal," and we are not ashamed to steal great ideas.

Using humanity's existing experiences and knowledge for invention and creation is a remarkable thing.

Major changes are beneficial to innovative mavericks; if their ideas are correct, they can unearth gold mines and contribute to the world. (In July 1991, Jobs talked about his thoughts on the personal computer industry, thinking about how to create products that reshape the personal computer industry.)

Innovation is like jumping into the air, but you must ensure that when you land back on the ground, the ground is still there. (Becoming Steve Jobs)

The biggest difference between followers and leaders is that leaders like innovation.

Everyone makes mistakes when innovating. Once you make a mistake, do not hesitate. It is best to quickly admit the mistake and get involved in perfecting another innovation.

Creativity is about connecting things together.

If you ask creative people how they come up with something, how they accomplish something, they will feel a bit guilty. They didn't actually "do" something, just "saw" something, and after a while, how to do it becomes obvious. They can synthesize their experience and new things together.

Innovation comes from people bumping into each other in the corridors, or calling each other at 10:30 p.m. with a new idea, or because they realize there is a way to solve a problem that has been plaguing us. Innovation is when someone thinks they've come up with the coolest thing, wants to know what others think, and calls a meeting with six people.

When Apple developed the Mac computer, IBM's R&D spending was at least 100 times that of Apple, so innovation is not about money. What really matters is your employees, your leadership style, and how much you understand what you are developing.

People who appear to be mad, we must show them great respect. It is precisely because of their madness and being different that they create more things and truths that we are not aware of.

Focus and simplicity have always been my motto.

Simplicity is harder than complexity, you must strive to clarify your thoughts to achieve simplicity. But in the end, it's worth it, because once you achieve simplicity, you can move mountains and fill oceans. (1998, when Steve Jobs was interviewed by the media, he was continuously simplifying Apple, reducing the product line to 4.)

Focus is very difficult, because focus means you have to constantly say "no." Only by deciding to do a small number of things can you do your best.

Say "no" to a thousand things first, to ensure that we do not go astray or waste too many attempts, and to focus on what is truly important.

II. About Entrepreneurial Experience

When you are young and have nothing to lose, do something. When you are young, you have nothing to lose, no responsibilities to bear, and starting a company will be much easier.

When we founded Apple, we had nothing to lose. At that time, I was 20, and Woz was probably 24 or 25. We had no families, no children, no houses. Woz had an old car. I had a Volkswagen van. All we could lose was our cars and the clothes on our backs. But what we gained was all earned, the experience gained is worth ten times the cost. (1994, when Steve Jobs was interviewed by the Silicon Valley Historical Association, sharing his entrepreneurial experience.)

Creating a new company is a very difficult thing, you must be passionate, without passion you will surely give up.

24. People who start companies being driven by money, there are very few successful examples. Successful people may not initially think of starting a company. They just have an idea that they want to pursue, so they have to start a company, otherwise no one will pay attention to them. (In 2001, Steve Jobs was interviewed by Japanese media.)

25. The only purpose of me creating a company is for the product, the company is just a means. (Becoming Steve Jobs)

26. Only by creating a strong company, attracting excellent talent, and fostering the right corporate culture, can great products be created. (Becoming Steve Jobs)

27. We were deeply influenced by HP. HP has the 'HP way', which is the values they recognize. Among them, the first one is that we need to make a profit, otherwise the company cannot survive.

28. We made the Apple I, sold about 200 units. The key to this product is that we learned something. We got half of it right, but gained experience, figured out how to make the next big leap, which is the real reason for the huge success of Apple II.

29. The reason most people lack life experiences is that they never seek help. When I asked for help, I found that everyone I asked was willing to help me.

