“Sometimes when you innovate, you make mistakes. It is best to admit them quickly, and get on with improving your other innovations.”
- February 24, 1955 – October 5, 2011
- American
- Entrepreneur, businessman, industrial designer
- He brought to the world revolutionary products that combined technology and design at a high level, such as the personal computer Macintosh, iPhone, and iPad, and also revolutionized the music industry with the iPod, iTunes, and iTunes Store.
Quote
“Sometimes when you innovate, you make mistakes. It is best to admit them quickly, and get on with improving your other innovations.”
Explanation
In this quote, Steve Jobs acknowledges that innovation is a process that inevitably involves mistakes and failures. Rather than trying to avoid mistakes or hide them, Jobs emphasizes the importance of admitting them quickly and moving forward. He believed that the ability to learn from mistakes and adapt quickly is crucial for continued progress and growth. For Jobs, innovation wasn’t about perfection from the start—it was about the willingness to experiment, take risks, and iterate on ideas until they become something truly groundbreaking.
This mindset was central to Apple’s approach to product development. Apple constantly pushed the envelope with new technologies and designs, and not every product or idea was an immediate success. However, Jobs believed that embracing failure and using it as a stepping stone to improve was key to creating truly revolutionary products, like the iPhone or the MacBook.
Today, this perspective is especially relevant in technology and entrepreneurship, where rapid innovation and iteration are essential. Mistakes should be seen as part of the creative process, not something to be feared. Jobs’ quote reminds us that progress often comes from taking chances and learning from failures, which ultimately leads to the development of better solutions and innovations.
