The Steve Jobs success story is perhaps one of the most well known successful innovative entrepreneur story of this decade. He has brought Apple to become one of the most successful and inspirational companies today and has revolutionized the technology market forever.
Jobs was a serious gamer changer in the industry. Over the years, he has created many legendary products including the iPod, the iPad, and the world-famous iPhone. Not just Apple products, he also bought Pixar and went along with it to produce amazing animation movies such as the Toy Story series, The Incredibles, Finding Nemo, and much more.
No doubt that Jobs has produced extraordinary results in his life, but what is more important right now is what you can learn from him. And this is exactly what you are going to discover in this article. Below are the 7 golden principles you can learn from Steve Jobs.
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Love what you do
During an interview, Jobs said that one of the keys to build a successful business and to live a great life is to love what you do. You need to have an intense passion for your work. Most people fail and give up because they are not willing to go through the hardships, more importantly, they do not like what they do.
And when you have no passion for what you do, you will quit and give up the moment when you face setbacks and challenges along the journey. Jobs was famous for his saying, “Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do.”
Ask yourself right now, “Do you love what you do?” If the answer is no, then perhaps, you should consider changing jobs or industry. There is a reason why success coaches and gurus keep preaching that you should follow your passion.
When you are passionate about doing what you do, you are willing to do it even when nobody asks you to. Plus, whenever you face difficulties, you are willing to take it as a challenge and to also improve your work, simply because you love to do it. Passion makes you go the extra mile, which is the necessity to become extraordinary.
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Don’t be afraid to be different
Steve Jobs often said that he wanted to put a ding in the universe. He was not afraid to dream big and do something extraordinary. In fact, most of the things that he did in his life were considered crazy by many.
Before Apple produced the iPod, mp3 players were known only as an ordinary mp3 player. And before iPad was introduced to the masses, there was no such thing as a tablet. And before iPhone launched, touch-screen smartphone was not a big deal. Nobody believes that these things are possible, except Steve Jobs. He saw the limitless possibilities and shakes the industry.
As a result, Jobs, on his own terms, successfully put a dent in the universe. All of these were possible because Jobs allowed himself to dream big and be different. In fact, he wanted to stress the idea of daring to be different so much that he created the “Think Different” commercial campaign that made Apple position itself as a revolutionary technology company.
Therefore, dare to be different. It is true that it may be scary because you are venturing out into the unknown, but without going out of the box, you will never know what lies out there. The only way to become extraordinary and successful in life is to never be afraid to be different. The word “success” itself already means that you are different from the ordinary.
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Never lose your focus
When you take a good look at all the products created by Apple, you will see that they do not offer much. In fact, they are so focused that they only created a few revolutionary products and keep on improving on the existing ones. According to Steve Jobs, the focus is extremely important when it comes to producing outstanding success, no matter it is in business or at life.
This was what Jobs said during a board meeting: “People think focus means saying yes to the thing you’ve got to focus on. But that’s not what it means at all. It means saying no to the hundred other good ideas that there are. You have to pick carefully. I’m actually as proud of the things we haven’t done as the things I have done. Innovation is saying ‘no’ to 1,000 things.”
When Mark Parker joined Nike as the CEO, he talked to Jobs over the phone. Mark asked suggestions and advice from Jobs, and Jobs told him that over the past few years, Nike has created many amazing products, which also created a lot of mediocre ones. And Jobs went on to suggest Mark get rid of the crappy products and focus on the good stuff.
Hence, focus on your most important goals and stop doing everything altogether. Do not jump from one opportunity to the next before you succeed in the current one. Stick to your goal and do whatever it takes to achieve it.
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It is alright to fail
You have to understand that to be successful you will have to learn that failure is part of the game. In fact, you will face many failures in your journey, but it is not about how many times you fail, but your attitude and how you treat failure that matters.
Steve Jobs said that there is no failure until you deem it to be so. He was a college dropout because he thought that his college fee was too expensive for his middle-class parents. Not only that, Jobs was fired from Apple as well, and the second company that he founded, NeXT, was not quite successful because he made the wrong decisions in the company.
He has had as many failures as his successes. And this is just a part of the equation. If you want to build amazing success in your venture in life, there is no way to go around failure. Thus, think of failure as a stepping stone to your success. And as long as you learn from your failure, it is not a failure, but a feedback to become better.
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Have faith and keep going
When Jobs was fired from Apple, the company that he started, he felt miserable and failed very publicly. He took three months away from the business, which eventually led him to discover that he still loved what he did. And he decided to start another company called NeXT and also bought Pixar.
At the turn of the event, Apple bought NeXT and Jobs got back into Apple. Pixar then produced Toy Story, which proved to be a great success. And Jobs brought Apple back to life by becoming the CEO there once more.
Steve Jobs never thought that he would be able to get back to Apple and brought the company to become the company of the decade. When he failed, he maintained his faith and kept going. Of course, he followed his passion and eventually made it to the top again.
At the commencement speech at the Stanford University, Jobs said, “You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backward. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something – your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.”
You have to believe that everything happens for a reason and what is bad for you right now may turn out to be the greatest reward later in your life. So have faith and never give up.
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Follow your heart and listen to your inner voice
When times are tough in your life, just follow your heart and listen to your inner voice. According to Jobs, your time in this world is limited, hence, do not waste it by living someone else’s life. Do not be trapped by dogma and listen to what others tell you. Stop living in the noise of other people’s opinion. Instead, take charge, follow your heart, and have the courage to listen to your inner callings.
Too often, people are affected by their surroundings. They choose to work on a job that their parents want them to, not because of their passion. People buy expensive cars to impress others and live a life according to other people’s means.
If this is describing you right now, you should stop and listen to your gut feeling. Get into solitude and hear your inner voices. Your heart already knows what you want to accomplish in your life and knows exactly what you want. You just need to stop and listen to your intuition.
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Reflect on your life
One of the most powerful lessons you can learn from Steve Jobs is none other than reflecting on your life. Jobs said that he asked himself this question each morning, “If today were the last day of my life, would I want to be doing what I’m doing?” And whenever his answer is a no for a few days straight, he knew that something has to change.
You can use the same technique to reflect on your life. Asking this question allows you to better understand what truly matters in your life. Most people take their life for granted and they act like things don’t matter. However, things will be totally different if today is your last day. You will never waste your time if you have only one day to live, right?
This was what Steve Jobs did to produce extraordinary achievements in his life. He reflects, improves, and only focuses only on doing the things that truly matter to him.