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10 Powerful Quotes From The Steve Jobs Movie And What They Teach Us About Leadership - Forbes

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Carmine Gallo, Contributor

I write about succe ss, le ade rship and com m unications.

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L EA D ER S H I P | 8/16/2013 @ 10:49AM | 351,803 vie ws

10 Powerful Quotes From The

Steve Jobs Movie And What
They Teach Us About Leadership
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Ashton Kutcher portraying Steve Jobs

The script for Jobs, the new movie starring Ashton Kutcher as the visionary
Apple co-founder, is heavy with quotes that reflect Jobs business philosophy
and approach to life. Ive interviewed the director, Joshua Michael Stern, and I
recognize most of Kutchers lines in the movie as being either direct quotes
from Steve Jobs or compilations of his quotes. Here is my vote for the ten best
quotes from the movie and what they can teach us about leadership,
creativity, communications, and success.

1. Im not dismissing the value of higher education; Im simply saying it comes at the
expense of experience.

According to Jobs film directorJoshua Michael

Stern, Steve Jobs felt that life experiences were
critical to being creative. Stern included pivotal
scenes in the movie showing a young Steve Jobs
taking a college calligraphy course and visiting India
with his friend, Daniel Kottke. Absorbing culture,
art, and history were extremely important to Jobs.
He believed in taking life experiences and using it as
a subtext for something else youre doing, like
helping to form the product youre creating, said
Stern. This is one of the most powerful success
principles we can learn from Steve Jobs: a broad set
of life experiences is essential for creativity to
flourish.

2. The greatest artists like Dylan, Picasso and Newton

risked failure. And if we want to be great, weve got to risk
it too.

Steve Jobs didnt hesitate to take risks. If he wanted

something, he would ask, even at a young age.
When Jobs was twelve years old he called up HP co-

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Carmine Gallo
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Carmine Gallo is a popular key note speaker and

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Secrets of the World's Top Minds. Learn more at
www.talkliketed.com Carmine also wrote The
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The author is a Forbes contributor. The opinions
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10 Powerful Quotes From The Steve Jobs Movie And What They Teach Us About Leadership - Forbes

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Best Business
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founder Bill Hewlett and asked for spare parts.

Hewlett gave Jobs the parts and a summer job.
Youve got to be willing to crash and burn. If youre
afraid of failing, you wont get very far, Jobs once
said. Most people never pick up the phone and call.
Most people never ask, and thats what separates
the people who do things from the people who just
dream about them. Ive rarely interviewed a
successful entrepreneur or CEO who hasnt risked
failure. In fact most successful people dont even
see failure; they see a result that didnt have the
intended outcome.

3. How does somebody know what they want if they

havent even seen it?

Steve Jobs didnt believe in focus groups. Actually,

he avoided them like the plague. Jobs believed in
building great products that he would want to use
himself. To a large extent he had a point. For
example, in 2010 how many of us would have asked
for a third device in between a laptop and a
smartphone? Most people would never have asked
for an iPad, but once millions of consumers saw it,
they couldnt live without it, and it opened up
entirely new categories of business applications.
When I spent one year researching a book on the
Apple Store, I learned that Jobs revolutionized the
retail business because he asked better questions.
For example, Jobs did not ask, How do we build a
better store than our competitors? Instead he
asked, How do we reinvent the store? Dont do
things better; do things differently.

4. Everything around you that you call life was made up by

people that were no smarter than you, and you can change
it, you can influence it, you can build your own things that
other people can use.

Ashton Kutcher likes this quote so much he used it

in a short speech at a recent award show, explaining
that its one of the most profound things he learned
while preparing for the role as Steve Jobs. The quote
itself is taken from a rare 1995 interview for the
Connie Guglielmo
Forbe s Staff
Santa Clara Valley Historical Association. The entire
clip is available here on YouTube. The rest of the
quote is equally as profound: When you grow up
you tend to get told that the world is the way it is and your life is just to live
your life and try not to bash into the walls too muchthats a very limited life.
Life can be much broader once you discover one simple facteverything
around you that you call life was made up by people that were no smarter than
youshake off this erroneous notion that life is there and youre just going to
live in it versus make your mark upon it. Once you learn that, you will never
be the same again. Dont just live a life; build one.

