The book I read was Steve Jobs, by Walter Isaacson.
The thing I found most surprising about Steve Jobs was how deplorable his hygiene actually was. He was often described as having horrible body odor, due to his delusions regarding diet and hygiene, and he would walk around unbathed, barefoot and without deodorant.
What I admired most was his absolute dedication to have the highest quality product without compromises. Nothing was ever "good enough" if it could actually be better.
What I admired least was his callousness towards everyone around him, even his own children. He seemed to usually view people in terms of how useful or not they were to him, and if you fell on the wrong side of that line you barely registered at all.
Steve Jobs did encounter a great deal of diversity and failure, including being forced out of Apple a decade after creating it. His response was to sulk for awhile, but ultimately he held on to the same passions that drove him, and just found a new direction to aim them in. He started a new company, and also bought Pixar, and led them with the same principles he'd always believed in.
Steve Jobs was very competent at dealing with people and manipulating them in directions that would be favorable towards himself. He had very high ambition, and good business acumen. His eye for detail and ability to understand the unmet needs of people were uncanny.
If I were able to ask him two questions today: "How does Apple compare now to the vision you had for it when you stepped down in 2011?" and "Are there any decisions where you wish you'd been less driven by ambition?"
Steve Jobs was definitely a believer in hard work, and worked himself sick on many occasions.
No comments:
Post a Comment