Like many, I was touched by the recent passing of Steve Jobs. Steve was about my age and I also spent many years in Silicon Valley. He was adopted and I adopted a child. He was a marketing guy and so am I. He was billionaire and I am not. OK, I guess that is about all we had in common.

I met Steve about 12 years ago. After my Silicon Valley days, I took a tour on Wall Street with a company called Bowne; the firm helped other firms raise money in the capital markets. As it turns out, Steve’s company, Pixar, was our client. True to form, Steve was a perfectionist who demanded (i.e. screamed for) “new” dry erase markers and bullied our staff relentlessly. The IPO was successful and propelled Steve to billionaire status. For many years, our firm would brag about our role.

Yet, I choose to remember what a jerk he was and how poorly he treated others. Per his official biographer, Steve treated many people or, maybe, most people this way. He rationalized this arrogant and mean behavior because of his intense desire to make things better.

For those of you who missed the 60 Minutes episode devoted to Steve Jobs, here is the link.

Steve Jobs: rest in peace.

 

John Bradley Jackson

Top Dog

The BirdDog Group

About the author
2 Comments
  1. As always, a unique and interesting perspective. Thanks, JJ.

    • Thanks Greg. He accomplished much but was a very flawed dude.

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