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5. I would rather gamble on our vision than make a me, too product.

Steve Jobs believed in dreaming big. In the 1970s personal computers were
relegated to the hobbyist market. Jobs had the vision of putting a computer in
the hands of everyday people. He once said that Xerox could have dominated
the entire computer industry because Xerox scientists in Palo Altos PARC
research facility were developing the first graphical user interface. Jobs said
Xerox failed because its vision was limited to making another copy machine.
Never underestimate the power of a bold vision to move your career and the
world forward.

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10 Powerful Quotes From The Steve Jobs Movie And What They Teach Us About Leadership - Forbes
6. Weve got to make the small things unforgettable.

The devils in the details and few people were more obsessed with details than
Jobs. Weve all heard stories of Jobs driving his engineers crazy because he
didnt like the aesthetic of something inside the computer that nobody would
ever see. Everything mattered. I recall visiting a cardboard box manufacturing
facility in Modesto, California, to prepare for a keynote speech to industry
executives. This company made boxes for Apple products. One factory
manager said out of the thousands of brands they made boxes for, none were
more particular than Apple. Steve Jobs demanded that the details of the box,
the tactile design, had to be just right. The edges had to look and even feel a
certain way. When customers opened an iPhone box, it had to set the tone for
the experience. Far too many people and businesses overlook the details and
the customer experience with the brand inevitably suffers. Details matter.

7. Heres to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The trouble-makers. The round pegs in
the square holes. The ones who see things differentlythey change things. They push the
human race forward. And while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius.

Jobs once said that what made the Macintosh great was the fact that the
people he chose to work on the system were musicians, and poets, and
artists, and zoologists, and historians who also happened to be computer
scientists. Its a profound insight that speaks to building creative teams.
Today its common for many companies to overlook creative individuals
because they dont fit in a hiring box. Jobs didnt just think differently; he
hired differently. See genius in diversity. Hire outside your industry from time
to time.

8. Youve got to have a problem that you want to solve; a wrong that you want to right.

I considered Steve
Jobs
one of the worlds
greatest corporate
presenters
New
Posts
Most Popular
Lists
Video
Hig h est -Pa
id A this
h let es
Rich est would
Fa m ilies solve.
In U.S.
RichThe
est Fa m ilies
because he always explained the problem
that
product
introduction of iTunes Music Store in 2003 is perhaps the best example of
this approach. In one presentation Steve Jobs turned around public opinion,
convincing customers that it was in their best interest to pay for something
(songs) that they could otherwise get for free at the time. In this video clip you
can watch Jobs demonstrate the upsides and downsides of the status quo,
followed by his solution, the 99 cent song on the iTunes Music Store. Your
audience needs to understand the problem your idea solves. Dont leave them
guessing. Explain it clearly.

9. It [what you choose to do] has got to be something that youre passionate about because
otherwise you wont have the perseverance to see it through.

Steve Jobs believed that passion was a critical component of success. He

talked about the role of passion constantly, so its no surprise that this quote
would appear in Jobs, the film. The 2005 Steve Jobs commencement address
at Stanford University has been viewed millions of times and its the event
where his thoughts on passion are most clearly articulated. Jobs told the
graduates that day, Youve got to find what you love 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. If you havent found it yet, keep looking. Dont settle. As with all
matters of the heart, youll know when you find it. This could very well be the
greatest piece of career advice ever given, with the exception of #10.