30. When I was twelve, I called HP founder Bill Hewlett. At that time, there were no hidden numbers in the phone book, and I found his name in the directory. After Bill Hewlett answered the phone, I said, "Hi, I'm Steve Jobs, you don't know me, I'm twelve years old this year, and I'm making a frequency counter and need some parts." He talked to me for twenty minutes, not only gave me the parts but also offered me a job. That summer, at the age of twelve, I worked at HP, which had a great impact on me. HP was the only company I saw at that age, shaping my concept of a company.

31. Most people never ask, which sets apart those who take action from those who only dream. You have to take action, you have to be willing to face failure. Whether starting a company or something else, you have to be willing to accept being rejected on the phone. If you fear failure, you won't go far.

In the field of mainframe computers, in the centralized computing world, personal computers represent individuals, individual freedom, so Apple's design and development are lightweight personal computing, which distinguishes it from non-personal mainframes.

Entrepreneurial risk culture has a lot to do with role models. Starting with HP, the role models of engineers, marketers, and even some failed cases are widely discussed in business success cases. Even if they fail, people admire their courage to try. They can pick themselves up, dust themselves off, and then go look for the next job. Maybe they don't own that company, or become the founder of the next company, but they have a good job. They will never be destitute.

The problem with the Internet entrepreneurship boom is not too many people starting companies, but too many people not persevering. When you have to sell the company, you have to lay off people, cancel projects, face very difficult situations, and many moments are filled with despair and pain. At this point, you can find out who you are, what your value is. These people who sell their companies, even if they become very wealthy, are actually cheating themselves away from a life experience worth paying for. Without this experience, they may never know their value, or how to properly face the new wealth. (In 2000, Steve Jobs was interviewed by the media.)

About product design

Where does my intuition for products come from? It can be summed up as taste. The key is to expose yourself to the essence of humanity and strive to integrate it into what you do.

In the dictionaries of most people, the definition of design is appearance. This understanding is vastly different from the essence of design. Design is the soul of all human-made products, and will eventually be revealed through layers of appearance. (In 1997, after Steve Jobs returned to Apple, he was interviewed by the media.)

Finding the answers is the key factor for a good product, not the management process.

The real magic is to refine a product from five thousand ideas.

After I left apple in 1985, the most harmful thing to the company was what Scully (who succeeded Jobs as Apple's CEO) did: he made a serious mistake in thinking that as long as he had great ideas, things were ninety percent done; just tell others that there is a good idea here, and they will come back to the office and make the idea come true. However, the problem is that turning good ideas into good products requires a lot of processing.

To design something well, you must be familiar with it, truly understand what it is. You need to invest a great deal of passion continuously to truly understand it thoroughly, you need to chew on it repeatedly and savor it, not just gulp it down. However, most people are not willing to spend the time to do this.

The entire operation of our company, product design, advertising marketing, and various other concepts can be summarized in one sentence: the pursuit of ultimate simplicity. (In 1983, Jobs' speech at an international design conference.)

In real life, everyone naturally knows how to use a desktop. The reason we use the 'desktop' concept in computer design is because we can leverage everyone's pre-existing life experience.

Great works of art break through the boundaries of taste, elevate the heights of taste, rather than blindly follow the current taste.

No market research can predict the emergence of Macintosh. (In 1990, Jobs, as CEO of NeXT, was interviewed.)

People don't know what they want until you show it to them. That's why I never rely on market research. Our task is to see things that haven't been written down yet.

The customers for the products we make are ourselves, we are creating things that we ourselves really want. We want computers, we know exactly what kind of computer we want, so we develop and market them.

It is essential to start from the consumer's experience, then come back to find the technology to develop - absolutely cannot reverse the ends and means.

I am not interested in the standardization of personal computers. Tens of millions of people helplessly use second-rate computers, and the quality of computers should be much higher. (In July 1991, the first joint media interview of Steve Jobs and Bill Gates. Steve Jobs criticized Bill's approach to standardizing computers.)

Currently (1991), the personal computer industry is making incremental improvements on existing products to enhance the performance of existing products. However, I believe that for the healthy development of the personal computer industry, there needs to be large-scale movements and changes. (In July 1991, Steve Jobs talked about his thoughts on the personal computer industry, as he was already considering how to create products that would reshape the personal computer industry.)

