Steven Paul Jobs has defied a lot of odds. Without a university degree or any engineering experience, he was able to build a tech empire. He turned around Apple from an almost bankrupt state into one of the most successful brands in the world. He grew to become one of the leading and most reputable brands in the world. This involves mobile gadgets to computers, software and, more recently, a film streaming service and payment company.
Before his death in 2011, he was the Chairman, CEO and co-founder of Apple Inc. He was also a major shareholder of Pixar. In all these, there is so much to learn from his life.
Check out these seven life lessons that you can apply to your life:
1. Travel the world
There is only so much you can learn from other countries and cultures if you never visit. When Jobs was 19 years old, he went to India. He explained that travelling has opened his mind and given him a better perspective of the world. It has exposed him to the different lifestyles of people living at different ends of the earth.
2. Make good company
Having great minds around you will greatly impact your future. Steve Jobs tried to always hire and surround himself with fellow visionaries. He hired prominent people like John Lasseter and Tim Cook, who is now the CEO of Apple. It is obvious Cook was a great hire as he is still carrying on Job’s dreams. Jobs also hired Steve Wozniak at some point because he knew he was better at building computers. This was why Jobs could achieve major successes for himself and his company. They were positive additions to the business.
3. Do what you love
Steve Jobs, while speaking at Stanford University, admitted that one thing that had kept him going was that he was doing what he loved. He said that it is important to do what you love in both your personal life and professionally.
4. Stay positive
Jobs’ biological parents gave him up for adoption. His life had so many low and down times. He did not let the circumstances around his birth keep him down. He stayed positive even when Apple had not yielded much profit, and believed things would turn around.
5. Take calculated risks
He was a huge risk taker. He took the risk to develop and market the iPhone when the iPod was their top selling product. He then reduced the sale of the iPod to concentrate on building a market for the iPhone. It was a big risk that eventually paid off. He knew the iPhone was going to be a great sell, so he dove in head first.
6. Learn and move on from mistakes
Apple fired Steve Jobs in 1984. He, however, decided to not stay down. In an address he made at Stanford in 2005, he said that the sack was the best thing that happened to him. He said he was able to start over, enter a more creative part of his life and do more.
7. Never be afraid to start young
Jobs was a teenager when he started working with Hewett Parker and Atari. He had already started working on the idea to start Apple before he was 20. He took the bull by the horn and dove in head first to start his own company at a very young age. He understood that it is better to start and fail than never to start at all.