Your honesty is commendable. And of value, to yourself and others. Take it from someone who has been in your shoes - it gets better. I promise. Falling off the horse is not the problem: it's the standing back up (ouch that hurt!), dusting yourself off, catching that horse, and getting back on that is the challenge. This is the challenge of life, and business. Setbacks are challenges that teach us that we can cope and overcome adversity. And as you have enough of these setbacks, you get better at handling future setbacks. And your confidence grows. Do everything you can to overcome this point. You will make it back onto the horse, and you will be better for it. I promise. I did, and you will, too.
"The ability to create an organization that reflected this approach was perhaps Jobs real gift." Couldn't agree more.
Being a leader is like being a head without a body; you need legs, arms, a torso, and a heart to carry out all those ideas. Without every single person involved in all of Apples products (not to mention the consumers who buy them) all of Steve's ideas would be moot. The world is putting all the attention on the head - deservedly so - but even Steve would be the first to admit nothing would have happened without Team Apple.
Less IS more. It's true. While users can be quite good at multi-tasking, when it comes to reading, concentration is key to retention. And even if the eye can "see it all" it really pays to edit what is seen, so that the user can quickly discern what to read (scanning) and what to pass on, so that they may quickly get through all the content they want. It's no wonder that in web design, there is a beauty in simplicity; the challenge is to make it simple enough to be efficient and user friendly, but not so simplistic it comes off as mediocre or boring.
To me, design is the next frontier in technology, and Steve and Apple led the way. We are human beings afterall, and our appreciation of the artful and well-designed is intrinsic. Why can't great engineering have both and satisfy our needs and our eye, and ultimately our soul? The Golden Gate Bridge is an excellent example of what Steve was talking about - it's not a veneer, it's beauty goes to the bone. Same goes for the user end of a website.
for that matter. The experience should be functional and beautiful.
A wonderful video - best thing I seen about Steve's passing. Woz is right. The dynamic of the two is what made Apple great. It's a classic case of a partnership that works with the sum being greater than the whole. Design (vision x moxie) + Ability (brains x sweat) = Great. And let's not forget the countless unsung worker bees who actually make it all happen. Viva Apple! His best line is about how entrepreneurs (like them) make something out of nothing but their ideas and passion. Thanks Woz and Steve
While this is about Steve Jobs, it was amazing how 1+1=11 with the two of them together.
I have often wished that Woz continued to design products with Apple long after he left. What if he had been there with Steve all this time?
If Woz invented the personal computer for the masses (Apple I, II, and building the Macintosh before Steve Jobs joined the team), what other unknown potential hasn't happened yet?
The other interesting thing is where Steve Jobs was seen as aloof and business minded, Steve Wozniak more than made up for it with heart.
A healthy, hearty and brainy balance if I may say.
