Steve Jobs book club questions

1. 1.

   Jobs said he wanted to make a 'dent in the universe.' What does that phrase mean to you, and do you think the scale of someone's ambition changes what behavior becomes acceptable?

2. 2.

   Isaacson documents Jobs denying paternity of his daughter Lisa for years. Does that knowledge change how you relate to the products Jobs made? Should it?

3. 3.

   The 'reality distortion field' is presented as both a gift and a weapon. Have you worked with or for someone whose conviction bent what you thought was possible? How did that feel from the inside?

4. 4.

   Jobs was adopted and spent years searching for a sense of identity. Isaacson connects this to his need for control over his products. Is that reading persuasive to you?

5. 5.

   Jobs famously said he didn't believe in market research — that customers don't know what they want until you show them. Where does that philosophy succeed and where does it fail?

6. 6.

   Pixar under Jobs learned to make great films without Jobs directing them. What does that say about the difference between a visionary founder and a functional leader?

7. 7.

   Jobs consistently prioritized the user experience over the convenience of engineers and business partners. What tradeoffs does that philosophy impose, and who bears the cost?

8. 8.

   Many people who worked for Jobs describe being broken down and then, sometimes, elevated. Is that a legitimate leadership style, or is it abuse rationalized by results?

9. 9.

   Jobs refused surgery for nine months after his cancer was first detected, trying alternative treatments instead. Isaacson suggests this was consistent with his pattern of willing his reality into existence. What do you make of that?

10. 10.

    Apple after Jobs has been enormously profitable but is often criticized for losing its edge. Does the biography change how you think about what Apple was under Jobs versus what it is now?

11. 11.

    If Jobs's perfectionism had been pointed at a less commercially successful domain — art, music, architecture — would the same traits make him a hero, a tragic figure, or simply difficult?

12. 12.

    Isaacson gave Jobs no editorial control and Jobs knew that. Why do you think Jobs authorized this biography? What was he hoping to leave behind?

How to run the discussion

• Pick six to eight, not all of them. An hour of real discussion covers fewer questions than anyone expects, and racing the list is what makes a book club feel like homework.
• Open with what people noticed, not what they concluded. Asking for a verdict first hardens opinions before anyone has heard each other.
• Let the disagreement run. The questions below that split a room are the ones worth the time; the ones everyone answers the same way can be skipped.
• Ask the quiet person a specific question. A direct, narrow question is far easier to answer than an open invitation to contribute.