Our products are not priced too high because we do not offer inferior products with only basic functions. If you remove these basic functions and compare Apple computers with computers from other brands, I think Apple computers are more worthwhile. (In 2007, Jobs discussed Apple's pricing premium.)

Apple's requirement for products is: to make the product so good that you would not hesitate to recommend it to family and friends.

Chapter Four: Success and Failure in Management

[NeXT's Misfortune] In 1985, Jobs left Apple. Afterwards, he founded a new computer company NeXT, but the development was not smooth, and by 1992, it had hit a low point. Jobs began to contemplate transformation, and in 1993, he cut off the hardware business, focusing instead on software development.

Unsuccessful companies spend their primary funds on management efficiency, while successful companies invest their main funds in operational efficiency. (In 1992, as the CEO of NeXT, Jobs gave a talk at a university.)

In my career, I discovered for the first time that a product, like a wild horse running loose, has deviated from the path demanded by consumers. The launch of the Apple III was delayed by 8 months, unnecessary designs were made, and the costs were much higher than anticipated. If we could have launched the Apple III on time, positioned it as an upgraded version of the Apple II, and made the Apple III more suitable for enterprise needs, the situation might have been different. But reality has no 'ifs.' I pulled the most outstanding people from the Apple III team, tasked them with researching how to turn the technology I saw at Xerox into reality, which was one of the reasons why the Apple III failed. (In July 1991, Steve Jobs, who had already left Apple, candidly admitted to his mistakes at Apple.)

I learned to look at people with a more long-term perspective. When I see someone messing things up, my first step is not to solve the problem but to realize that I am building a team to achieve great things in the next ten years, not to demand results next year. What I need to do is help the person who made the mistake learn from it, instead of directly solving the problem for them. This may be the biggest change I've made since leaving Apple. (In 1992, as the CEO of NeXT, Steve Jobs discussed the lessons he learned from his time at Apple.)

Computers are the 'bicycles' of the human brain, tools that allow us to surpass ourselves. As a tool that has just emerged, computers are still immature, yet they have demonstrated tremendous potential, triggering unprecedented changes in the next hundred years. (In 1990, as CEO of NeXT, Steve Jobs talked about his future outlook on computers.)

Many people turn their past successful experiences into rules. However, before long, they become puzzled as to why the rules themselves become the answers. This is why IBM failed. IBM had the best system management personnel, but they forgot that the purpose of designing processes was to find the best answers. Many people can manage processes but do not know how to find answers. (In 1995, as the CEO of NeXT, Steve Jobs gave an interview.)

The best talents can find the best answers, but they are the most difficult people to manage; you have to tolerate them.

In hindsight, being fired from Apple was the best thing that ever happened to me in my life. The burden of being successful disappeared, replaced by the ease and relief of being an entrepreneur. Various uncertainties allowed me to regain my freedom and enter the most creative phase of my life.

【Success of Pixar】In 1986, the second year after leaving Apple, Steve Jobs bought the Lucasfilm computer graphics division, which is now Pixar. The management experience he gained at Pixar allowed him to manage Apple more efficiently when he returned in 1997. Without this entrepreneurial experience at Pixar, the second glory of Apple would not have been possible.

Buying Pixar was to enter the 3D industry, as the potential of the 3D industry is as boundless as the personal computer industry was in 1978. (In 1986, Steve discussed in an interview his reasons for acquiring Pixar.)

My business model is like The Beatles, where four talented individuals balance each other out, and together they are greater than the sum of their parts. Great business achievements are not accomplished by one person, but by a team working together. (In 2003, Steve Jobs was interviewed on the American program "60 Minutes.")

