LESSONS FROM “JOBS”
I wouldn’t usually think to quote actor Ashton Kutcher, who played a half-witted teenager on “That 70’s Show.” Recently, Kutcher appeared on a television show to promote his new movie “Jobs,” in which he plays Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple Computer. Kutcher said that he spent more than three months trying to get inside Jobs’ head, learning how to think like Jobs, talk like Jobs and walk like Jobs.
Kutcher said on the Tonight Show recently that he had the opportunity to meet Jobs in the past, but wasn’t able to because he was too busy. Then he learned of Jobs’ death and realized that all the relationships and all the work and all the entertainment he consumes and work he does with his Apple Computer, iPhone, iPod and so forth was made possible by the glue that Jobs had laid down. Kutcher said that he realized then that he had taken Jobs’ contributions to society for granted and wanted to ensure his legacy was told by someone who admired him.
When Kutcher received the script for the movie, he studied Jobs and said that he learned several important things about Jobs as an entrepreneur. One thing that Kutcher said is, “Steve Jobs said when you grow up, you tend to get told that the world is the way it is, and that your life is to live inside the world and try not to get into too much trouble ... but life can be a lot broader than that when you realize one simple thing, and that is that everything around us ... was made up by people who are no smarter than you. And you can build your own things — you can build your own life that other people can live in.”
This is the essence of entrepreneurial spirit. You never will invent something new or find a new way around a problem if you copy what other people do. An entrepreneur plows new ground and discovers new ways to approach problems. Of course, this type of thinking has its risks as well as its rewards, and not everyone is willing to take the risks.
Kutcher also talked about Jobs’ approach to running the company, which at times would put him at odds with the financial people that were always trying to control the company from the bottom line. He also talked about how Jobs sometimes appeared to outsiders and employees as a hard person to work with — somewhat of a jerk. “I think there was something he desired, and he had a goal and passion for his consumers that was driving his frustration. He wanted the people around him to care as much about the result as he did. I think his frustration was in an effort to motivate people to care,” said Kutcher.
Personally, the balance between the people who control the money and the entrepreneurial types who run the company is an ongoing battle that I’ve witnessed many times in the companies for which I’ve worked — and continue to see in companies that I work with today. Regardless of the size of the company, too much financial control has a tendency to put a damper on company growth. It inhibits new product development, customer service, expansion and other critical investments a company needs to grow and expand. What I find is that if it gets to the point that the financial people are calling all the shots, the company is typically on the decline.
I’ve not seen the movie “Jobs” yet, but I’m anxious to see how the movie portrays Jobs and the lessons that can be learned from one of the most incredible entrepreneurs of our time.
Perhaps we can all learn lessons about striking the right balance between financial control and the entrepreneurial spirit.