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Steve Jobs: A Great Idea Is Only 10% of the Work. The Rock Tumbler Does the Rest.

By Steve Jobs · Leadership · 1 min read

Jobs says thinking a great idea is 90% of the work is a disease. The real magic is in the craft between idea and product.

Key Points

A great idea is not a great product. There is tremendous craftsmanship in between.
Designing a product means keeping 5,000 things in your brain and fitting them together
The rock tumbler metaphor: talented people bumping against each other polish ideas into something beautiful

There is a tremendous amount of craftsmanship in between a great idea and a great product.

The Disease

After Jobs left Apple, John Sculley caught a disease. Jobs saw others catch it too.

The disease: thinking a great idea is 90% of the work.

Tell smart people the idea, they will make it happen. Jobs says that is completely wrong.

5,000 Things in Your Brain

Designing a product means keeping 5,000 concepts in your head and fitting them together.

Every day you discover something new. A new problem. A new opportunity.

Things you cannot make electrons do. Things you cannot make plastic or glass do. Trade-offs everywhere.

There is a tremendous amount of craftsmanship between a great idea and a great product.

The Rock Tumbler

When Jobs was young, an old man showed him a rock tumbler. Regular ugly rocks went in.

With grit, liquid, and friction — stones rubbing against stones — they came out polished and beautiful.

That is Jobs's metaphor for a team. Talented people bumping against each other, arguing, making noise. What comes out is beautiful.