13A – Reading Reflection No. 1

I decided to read Walter Isaacson's authorized biography, Steve Jobs, because I interested in the world's fascination with apple products, and want to see how its founder rose to the top. 

I learned of several new facts about both Apple and Steve Jobs that shocked me. First, was that Jobs didn't go to an ivy league school, and insisted to his adoptive parents that he wanted to go to Reed College (a private, liberal-arts college). Also shocking was Jobs's addiction to LSD. As a successful, powerful man, he had always been painted to me as straight-edge and entirely dedicated to his craft. Seeing this adherence to the 60s/70s counterculture makes him more human, and the enormous success he had feels more attainable.

Jobs understood the value of failure. For a while, his computer product was considered a failure, and drastically worse than other market alternatives. When he encountered this failure, he did not let it discourage him and moved forward despite the apparent hopelessness of the situation. 

I am most impressed with his understanding of the market, and advertising. He used various methods that boosted company reputation to the public. His famous commercial for the Superbowl, drew on George Orwell, Big Brother vibes and encouraged viewers to break free of the mold and try other products. He also manipulated the media to gain exposure for his products, without spending a dime. 

Part of the reading that confused me was how much Woz contributed to the making and success of Apple. Although Jobs was the head of the company, Wozniak is credited with most of the ideas regarding an "all in one" system and the product design of the Apple I and Apple II. The success of the entire corporation rested largely on his shoulders, and he pulled through. 

If Jobs were alive today, I would ask him how he combined his cultural ideas with his working philosophy. He clearly had his spirituality and philosophy worked into company values and product design, and I would like to understand the connections in his own words. 

I would also ask him when he first felt truly successful. As an entrepreneur, you are constantly chasing success. What was his idea of success? Was it a money milestone, product idea, manufacturing number, or even just an a-ha moment? To understand his motivation, I need to know what moment he felt he was successful in his life's work.

Undoubtedly, Jobs would say the value of hard work is priceless. I think any entrepreneur understands that hard-work is completely necessary, and success can't just be handed to you. Even if advantages are handed to you, they need to be maintained and grown with hard work. Apple and the result of Job's efforts show that he is no stranger to hard work, and would tell anyone it's enormously valuable.