Steve Jobs' Final Advice to Tim Cook: Don't Pull a Disney
A video of the star-studded tribute to Steve Jobs held October 19th on Apple's Cupertino, Ca., campus has been posted to the Apple website. (It plays smoothly on Safari, while other browsers give you an "Available soon. Please check back later" message.) Running 81 minutes, the video begins with an address from CEO Tim Cook, who reveals what his boss's dying wishes for his company were: avoiding the same fate as The Walt Disney Co.
Calling the two weeks following Jobs' death the "saddest" of his life, Cook said, "But I know Steve. Steve would have wanted this cloud to lift for Apple and our focus to return to the work that he loved so much." Then he shared Jobs' last words of advice: "Never ask what he would do, just do what's right."
Cook said Jobs offered the example of Walt Disney's death as a cautionary tale on how not to run a game-changing creative corporation after its visionary founder passes on. He explained that The Walt Disney Co. became "paralyzed" after Walt Disney's death; everyone at the company was so concerned with what Walt would want or do, they ultimately failed to take chances. The result? Movies like 1969's The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes, starring Kurt Russell.
"[He] did not want this to occur at Apple," Cook said.
'Cause the last thing the iPad 3 needs is tennis shoes. [Apple, AP]