Get rid of other distractions and focus on animation. This is why I initially bought Pixar, and this is the reason you all strive for. Although this strategy carries high risks, the returns are higher. Let's listen to our inner voice. (In 1991, Steve Jobs had invested a total of 50 million dollars in Pixar, which was still mismanaged and not profitable. He began to cut costs, sold the hardware division, focused only on software and animation business, and laid off 2/3 of the staff.)

The key is not how fast you do it, but how well you do it. (Pixar) Every time they make a movie, problems arise, but they are willing to start over every time until they are satisfied. They are not restricted by release deadlines.

How long is the lifespan of an Apple computer? 3 years? Not more than 5 years. However, if your movie is done well, it can be timeless. (At the end of 1994, Pixar was about to release the animated movie "Toy Story" in collaboration with Disney. Steve Jobs planned to take Pixar public, but the co-founders of Pixar did not agree.)

Now Pixar is just a yacht. But through a merger, we are like boarding a huge ocean liner, capable of withstanding storms and rough weather. (In October 2005, Steve Jobs planned to sell Pixar to Disney, after their collaboration had been terminated a year earlier.)

【Reviving Apple】In December 1996, Apple acquired NeXT to obtain the NeXTSTEP operating system. Steve Jobs returned to Apple in 1997 as interim CEO. During the heyday of rapid growth in the personal computer industry's golden era, Apple transitioned from a market leader to an underdog, facing losses of up to 800 million dollars and on the brink of bankruptcy. After Steve Jobs took over as CEO, Apple turned losses into profits, achieving a profit of 309 million dollars for the entire fiscal year of 1998.

Cutting means shutting down, cancelling, stopping, and the cost doesn't matter. (In 1996, Steve Jobs returned to Apple as interim CEO and implemented a drastic subtraction strategy.)

What Apple needs most is great products, not necessarily using new technologies. I believe that many people don’t really understand how to create great products. (In July 1997, Steve Jobs returned to Apple and talked about what he considered the biggest problem Apple faced.)

Apple's core value is not about manufacturing computers as a tool, but believing that passionate individuals can change the world.

Apple has many truly talented people, some of whom have been hearing for years that they are failures, and some are beginning to believe it themselves. However, they are not failures. What they lack is just a good coaching team, a good plan, a good senior management. But now they have it. (In 1997, when Steve Jobs returned to Apple as CEO to revitalize the company.)

If Apple is to win, Microsoft does not have to lose. This is a very foolish attitude. Even without Microsoft's failure, Apple can still succeed. I have no doubt about this.

Apple has tremendous advantages and does not need to focus on the 'life and death confrontation' with Microsoft, but rather on the customers. (In 1997, when Steve Jobs spoke at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference about the relationship between Apple and Microsoft at that time.)

Chapter Five: Team Management

Most of my success comes from finding truly talented people, not B or C level talents, but real A level talents.

Outstanding individuals yearn to work with the best people they know, even hoping that these people are better than them. In my opinion, working with those who are not as good as you is like living in a dwarf world. (In October 1997, when Steve Jobs had just returned to Apple and was interviewed by the media.)

For me, recruitment is the most important thing. (In 1985, when Steve Jobs, as Apple CEO, gave an interview.)

Bring together a group of talented partners, let them collide, argue, and even quarrel with each other, which may create some noise, but in the process of work, they will make each other better and make ideas better, and in the end, beautiful stones will be produced. (In 1995, Steve Jobs, who was serving as the CEO of both NeXT and Pixar at the same time, was interviewed, at a low point in his career.)

When working with truly excellent and confident individuals, you don't need to carefully protect their self-esteem. The most important thing you can do for them is to tell them where they are not good enough, explain why clearly, and then guide them back on track.

The employees you hire must be better than you in some aspect, and they need to know that they must tell you when you make mistakes. The executive teams of Apple and Pixar often argue with each other, and every Pixar employee will candidly express their opinions, the same goes for Apple.

The most outstanding individuals are good at self-management and do not need people to manage them. Once they know what to do, they naturally know how to do it. (In 1985, Steve Jobs, serving as the CEO of Apple, was interviewed.)

