Our Core

In 1997 when Apple co-founder Steve Jobs returned to the company, they were three months away from filing for bankruptcy. Things were so bad that Michael Dell of Dell Computers recommend they close the company and repay the shareholders with the liquidation. How could a company so robust, almost go broke? Everyone had a theory, and naturally, everyone had a simple solution that would cure every problem returning Apple to their glory days. Even former founder Steve Wozniak had the answer: “We had the most beautiful operating systems, but to get it, you had to buy our hardware at twice the price.” That reality created a real issue. When Jobs held a meeting upon his return, he asked, “tell me what’s wrong with this place? He then answered his question. The problem is, the products suck.” For Jobs, the problem lies within the core of the company’s identity.

An exceptional product combined with great software made by Apple was how Apple became an excellent and innovative profit-making corporation. If the software was desirable, then the hardware had to be the problem. Naturally, Jobs was the only person in the room that saw the solution this way. Everyone else wanted to stop producing products and become a software giant. With Steve Jobs now holding all the decision making power, he cut out the majority of Apple’s product line. He instructed his colleagues to get back to Apple’s core identity and develop modern, sleek, and user-friendly products.

When they launched their Think Different sales campaign, they featured visionaries like Mahatma Gandhi, Albert Einstein, and John Lennon. Why? Because Steve Jobs felt that the Apple he left lost touch with their identity. They began to wander away from their truth and core values as a company. Jobs believed that one way to remember who you are is to remember your heroes.

We all have experienced success as well as obstacles on our journey—no one rides the perpetual high. Bumps in the road always force us to re-examine our core principles. They force us to ask critical questions of ourselves each day—and how we answer those questions.

Are we straying too far away from our beliefs becomes the first question we all must ask? Are we allowing our success to change our identity? Are we taking the path of least resistance? And are we losing our virtues to achieve our values? If values are the goal, virtues are the way to get there. Our core virtues are not some quote on the wall, but the critical component of how we operate, live and thrive each day. Our virtues become our identity. They are formed by the people we choose to idolize in our early stages, which is why we all need to remind ourselves to Think Different and reacquaint ourselves with our heroes.

We can never lose and surrender who we are; or we will lose everything and who we are meant to be in the process!

 Please forward and share this email with your friends and family.