In the technology driven society of 2017, it is safe to assume that one has at the very least heard of Apple and has likely held an Apple product in their hands; one may even own an Apple product such as an iPhone or Macintosh computer. After all, Apple is one of the world’s most successful companies, ranking the number 1 spot on Forbes’ list of the world’s most valuable brands, and the number 2 spot on Forbes’ list of America’s top public companies. The question is, how did Apple manage to become such a prominent company? Who can be credited with Apple’s success?
Steven Paul Jobs, known as Steve, was born on February 24, 1955 in San Francisco, California. He was adopted and raised by his parents Clara and Paul Jobs, and grew up in what is now known as Silicon Valley. He was an intelligent child, making test scores that were off the charts (CBS News, 2011). Ironically, Jobs went on to college, but dropped out after one semester. Jobs was somewhat of a rebel and a hippie, so he was always a bit unconventional. After dropping out of college, Jobs became one of the first 50 employees at Atari; after
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His personal motivation was the future of technology and what could be created, which motivated his employees to do things that were seemingly impossible. His colleagues called his ability to push people to do the impossible his “Reality Distortion Field;” while many saw him as being unrealistic, pushy, and aggressive because of this, people who worked for him said that this made them better workers and that it helped them accomplish more (Isaacson, 2012). This is what made Steve Jobs successful; he did what he had to do to get the job done. He was not warm and laid-back; he was cold, sometimes mean, abrasive, pushy, obsessed with perfection, even seemingly unrealistic at times. However, these unconventional methods lead him to be a great leader, made great employees, and made Apple a successful