Japan's very interesting. Some people think it copies things. I don't think that anymore. I think what they do is reinvent things. They will get something that's already been invented and study it until they thoroughly understand it. In some cases, they understand it better than the original inventor.
Interpretation
Japan is often misunderstood as merely copying, but in reality, it reinvents and improves upon existing ideas.
Steve Jobs emphasizes the innovative spirit of Japan, suggesting that rather than just replicating inventions, the Japanese approach involves a deep understanding and reengineering of those ideas. This leads to creations that can sometimes surpass the original concepts in quality and effectiveness, highlighting the importance of comprehension and creativity in the process of innovation.
In practice
In a discussion about technological advancements, one could note that Japan demonstrates that innovation comes from deep understanding and reinvention.
Design is the fundamental soul of a man-made creation that ends up expressing itself in successive outer layers of the product or service. The iMac is not just the color or translucence or the shape of the shell. The essence of the iMac is to be the finest possible consumer computer in which each element plays together.
It is piracy, not overt online music stores, which is our main competitor.
The people who are doing the work are the moving force behind the Macintosh. My job is to create a space for them, to clear out the rest of the organization and keep it at bay.
Remembering that I'll be dead soon is the most important tool I've ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything - all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure - these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important.
Innovation has nothing to do with how many R&D dollars you have. When Apple came up with the Mac, IBM was spending at least 100 times more on R&D. It's not about money. It's about the people you have, how you're led, and how much you get it.
For the past 33 years, I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: 'If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?' And whenever the answer has been 'No' for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something.
Innovation happens when people are given the freedom to ask questions and the resources and power to find the answers.
It's near impossible to always be right when you're innovating. It's easy to get emotionally invested in it, but you need to monitor its impact like a hawk and react if you don't like what you see. And if/when you pull it back, you want to do that communication with transparency and humility.
The culture is what creates the foundation for all future innovation. If you break the culture, you break the machine that creates your products.
In Israel, a land lacking in natural resources, we learned to appreciate our greatest national advantage: our minds. Through creativity and innovation, we transformed barren deserts into flourishing fields and pioneered new frontiers in science and technology.
When you innovate, you've got to be prepared for everyone telling you you're nuts.
My view is there's no bad time to innovate.
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