Almost all the technologies that made Apple a household name were, in fact, pioneered by other companies. Everything from the graphical windows-based interface of the Macintosh to its mouse pointing device to the portable digital music playing capabilities of the iPod to the touch interface of the iPhone were existing technologies. What Jobs brought to the table was he had the sense of urgency needed to turn ‘laboratory technology’ into disruptive technology that really changed how people interacted with and used electronic devices.
This is a powerful personal trait to copy because it is too easy for us to get discouraged by the fact that competitors are already doing what we want to do. In fact, they already have introduced solutions to the problems we want to solve. Steve Jobs’ story shows that being a latecomer doesn’t matter. Just because other people came ahead of us doesn’t mean we can’t beat them. What matters is that you have the sense of urgency to give your customers the value they deserve. A lot of the technologies Apple engineered into their products existed but were either too exotic, too expensive, or too clunky. Steve Jobs focused on boosting user experience so much that he pulled out all the stops in making Apple products intuitive, easy to use, efficient, and modern-looking.
Steve Jobs’ personal story teaches us that it doesn’t matter where we come from, how much we start with, or how other people perceive us when we first start out. What matters is the level of passion we have for our dreams, our willingness to pursue our dreams, and our open-mindedness. Genius, it often turns out, is not based strictly on intelligence but passion and relentlessness in finding better solutions.