1. Show your passion
Jobs believes what he’s saying, and he’s not afraid to put himself out there.
If you don’t get passionate about your idea, no one else will.
2. Focus on creating value
Jobs: “We’re doing this because we have a passion about it…because we really care about the higher educational process. Not because we want to make a buck.”
3. Challenge your team
Throughout the video, Jobs probes and challenges his people. He doesn’t accept anything at face value. He wants to know why people feel the way they do. And often, he lets them know exactly why he disagrees.
4. Keep everyone on course
Jobs: “There needs to be someone who is the keeper and reiterator of the vision…. A lot of times, when you have to walk a thousand miles and you take the first step, it looks like a long way, and it really helps if there’s someone there saying ‘Well we’re one step closer…. The goal definitely exists; it’s not just a mirage out there.’”
5. Define the right priorities
As the NeXTteam discusses its priorities, you can witness Jobs’s remarkable ability to focus on what’s most important, and even more critical, to defend why it’s important.
6. Know when to interrupt
A member of the team proceeds to go on a rant. She goes on and on, and Jobs remains patient…at first. But as she continues, his patience runs out. He interrupts to refocus.
7. Learn from the past, but don’t let it own you
As one team member laments past failures, Jobs speaks up:
“I don’t want to hear ‘Just because we blew it last time, we’re going to blow it this time….’ This is a window we’ve got…it’s a wonderful window.”
8. Focus on the positive
At the end of the weekend retreat, Jobs said the following:
“I find myself making lists of things we don’t know, and then I remember that our company’s 90 days old. And I look back to all the things we do know. And it’s really phenomenal how far we’ve come in 90 days.”
Remember to look back at what you’ve already accomplished, and that can give you the motivation you need to move forward.