Steve Jobs left a huge legacy. Not only with its companies (Apple, but also Pixar) but also in terms of business and entrepreneurial character. One more proof of this is its X10 rule.
In a world where most companies seek to improve their products in a 10 or 15 by the way, Steve Jobs had a radically different vision. He didn’t want to do something just a little better, but to reinvent it completely. From the Macintosh to the iPhone, its philosophy was not of evolutionbut of revolution. How did you persuade your team and consumers that these jumps were possible?
Guy Kawasaki, former Apple marketing worker, witnessed first -hand of this mentality. In a talk he recalled that Jobs not only designed innovative products, but also had a unique ability to inspire people to think big.
Applied the “rule X10”: instead of improving the existing one, it sought exponential advances. This way of seeing innovation not only changed Apple, but transformed entire industries.
The origin of rule x10
On October 23, 2001, Steve Jobs took the stage to present a product that seemed modest compared to what Apple would later achieve: the iPod. At first glance, it was just a portable music player. But its impact was colossal.
In a market dominated by MP3 players with flash memory, the iPod offered something radically better: capacity for 1,000 songs on a compact, elegant and easy to use device. It was not only 10 percent higher than its competitors, but exceeded its capabilities in 60 times. This difference was key to its success.
The summary of its rule is to always aspire to multiply your results by 10, instead of incremental improvements.
The iPod not only conquered the portable players market; changed the way we consume music. It was the prelude to iTunes, the iPhone and the Apple digital ecosystem. In less than a decade, Apple went from being a computer manufacturer to the company that dictated the future of music and mobile technology.
The philosophy behind rule X10
Kawasaki identified three fundamental principles in Jobs’s mentality:
- Design imports. Although not all consumers value it, those who do make it a difference in the success of a product. Apple turned the design into a competitive advantage.
- The talent above all. Jobs did not hire by curriculum or gender, but by capacity. In the 80s, half of their executive team were women, in a sector dominated by men.
- Think big. Jobs did not look for gradual improvements, but exponential jumps. The iPod, the iPhone and the iPad were not simply improved versions of other products; They were total market transformations.
This last point is the heart of rule X10. Jobs’ persuasion key was to make so much its employees as consumers believed in the impossible. Their products were not only innovative; They made people wonder how they had lived without them.
The difference between improving and reinventing
Many companies seek to optimize what already exists. They improve battery life by 10 percent, reduce weight by 5 percent, increase speed by 15 percent. But Jobs didn’t play that game. For him, true innovation happened when something totally new was created or a problem was solved In a way that nobody had imagined before.
The iPhone was not just an improved phone; He was a computer in his pocket. The iPad was not just a lighter laptop; He redefined the tactile computer science. Apple did not try to gain ground in existing markets, but to create new categories of products.
The impact of rule X10 on Apple’s success
In 2001, when Jobs presented the iPod, Apple was a recovery company. Years before he had been on the verge of bankruptcy. By 2024, under the direction of Tim Cook, Apple reached a market value 714 times higher than it was worth when Jobs relaunched the company.
This growth was not achieved with incremental improvements. It was built on a series of revolutions: that of the iPod and digital music, that of the iPhone and smartphones, iPad and tactile computer science. Each of these innovations applied rule X10.
How to apply the X10 rule in other areas
It is not necessary to direct a company like Apple to apply this philosophy. Rule X10 can be transferred to any sector or project. The key is to change the mentality: instead of thinking about how to improve a little, ask how to completely transform a problem or an industry. According to Kawasaki, some tips can be:
- If you run a company, look for radically better solutions, not just small adjustments.
- If you work in a team, think about how to do things completely differently.
- If you are an entrepreneur, do not copy what already exists; Create something that makes current solutions obsolete.
Steve Jobs’s rule X10 was not only a business strategy, but also according to his relatives a way of seeing life. Believing in the impossible, challenging the established and seeking revolutionary changes was what made Apple the most influential company in our era.
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