“You have to trust in something, your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. Because believing that the dots will connect down the road will give you the confidence to follow your heart– even when it leads you off the well worn path. And, that will make all the difference.” -Steve Jobs
Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple and its CEO, resigned last week to end a chapter in America’s business history. We all know the story of how Jobs and his co-founder Steve Wosniak, started Apple in a garage. What you might not know is that Jobs has some great words of wisdom for people starting in business. I was surprised when I Googled “Steve Jobs wisdom” to get over 9 million hits.
For example, Harvard Business Review presents Jobs’ 2005 Stanford University commencement address. Great reading, folks.
On Success, from the example of the Beatles:
“My model for business is The Beatles: They were four guys that kept each other’s negative tendencies in check; they balanced each other. And the total was greater than the sum of the parts. Great things in business are not done by one person, they are done by a team of people.”
—From 60 Minutes
Steve Jobs’ wisdom even applied to church leaders (really all leaders), in this article from UrbanFaith:
- Being first is overrated.
- Create a culture, the numbers will follow
- Don’t apologize for excellence: “Be a yardstick of quality. Some people aren’t used to an environment where excellence is expected.”
- Don’t be afraid to change. “You can’t just ask customers what they want and then try to give that to them. By the time you get it built, they’ll want something new.”
And finally, from Small Business Bonfire, Alyssa Gregory gives us some more references to the Wisdom of Steve Jobs (I see a book in here somewhere).
This holiday weekend might be a great time to reflect on what Jobs has to say about life and your business startup. We don’t get these opportunities often, so why not take them when you can.
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