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The bicycle quip appears in so many videos from around that time. Interpret Jobs videos as case studies in a type of marketing. He's framing Apple marketing as

by johbjo 6y ago

The bicycle quip appears in so many videos from around that time. Interpret Jobs videos as case studies in a type of marketing. He's framing Apple marketing as "it's so exciting that we can help people so much", but it's honest and actually true. The best videos of Jobs are the rare internal ones. Also, he's 25 in this video? wtf

JKCalhoun 6y ago
It bothers me a bit. Having heard it now in so many contexts it is clear it was not spontaneous ... in fact several other tells in this interview make it clear very little was spontaneous when Steve was facing the media. I suppose I am not surprised by that — that's what marketing does. The bicycle analogy looks particularly transparent though: there's a pseudo-intellectual aspect to it, even name-dropping "Scientific American" seems to be there to make the speaker appear well-read, a deep thinker. It works though a lot better than his electric motor analogy that he lead off with. ;-)
- anonymouse008 6y ago
  This. Though I will say, he was still brilliant and quick outside of these settings. Perhaps the training to prepare for these appearances made his moment at Macworld taking on the 'Mr. Jobs' question a thousand times easier, but still in that moment was a critical one - a public challenge - and Steve knew how to move that whole conversation back from himself to supporting his team, which was brilliant, because everyone wants to feel they have someone fighting for them... especially when the landscape/future is squishy and uncertain.
  - Hammershaft 6y ago
    > his moment at Macworld taking on the 'Mr. Jobs' question a thousand times easier, but still in that moment was a critical one - a public challenge What was this? I've never heard of it.
    - AlanYx 6y ago
      It's likely this interaction: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oeqPrUmVz-o https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oeqPrUmVz-o
- bonaldi 6y ago
  I don't know why this bothers people so — I suspect it's similar to some people's surprise at finding out that stand-up comedians rehearse their acts, even the spontaneous-seeming "I'm thinking this up as I stand in front of you" head-scratching pauses, to the nth degree. This was a public performance for Jobs, of course he'd have thought through and rehearsed what he was going to say. His ability to weave together the rehearsed with the improvised - like when his remote broke on stage at WWDC - is one of the things that took him to the next level. Just like the comic who can handle a heckle and get back to their set in such a smooth way you can't even see the join.

by johbjo 6y ago

JKCalhoun 6y ago

It bothers me a bit. Having heard it now in so many contexts it is clear it was not spontaneous ... in fact several other tells in this interview make it clear very little was spontaneous when Steve was facing the media. I suppose I am not surprised by that — that's what marketing does. The bicycle analogy looks particularly transparent though: there's a pseudo-intellectual aspect to it, even name-dropping "Scientific American" seems to be there to make the speaker appear well-read, a deep thinker. It works though a lot better than his electric motor analogy that he lead off with. ;-)

anonymouse008 6y ago
This. Though I will say, he was still brilliant and quick outside of these settings. Perhaps the training to prepare for these appearances made his moment at Macworld taking on the 'Mr. Jobs' question a thousand times easier, but still in that moment was a critical one - a public challenge - and Steve knew how to move that whole conversation back from himself to supporting his team, which was brilliant, because everyone wants to feel they have someone fighting for them... especially when the landscape/future is squishy and uncertain.
- Hammershaft 6y ago
  > his moment at Macworld taking on the 'Mr. Jobs' question a thousand times easier, but still in that moment was a critical one - a public challenge What was this? I've never heard of it.
  - AlanYx 6y ago
    It's likely this interaction: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oeqPrUmVz-o https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oeqPrUmVz-o
bonaldi 6y ago
I don't know why this bothers people so — I suspect it's similar to some people's surprise at finding out that stand-up comedians rehearse their acts, even the spontaneous-seeming "I'm thinking this up as I stand in front of you" head-scratching pauses, to the nth degree. This was a public performance for Jobs, of course he'd have thought through and rehearsed what he was going to say. His ability to weave together the rehearsed with the improvised - like when his remote broke on stage at WWDC - is one of the things that took him to the next level. Just like the comic who can handle a heckle and get back to their set in such a smooth way you can't even see the join.