In a 2013 film based on a true story, a young man is inspired to start a small business in his parents garage. It's the late 70's and the nascent technology of computers is all the rage.
Although successfully landing a large order from a local shop owner, it isn't long until Ashton Kutcher, playing the owner, hits a roadblock. Why so? Because virtually no one is interested in computers. Worse yet, few people - especially belonging to the general public - know what they're good for to begin with.
Granted, the concept of computers had been part of the common vernacular for decades. The idea of machines performing advanced calculations was nothing new. However, such machines were massive in size, obscenely expensive and extremely rudimentary compared to modern. Their lacking appeal wasn't helped by the fact that they were abhorrent to look at, and even more difficult to operate.
The lukewarm perception of anything computer related is perfectly captured in a scene where Kurcher is working his fingers to the bone attempting to find new buyers and investors. Making a million phone calls, he finally gets a hold of what might be a prospective client.
"It runs of a TV monitor," he says, pitching his new product.
"Yes, like a television set - exactly!"
Could this be it? Could this be the final payoff for all the grueling work that he and his company have put in? Not quite.
"No, I don't think you understand. It's not a TV. It's a personal computer," Kutcher retorts, audibly flustered that another client fails to understand the utility of his product. But maybe there's still hope.
"Do you own a typewriter?" he curiously inquires.
"Great! Do you use it..?"
Anticipating the client's response, it is obvious that Kutcher is already working out what to say the next. If he can pull her in with his next line, this deal is in the bag for this flesgling entrepeneur and his metry band of employees.
"Perfect. So imagine using combining your typewriter with your television set!"
But no - she's not having it. For this client, the concept of a personal computer, no oun intended, does not compute. In fact, she couldn't be any less interested, abruptly hanging up the phone.
And just like that, the whole conversation is rendered not only meaningless, but aggrevating to a Kutcher who is, before long, absolutely infuriated.
Unlike some others, he is not one to bottle up his feelings, much less take any sense of responsibility for his personal failures.
Instead, he carefully scoures his team of co-workers, sniffing out each and every one of them for someone to blame. His work is cut out for him when one of them makes a negative comment, giving him the perfect opportunity to project his rage.
"Oh, come on," he says.
"Cool your jets, man."
"Excuse you..?" Kutcher retorts, noticeably upset about the notion that anyone might have a problem with his behavior.
"You're so stressed, you know? Relax for a change."
As the conversation devolves into a full-on dispute, Kutcher is quick to flip the script on his partner, questioning his dedication to the company.
"You used to be motivated, " Kutcher says.
"I am motivated," he replies, standing his ground.
"Really? Then show me. This is a business, and I can't help you if you don't help yourself."
Seconds later, the intrigue is halted as a gold-colored sports car pulls up next to them, a suited up business man stumbling out of his car, map in hand.
Not knowing what to make of it, Kutcher and his employees give him an qually confounding look.
What's a man of that caliber doing in this, seemingly ordinary, neighborhood? And more importantly, why is his eyes traveling in their direction?
The man introduces himself as Mark. And as it turns out, he isn't lost at all. In fact, it appears he's arrives at the exact location he was looking for. But why is he there?
"You spoke to Don Valentine on the phone," Mulrony explains.
"The old VC from Atari?" Kutcher replies, starting to put the pieces together.
"Yeah, he said you called him 150 times. He practically BEGGED me to come look at your outfit here, called in a personal favor... Gentlemen, is there some place we can talk?"
Fast forward a few minutes and Kutcher, along with his team, are sitting face to face with each other at the dinner table for the moment of truth. Not only have they've landed a plausible investors. Even better, he's in the room with them, about to spill the beans on what he truly thinks of the fledgling startup.
For what feels like eons, Kutcher and his partners have been slaving away for hours on end without as much as a morsel of reward. Could this be it, the breakthrough that they've dreamed about for so long?
Given all recent setbacks, maybe it's best not too set expectations too high. After all, they've been eye to eye with promising opportunities before, only to watch it slip out of their fingers once it's time to reel in the price. Besides, getting rejected feels worse every time it happens, only cementing the already sinking feeling that maybe, perhaps maybe, this business venture isn't meant to last. Bracing themselves, anticipation is high as they wait for Dulroney to speak in a room that is, at this point, dead silent. But being the abrasive character he is, Kutcher doesn't wait for Dulroney to speak.
"So how much are we talking about here?" he impatiently inquires.
"The investment?" Durloney retorts.
"That's what you came here for, isn't it?" Kutcher continues.
"Yeah, well... I've been looking for something to really sink my teeth into."
"Look, I'm willing to take the risk, and this certainly qualifies... But risk disguised as promise, and you've shown promise. I've seen it in your eyes, and I know that looo because I've had it myself. It tells me you're onto something big."
Pausing for a moment, the room is dead silent as Kutcher and his employees hold their breath, bracing for Dulroney to make his offer.
"To the point, I think we should start with 90 grand and see where that takes us." The offer comes as an absolute shock.
$90,000? Could he be serious? Moments ago, Kutcher and his employees were bickering in the driveway of his parents on account that they can't find anyone remotely interested in shelling out a single dollar for their company. Moments later, a multimillionaire tech pioneer is openly voicing his desire to financially back the company by his accord. Wow.
But of course, nothing ever goes the way you expect with Kutcher at the helm. With him as the leader, nothing ever ends up you think it will.
Instead of taking the offer, Kutcher begins negotiating, stimulating that he will only take the deal if Dulroney kicks in $250,000 credit line with 10% interested. No worries, though, Kutcher makes clear. The loan will be paid back in full once the company becomes profitable.
