In 2004, a small group of engineers, designers, and marketers pitched Jobs on turning their hit product, the iPod, into a phone. “Why the f@*& would we want to do that?” Jobs snapped. “That is the dumbest idea I’ve ever heard.” The team had recognized that mobile phones were starting to feature the ability to play music, but Jobs was worried about cannibalizing Apple’s thriving iPod business. He hated cell-phone companies and didn’t want to design products within the constraints that carriers imposed. When his calls dropped or the software crashed, he would sometimes smash his phone to pieces in frustration. In private meetings and on public stages, he swore over and over that he would never make a phone. Yet some of Apple’s engineers were already doing research in that area. They worked together to persuade Jobs that he didn’t know what he didn’t know and urged him to doubt his convictions. It might be possible, they argued, to build a smartphone that everyone would love using—and to get the carriers to do it Apple’s way. Research shows that when people are resistant to change, it helps to reinforce what will stay the same. Visions for change are more compelling when they include visions of continuity. Although our strategy might evolve, our identity will endure. The engineers who worked closely with Jobs understood that this was one of the best ways to convince him. They assured him that they weren’t trying to turn Apple into a phone company. It would remain a computer company—they were just taking their existing products and adding a phone on the side.
I never liked the use of anecdotes to spin it into a narrative that you like to tell, as they tend to seem gratuitous and any kinda story can be easily twisted to generate the moral that you want. Nevertheless, this is indeed a pretty good story that most people would appreciate.
In this book that is about knowing when you don’t know shit and being able to catch yourself in these mental traps, the above anecdote is a pretty good example that not everyone, even those that are idolized at the peaks of their respective fields, can claim to know everything and make the best decisions. In fact, the more successful you are, it can be contended that it becomes easier to get blinded towards the realities of your situation and hence, judgements.