The most outstanding individuals need a shared vision within a team, and this vision is the true embodiment of leadership.

Leadership is about creating a vision, clearly articulating its issues, making sure everyone around understands it, and reaching consensus on that vision with the surrounding people.

About life experiences

As you grow up, you will be told that the world is the way it is, and your life is meant to be lived in this world. Don't try to break down walls, try to have a good family life, be happy, and save some money. That is a very limited life. Your life will become incredibly broad after discovering this simple fact: your so-called life is constructed by those who are not as smart as you. You can change it, you can influence it.

Your time is limited, don't waste it living someone else's life.

Don't be confined by dogma, that means you will live with the results of other people's thinking.

Don't let other people's noisy opinions drown out your own inner voice. Have the courage to follow your heart and intuition, they already know what you truly want to become, everything else is secondary.

Get rid of the misconception that "life is out there, you're just living in it", instead embrace it, change it, improve it, leave your mark.

The only thing you truly own is time. If you invest time in things that enrich your life experiences, then you will never lose.

In Buddhism, there is a phrase: beginner's mind. Having the mindset of a beginner is a remarkable thing.

If you want to make a difference in a field, you must fully engage in a project, see your ideas, step by step, come to fruition at different stages. Even though sometimes you may be covered in scars due to mistakes, you can still stand up strong time after time, dust off and keep moving forward. Otherwise, all we'll ever learn is superficial. (In 1992, Steve Jobs, who served as CEO of NeXT, shared this at MIT.)

Making mistakes does not mean failure. Successful people make corrections after making mistakes. They take mistakes as a warning, not an irreparable failure. Never making mistakes means never truly living.

The most important decision in life is not what you want to do, but what you cannot do.

If you want to create something new, you must be passionate, because it is really difficult.

When looking to the future, you cannot predict how these pieces will connect, only in retrospect will you understand the connections. Therefore, you must believe that these little bits and pieces will somehow come together in the future.

You must believe in certain things, like courage, destiny, life, karma, and so on. Only by believing that the bits and pieces of life will connect in the future, will you have the courage to follow your inner voice, even if it guides you away from the familiar ordinary path. This will make you stand out from the crowd.

The only driving force that propels me forward is that I love everything I do. You must find what you love. It's true for loving others, and it's true for work too.

Work will take up a significant part of life. Only by believing that the work you are engaged in is great, can you feel content, and the only criterion for whether work is meaningful is love.

If you haven't found what you enjoy doing yet, continue searching. Don't stop, use all your heart and soul to search. When you find what you love, you will feel it, just like anything beautiful, it gets better with time. So keep searching, don't give up.

Every morning, I look into the mirror and ask myself, 'If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do?' If the answer is 'no' for too many days in a row, then I know I need to change something.

"Remember you are going to die soon" is the most important saying I have ever heard, as it helped me make significant decisions in my life. When facing death, almost everything - including all external expectations, all pride, all fears of embarrassment or failure - will turn into nothingness, leaving only what truly matters.

Death is the best invention of life, the agent of life's change. It sends off the old generation and paves the way for the new generation.

I view individuals very optimistically. As individuals, our nature is good. I believe that people are noble, respectable, and some are indeed very intelligent. My view of teams is more pessimistic. When I see what's happening in our country - in many ways the luckiest country in the world - I always feel very worried. It seems we are not interested in building our country better for our future generations. (1996, Steve Jobs in a media interview.)

To me, being the richest man in the cemetery means nothing. The most important thing is that before going to sleep at night, I can tell myself: I did something great today. (1993, Steve Jobs in a media interview.)

References:

1- 'Becoming Steve Jobs'

2- 'Steve Jobs Biography'

3- In 1994, the Silicon Valley Historical Association interviewed Steve Jobs

4-1995 Jobs interviewed in 'Lost Interview'.

5- Jobs' media interviews over the years.

Editor/Somer