Here at CVI we are always looking for systems and nudges to help us be more focused. Back in 1997 Steve Jobs provided a very thoughtful answer on he importance of focus when he was asked about OpenDoc, a now defunct software framework. The key to success of Apple, Steve Jobs, and many entrepreneurs is their unrelenting focus. Warren Buffett is an expert at it (and also an expert at saying no quickly). Investing is hard, unstructured, with long lead times and weak feedback loops. We need all the help we can to stay focused. We hope you are also inspired by Steve:
I know some of you spent a lot of time working on stuff that we put a bullet in the head of. I apologize. I feel your pain … Apple suffered for several years from lousy engineering management. There were people [at Apple] going off in eighteen different directions doing arguably interesting things in each one of them… And what happens is you look at the farm that has been created with all of these different animals heading in different directions, and it doesn’t add up. The total is less than the sum of the parts. So, we had to decide, what are the fundamental directions we’re going in and what makes sense and what doesn’t. Microcosmically they might have made sense. Macrocosmically they made no sense.
And you know the hardest thing is... you think focusing is saying yes! No. Focusing... is about saying no. Focusing is about saying no. And you've got to say no no no no and when you say no you piss off people, and they go talk to the San Jose Mercury and they write a shitty article about you. You know? And it's really a pisser, because you want to be nice. you don't want to tell the San Jose Mercury the person is telling you this was asked to leave, or this or that. So, you take the lumps. And Apple has been taking their share of lumps for the last six months in a very unfair way, and it's been taking them like an adult and I'm proud of that. And there's more to come I'm sure. I read these articles about some of these people that have left. I know some of these people, they have done it in seven years, and they leave and it's like the company's going to fall apart the next day. I think there will be stories like that, they come and go, but focus is about saying no and the result of that focus is going to be some really great products where the total is much greater than the sum of the parts.
Here's to focusing your energy on the right investments!
Note: We found the original article Steve referenced (titled "The Two Faces of Steve Jobs"...). Apple has had an unbelievable track record from the point Steve Jobs returned to today with Tim Cook. Yet back in 1997, “Steve’s best skill is his magician’s skill, ” said one Apple executive who left the company earlier this year. “It’s amazing how he gets people on board. And it’s also amazing that he can live with himself.” They can knock you down, but they can't knock you out.