As a licensed facilitator for CoachU’s Coaching Clinic, one of my favorite “go-to” video clips for demonstrating Coaching Skills for Leaders is a snippet of Steve Jobs’ addressing an audience member’s hostile question at a worldwide developer conference. The questioner was highly critical of Apple’s choice of software platform compared to an alternate framework and began his remarks by stating; “It’s clear and sad that you don’t know what you’re talking about”.
As you listen to the clip, pay particular attention to:
1. The PAUSES at 0:34—0:44 and at 0:51—0:58, as Jobs gathers his thoughts.
2. Jobs’ non-confrontational reaction by stating that, “people like this gentleman are right in some areas”. Instead of reacting to the harsh criticism or attempting to prove the audience member wrong, Jobs brilliantly shifts the narrative to the end-user. “You’ve got to start with the customer experience and work backwards to the technology. You can’t start with the technology, figure out what you’ve got, and try and sell it”.
3. Jobs’ admission that HE’s made the same mistake (“and I’ve made this mistake probably more than anyone else in this room and have the scar tissue to prove it”) makes him relatable to the entire audience.
4. The reframing of the audience member’s question to “what incredible benefits can we give to the customer (which coincides with Apple’s strategy)…NOT, let’s sit down with the engineers, figure out what awesome technology we have, and how to market it”.
5. Jobs’ confession that “there are many things in life that I don’t have the faintest idea what I’m talking about”—another reminder that despite his genius, he’s HUMAN, just like us!