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“Inside Apple” Reveals Steve Jobs Anecdotes, Apple’s Little Known Facts

macstories.net

41–46 of 46 posts

Re: “Inside Apple” Reveals Steve Jobs Anecdotes, Apple’s Little Known Facts

#41
post #34
post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If the janitor didn't have reasons to hide behind, then he should have taken initiative to get the new keys or pick the lock or break the door or whatever it'll take to achieve his goal. The notion is that a VP shouldn't have reasons to hide behind. She must achieve her goal using any approach necessary, especially since her process is not spelled out for her like the janitor's is. A VP should take initiative even if…

"Steve Jobs doesn't have expectations for janitors." That whole ideology is unsettling to me. The way in which janitors are singled out as not having the same level of expectations to accomplish their tasks as a VP or any other position. I was a janitor for my high school, and I can tell you from my experience we busted our tails making sure the floors were swept and mopped and the all garbage was taken out on time e…

If it makes you feel any better, I was a janitor too. My first job with a steady paycheck was being an assistant superintendent at a condo. Effectively I was doing the work of a janitor.

Asses were busted but at the end of the day you go home and there's no lingering stress. I did my rounds, I cleaned my floors, I noted the gauges and rewound the tapes. It's someone else's shift now, they can deal with the leaky pipes or the stuck elevator or the mold in the stairwell. It was a very different type of job from say... founding a startup, or even just being yet another software engineer.

I guess the more you introduce creativity, ownership, and absence of process... the more you depart from the land of janitorial services.

Re: “Inside Apple” Reveals Steve Jobs Anecdotes, Apple’s Little Known Facts

#42
post #32
post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> That shows what Apple is all about. Or the org chart is wrong. > The chart says "SVP of Mac Hardware", but on the iPad 2 video he's presented as "SVP of Hardware". He replaced Mark Papermaster as SVP of Devices Hardware.

The chart is certainly old . Wrong in what aspect?

I think wrong as in old, as in out of date.

Re: “Inside Apple” Reveals Steve Jobs Anecdotes, Apple’s Little Known Facts

#43
post #4

Steve Wozniak was the commencement speaker yesterday at Michigan State. I had the pleasure of attending a meeting he held with engineering students after the commencement. The biggest surprise I had was that the Woz was on the Macintosh team before Jobs was involved. He said that he, Jef Raskin and a few other engineers wanted to create a low cost version of the Lisa. It was only after Jobs was banished from the Lisa…

The Macintosh was a very different computer before Jobs got in there and took the reins. If you can spare six hours, folklore.org has an incredible collection of stories detailing early Apple. You won't be able to stop reading.

Thanks for this! Fell asleep reading this last night and can't put it down this morning. This could be bad as I just tore down my engine last night and kinda need to put it back together today. Oh well.

Re: “Inside Apple” Reveals Steve Jobs Anecdotes, Apple’s Little Known Facts

#44

> “Somewhere between the janitor and the CEO, reasons stop mattering.” Anyone cares to explain that one? It left me confused really... The way I read it, he's a visionary and doesn't care how things are achieved as long as business is good. And to be honest that doesn't sound good for me - more like a dictator who will eliminate failing VPs whether the fault is on their side or somewhere else in the organisation.

Reasons stop mattering proportionally to your power and influence in the organization. From the janitor to the CEO, your ability to change things for the better increases. Therefore if something fails, it's not because you didn't have the authority to make sure it was done right but because you failed to observe and act.

Re: “Inside Apple” Reveals Steve Jobs Anecdotes, Apple’s Little Known Facts

#45
post #41
post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"Steve Jobs doesn't have expectations for janitors." That whole ideology is unsettling to me. The way in which janitors are singled out as not having the same level of expectations to accomplish their tasks as a VP or any other position. I was a janitor for my high school, and I can tell you from my experience we busted our tails making sure the floors were swept and mopped and the all garbage was taken out on time e…

If it makes you feel any better, I was a janitor too. My first job with a steady paycheck was being an assistant superintendent at a condo. Effectively I was doing the work of a janitor. Asses were busted but at the end of the day you go home and there's no lingering stress. I did my rounds, I cleaned my floors, I noted the gauges and rewound the tapes. It's someone else's shift now, they can deal with the leaky pipe…

"If it makes you feel any better, I was a janitor too."

It doesn't make me feel any better. I don't need sympathy.

"It was a very different type of job from say... founding a startup, or even just being yet another software engineer."

Agree, but so is every other job. Why single out Janitors? Are they easier to pick on because of their stereotype? Each occupation has expectations which must be fulfilled to a high level of quality. Janitors have a ton of responsibilities of which they're responsible to, including getting creative when need be. Unexpected events do occur, and janitors have to be able to adapt and make personal decisions on the fly.

"Asses were busted but at the end of the day you go home and there's no lingering stress."

I don't know about you, but I know there was a ton of paralyzing stress around my whole body working those shifts. Enough where I couldn't even think about founding a startup, let alone stay awake. Maybe in my dreams though.

Re: “Inside Apple” Reveals Steve Jobs Anecdotes, Apple’s Little Known Facts

#46
post #42
post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The chart is certainly old . Wrong in what aspect?

I think wrong as in old , as in out of date .

Do hardware people report directly to Jobs now? That's the kind of wrong I was talking about.
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