Learning From Steve Jobs

I took the picture at left outside the Apple Store on 59th Street in New York City. Based on the scene that I saw there and the volume of tributes that have appeared across the web there is no doubt that Steve Jobs was one of the greatest innovators of all time. I do believe that in the future in schools his name will be mentioned alongside names likeThomas Edison and Alexander Graham Bell. Beyond his status as a great visionary and innovator Jobs also founded and for many years ran one of the great American companies. As such, even if you don't consider yourself an innovator there is a lot that can be learned from Steve Jobs that you can apply to a business career.

Unlike Edison and Bell, Steve Jobs leaves behind a digital legacy. Sure, the definitive (and authorized) biography is coming. Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson will be released in about a week. I'm sure that I will read it to learn all I can about the man and how he ran a business. You should too. Beyond the book there is an incredible treasure trove of online video that you can freely access today.  I will link to a few specific sources below but I'm sure that there are many more great ones to be found via Google and YouTube. 

Watch the videos. See what you can learn from Steve Jobs's attitude, delivery and approach to presenting products, and talking about Apple. One thing that I have taken away and really admire is Jobs's approach to presenting. He has always eschewed the standard PowerPoint with mutliple bullets and lots of words in favor of a powerful image or an image with a few large words in a big font. I also have found that he is always an unabashed fan of his own products and was never shy about selling the proverbial soap. Steve Jobs was also a passionate Apple user. It might seem to be common sense that a CEO and founder would be a patronize his own products but you could tell that he really was a fan. I get the feeling from many big company CEOs that they might not even utilize their own products if they weren't getting paid to do so.

Enough with my thoughts. Go learn from Steve!

Steve Jobs appearances at the Wall Street Journal All Things Digital Conferences: http://allthingsd.com/20111005/steve-jobs-appearances-at-d-the-full-sessions/?refcat=conferences

Key moments from Steve Jobs keynotes since 1997: http://www.zdnet.com/blog/btl/apples-steve-jobs-in-his-own-words-video/56137

Various Apple Keynotes since June 2010: http://www.apple.com/apple-events/

Steve Jobs presents the iPod: 

Steve Jobs Stanford commencement address in 2005: 

Apple Macintosh launch event: