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Lesson #3: “Our whole purpose was to help others”

Article Overview: Wozniak and Jobs first met in their high school computer club, Homebrew Computer Club, where, says Wozniak, they created a unique balance together: “I was shy, he was outward.” As the two worked together on Apple, this would morph into a new kind of relationship. “I created, he sold,” says Wozniak.

Lesson #3: “Our whole purpose was to help others”

Wozniak and Jobs first met in their high school computer club, Homebrew Computer Club, where, says Wozniak, they created a unique balance together: "I was shy, he was outward." As the two worked together on Apple, this would morph into a new kind of relationship. "I created, he sold," says Wozniak. But the computer club was actually the start of something new. It was Wozniak and Jobs' first start at helping others. Homebrew was a loosely organized group of students and academics where information sharing was encouraged; nothing was withheld.

"It was a culture of information exchange," says Wozniak. "The computer club was founded as more of a social organization than technical. Our whole purpose was to help others. We were frustrated that we couldn't afford a personal computer; the companies we worked for did, but we didn't like that they weren't our own. And that common bond, the interest we shared in technology, bonded us."

That information sharing, according to Wozniak, was going to lead the technological revolution. "We had a big club, and it grew to 500 members and it was huge," he recalls. "The club was all about giving, because back then there were not dollars in this business. It was: give some knowledge. Write down a program that you've got. Write down how to build a certain device. Offer some help. Offer some information. Offer some parts at a good price. Offer your own time."

The idea behind the Homebrew Computer Club was the same as that of Apple, says Wozniak. "Our idea was that these computers were going to free us and allow us to organize. They were going to empower us. We could sit down and write programs that did more than our company's programs on their big million-dollar computers did. And little fifth-graders would go into companies and write a better program than the top gurus being paid the top salary, and it was going to turn the tables over. We were excited by this revolutionary talk."

And just as Wozniak and Jobs wanted to build computers that would help others, so too did others help the two friends along their way.

In the early days of Apple Computer, Wozniak and Jobs worked out of their garage. But it was a family affair. While Wozniak built and Jobs made the management decisions, Jobs' sister and friends helped the two acquire and assemble the different parts.

"Apple I PC boards were manufactured at a company in Santa Clara," recalls Wozniak. "We had supplied them our design, the layout done by a friend of Steve's from Atari. After about 50 boards were made, our components came out of a closet there, starting the 30 day clock ticking on payment. Assemblers put all the components in the boards and the boards were wave soldered there, all for $13 in 1976. We drove down and picked up about 20 boards at a time and drove them back to the garage which had a single workbench.

"We paid Steve's sister or other friends $1 per board to insert the ICs. Then we tested them. I had to fix virtually all the ones that failed. Then we drove them to the local computer store, the only local store, the Byte Shop of Palo Alto, and were paid in cash. The store got our PC board in a box."

The technological revolution, as Wozniak saw it, was going to be driven by the sharing of not only information, but of resources and energy. That was how Wozniak and Jobs got started in the computer club, and that was the spirit which guided the growth of Apple to its heights of success.

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Article Tags: academics, apple, common bond, fifth graders, gurus, helping others, high school computer, high school computer club, homebrew computer club, information exchange, information sharing, own time, personal computer, salary, school computer club, social organization, start of something, start of something new, technological revolution, wozniak and jobs



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Re: Boosting Confidence - Hi Kevin, I think it's great that you've shared your passions. It might be easier to link them together faster if you bring your sense of purpose into the equation now. For example, do you have any awareness of wanting to impact the world in any way? Do you have a mission to assist others that might be hiding under the surface? Your purpose usually has benefit to someone or something else. Your passions are part of your self awareness. Your purpose may be part of your outward awareness. For example, a person who likes healthy eating and fitness also may have a desire to really see others also enjoy health and fitness. By the way, I can't help but notice you've brought up fitness apparel twice now. Are you sure you've finished exploring this option? There was a tiny T-shirt company in Vancouver who provided T-shirts to some people on a movie set. One of the "stars" got ahold of it and it is now an instant success because the star wanted to buy the T-shirt for the whole movie crew.
Dan Kennedy Marketing Methods - We haven't sent out the physical letter yet as the person owning the list wanted to make modifications to the letter that we knew would work well but the List owner had a point - it didn't reflect her personality so her clients would know it didn't come from her. Lesson learned for me. We're back to the drawing board with the list owner more involved in the development of the letter and emails. I should have known better being a Business Analyst in my day job that you never leave the end-user out. So Evan we haven't had the opportunity to test any of it yet but it's been a fun process for me to stand back and look at.
Re: Online Article Marketing - Free & Done Correctly - Hi, I do several things with article marketing. I write my own articles, have articles written and rewrite PLR articles. If it was up to my writing ability alone I would have a hard time with 1 article a week. Rewriting PLR articles using keywords I choose is my first choice. It does take a little time to pick an article to rewrite because I want them to be topic for my website plus they need to written well. Even when rewriting articles if an article does not flow well it will take much more work to rewrite it. Many online marketers only submit their articles to a select few article directories. It works well for them. I have a dual purpose in article writing and need my articles to go to as many directories as possible. My number one purpose is to create backlinks. If I only submitted 3 articles a week to 5 directories they would not help much in creating the backlinks I need. My second purpose is to draw traffic to my site. Again, and in my opinion, if I submitted to just a handful of sites I feel I would be defeating my purpose. So I had to find a program that would submit to a lot of directories and one that also submitted to quality directories. I found what I needed with one submission service. Now each article can bring 60-70 backlinks and I see weekly visitors from several article directories in my stats. That is my article marketing strategy and it has been working for me.
Re: Online Article Marketing - Free & Done Correctly - [quote="Stephen meyer":19tohv4d] Many online marketers only submit their articles to a select few article directories. It works well for them. I have a dual purpose in article writing and need my articles to go to as many directories as possible. My number one purpose is to create backlinks. If I only submitted 3 articles a week to 5 directories they would not help much in creating the backlinks I need. My second purpose is to draw traffic to my site. Again, and in my opinion, if I submitted to just a handful of sites I feel I would be defeating my purpose. So I had to find a program that would submit to a lot of directories and one that also submitted to quality directories. I found what I needed with one submission service. Now each article can bring 60-70 backlinks and I see weekly visitors from several article directories in my stats. That is my article marketing strategy and it has been working for me.[/quote:19tohv4d] I just wanted to go back to Steve's post because he makes a very valid point. I totally agree that if you want to get as many backlinks as possible, then submitting to just a few directories just isn't enough. I use Article Marketer to submit my articles - and they go out to a large number of ezines. I know this ends up with duplicate content - but I read somewhere recently that this is not as big a deal as many people think. Like Steve, I get a lot of visitors through these directories. Ros
Re: Boosting Confidence - Kevin, I am so glad you asked that question! It's the missing link for so many people (and a huge key to confidence and entrepreneurial endurance). Since you asked the question hypothetically, when I say "you", I'm not meaning you personally, Kevin (unless you identify with it). Our purpose is like our personal mission statement. It's something we need to consciously sit down and think about. The problem is that so many have blocked their own voice and focused on outside influence instead. We need to practice listening to our own inner self. Confidence is found within so this is where we need to start. It means we need to trust that we actually do have the answers to what it is we need to know for our own personal success. They key to our purpose is actually tied in with what we really love to do. To start discovering what your purpose is, start discovering what you are really passionate about. Then begin asking yourself what you would love to do that would make a huge difference in that particular area. For example, if you love technology and also desire to help people, ask yourself how you can really help people using your technology. If your business is already established, start considering how you can develop the next phase of it to match your sense of purpose. Perhaps it's even time to delegate your work so that you can be freed up to pursue what you REALLY love to do. The great side effect is that most of us do a far better job at what we love to do anyway. Many people don't even get to this point because they disqualify their sense of passion and purpose before they even really discover the way to build financial success based on what they love to do. Some consider it a "pipe dream", but I say, "Why not?" You mention money, but what some people don't realize is that you must discover you purpose or your personal mission FIRST if you are to tap into passion to create the kind of wealth that is really satisfying. If you talk to people with money, you will discover that financial success is not what truly makes you happy. Satisfaction is the key ingredient. Developing a business which matches your passion and your purpose ensures you will enjoy the success when you get there. When you pursue developing your business from this place, confidence comes along side you because you are aware you have a personal mission to help others or create change in some way. It takes the focus off you and gives you confidence to overcome what could seem like incredibly challenging obstacles. If you are simply chasing money, there will come a point that you will really question if it is all even worth it. You may be faced with this question regardless, but if you have purpose, you often find the fortitude to really press forward anyhow. I hope that answers your question, Kevin. Warm regards, Tami


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