10. In your life you only get to do so many things and right now weve chosen to do this, so
lets make it great.

This quote is the best advice Jobs ever gave to Disneys Chief Creative Officer,
John Lasseter. Well before he became Disneys chief animator, Lasseter
recalls his first meeting with Steve Jobs after Jobs bought Pixar in 1986.
Lasseter was working on a short film at the time and, at the end of the
meeting, Lasseter says Steve Jobs asked him to do one thing: Make it great.
The short, Tin Toy, went on to win the first academy award ever given for
computer animation and set the foundation for what later would
become
Toy
Also
On Forbes
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10 Powerful Quotes From The Steve Jobs Movie And What They Teach Us About Leadership - Forbes

Story. Lasseter has told the story publicly a few times, most recently in this
AppLasseter
Store At 6: How Steve Jobs'
emotional tribute at Disneys D23 Expo (the story begins at 8:30).
Biggest
Blunder Became One Of...
said those three wordsmake it greathave applied to every frame
of every
Pixar movie he worked on.
Is everything you do as great as it could be? This could very well be the most
important question you ask yourself as a leader. Your customers deserve
nothing less. Dont just make it; make it great.
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Debbie Miller 10 months ago

I saw JOBS last night and despite the poor reviews, actually really enjoyed it. Quotes like

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10 Powerful Quotes From The Steve Jobs Movie And What They Teach Us About Leadership - Forbes
the ones you note really resonate and inspire, and its great were able to experience them
in their original contexts in this film.
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Carmine Gallo, C ontributor 10 months ago

Author

Debbie, thanks for your insight. I saw the movie and I think this is going to be a
good example of critics and audiences reaching different conclusions. The
critics focus on events that were not covered in the movie its going to be
hard to satisfy everyone with a life as rich as Steve Jobs. They also say the
script is light. I agree that its on the lighter side because its mostly Steve Jobs
quotes and things he said publicly. That said, for anyone who wants to achieve
more in life, I found it inspirational. Ashton Kutcher will surprise many
viewers, too.
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Asha Seth 10 months ago

This is quite an insightful article. The quotes that youve shared make you want to do and
think so much differently.
I havent watched the movie Jobs yet but Ive heard its an adaptation of the book by
Walter Isaacson. I loved the book and hoping the movie is so much good too.
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Carmine Gallo, C ontributor 10 months ago

Author

Asha, Im so glad the article inspired you. Steve Jobs challenged his team to do
things differently than the competition, not just better. The book by Walter
Isaacson is not the basis of this movie, however. Theres some confusion. The
book is being written into a film by the great Aaron Sorkin. Cant wait for that to
come out!
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Heather Poitras 10 months ago

#9 is a necessity. Without passion, no amount of hard work and smarts will grant you
success. You can tell the difference between a smart and savvy entrepreneur and a smart,
savvy, and PASSIONATE one. The former will break at some point throughout the
inevitable obstacles of the process, the latter will persevere because they see no other
way.
Great article, thank you.
www.bestfortyhoursever.tumblr.com
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Carmine Gallo, C ontributor 10 months ago

Author

Heather, #9 is critical for entrepreneurship and innovation to flourish. Im also

fond of #10. Ive been using it to close some of my keynote speeches like this
one to sporting goods retailers: http://bit.ly/14cWm9g
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Danny Cook 10 months ago

I am actually surprised with Ashton Kutchers performance on this film. My favorite

quote will always be Heres to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers.. Jobs story has always been an inspiration to me and watching this movie
made me understand him more.
Danny Cook, retail marketing
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Carmine Gallo, C ontributor 10 months ago

Author

Danny, thank you. I believe these quotes hold the secret to success in any field.
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Melissa Krivachek 10 months ago

Carmine,
Jobs had such a profound impact on society and how we think, act, and do. I love that
youve put together an outstanding compilation of quotes from the movie with your own
thoughts and feelings. Your passion for Jobs and his work resonates with the reader
throughout this piece. I havent seen the movie but love that you end this piece with a
question and deep thought. Thoroughly enjoyed the article and looking forward to
reading more from you!
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Carmine Gallo, C ontributor 10 months ago

Author

Melissa, thank you for your kind comment. I strive to write news you can use
for anyone interesting in becoming more successful leaders and
communicators. I look forward to reading more of your comments in future
articles.
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