Taken aback by Kutcher's reponse, Dulroney's jaw drops to the floor. He is not used to getting such an assertive counter offer. But especially, he is not used to the fact that such a young, inexperienced and absolutely nameless entrepreneur has the gaul to start making daring demands. After all, one would surmise that it is the rich successful investor in the room that owns control of the situation, not the brash youngling sitting across from him. Yet alas, it doesn't matter.
In the end, the two of them shake hands in a what has gone down in history as one of the most legendary investment deals of all time.
If it isn't clear already, the real-life character that was portrayed by Ashton Kutcher in the movie is none other than Steve Jobs, and the tech startup, on that account, was modern corporate giant Apple Computer Inc. This begs the curious question: Did the story just outlined really play out?
Well, it depends who you ask.
If you're in the tech industry like myself and voice positive views of the film, people are quick to point out that the movie JOBS (released 2013) starring Ashton Kutcher is terrible compared to film STEVE JOBS (released two years later, in 2015) wherein the titular role is played by Michael Fassbender. Indeed, one may even venture to say that displaying anything other than scorn towards JOBS (2013) is met with derision. There are 3 reasons for this.
Firstly, JOBS (2013) attempts to pack in a laundry list of life events so lengthy that it is hard to unearth any real sense of depth in any singular situation. Champions of this view believe that the delicate intricacies of Steve Jobs' true personality were overlooked for the sake of cramming in as much "action" as possible, sacrificing quality for quantity.
Secondly, there's a widespread opinion that Ashton Kutcher's acting chops are subpar and not cut out for a serious drama or psychological thriller such as JOBS (2013). According to those subscribing to this view, Kutcher is passable for starring in a silly romantic comedy (God knows he's made many of them), but simply doesn't have the gravitas to uphold two solid hours of high-brow cinema.
Thirdly - and most importantly - there is a pervasive sentiment that JOBS (2013) isn't sufficient in the factual accuracy department, misrepresenting important events surrounding the original founding and ongoing running of Apple, and, sometimes, completely fabricating things that never happened.
Indeed, Steve Wozniak (the engineer that co-founded Apple alongside Steve Jobs) has been vocal in his criticism of the film, stating that it is replete with makebelieve, particularly claming that it unrealistically glorifies the man, not just with regard to his personality (it is well-known that he was mean) but his ineptitude with spearheading the company at many turns.
No matter what side you fall on in this debate, one thing that cannot be contestant is that the vast majority of the scenes that play out in JOBS (2013) have at least a curnel of truth to them, the business investment negotiation between Jobs and Markulla being a prime example.
Fact is, most of those who put down the JOBS (2013) movie concede that Jobs really did make a 150-something calls to Don Valentine, the Vice Chairman at Atari.
Although Jobs did cut his teeth working at this legendary game company, he was regarded as an absolutely nobody by Atari executives, harboring no desire to assist financially in his (then) outrageous idea of assembling, and bring to market, a personal computer.
Instead, it was Jobs incessant nagging that forced his hand, sending Mike Markulla to visit Apple in Jobs's garage at a time when virtually no one bat as much as an eyelash at the tech startup.
On that note, it is completely true that Markulla offered to invest $90,000 in the company (taking ownership of one-third of Apple) and that Jobs requested that he accommodates them with a $250,000 loan as they desperately needed cash flow. The source?
2011's autobiographical best-seller STEVE JOBS before which author Walter Isaacson conducted hundreds of interviews with co-workers, business partners, competitors, friends, and enemies, 40 of which were personal conversations with the man himself.
STEVE JOBS (2011) is the only officially authorized biography on Steve Jobs that was ever published, and it released just two weeks after his passing. It details everything from the nastiest blemishes to the rosiest virtues about the man and is widely regarded as the most representative, all-encompassing literary work on the person who was instrumental in revolutionizing modern technology. This brings us full circle.
Althoygh it's impossible to know what Jobs' earliest sales pitches sounded like - we don't have the transcripts - it is very likely that convincing prospects about the possibilities of "combining you TV and your typewriter" really happened.
Although it's hard to imagine now, the idea that a computional device could be practically interactive, output video signals to a monitor, and be user friendly was absolute pipe dreams only a few decades ago. And although neither Jobs, nor even his co-founding partner Wozniak, truly "invented" every facet of the game-changing Apple II device, it was they who unified all of the above into one device, and - perhaps - most importantly - awakened the general public to the endless possibilities of personal computing. This has important implications for those operating in the tech industry, not leasting involving UI/UX designers.
Most products - in fact, the vast majority of them - are not going to sell themselves. Yes, Instagram is chock-full of shocking success stories involving a 18 year-old programming geniuses whose first product gained immediate traction, went viral, and conquered the world in the span of a few days. But in the vast majority of cases, efficaciously promoting the (sometimes hypothetical) utility of a product over time is what will determine its success.
You can be the most talented UI/UX designer to walk the Earth. Obviously, it makes a considerable difference. But unless you're willing to stick your head, in the words of Jobs himself, "you're not gonna get very far."
So if you're pitching an unorthodox app the likes of which has never been seen before,
It might be hard to convince the world that it holds practical value. In fact, it's guaranteed that it will be. And that feedback may come in a less-than-desirable format, rife with angry lambasting, taunting laughter, and worse.
It might be hard to convince the world that it holds practical value. In fact, it's guaranteed that it will be. And that feedback may come in a less-than-desirable format, rife with angry lambasting, taunting laughter, and worse.
But if it's something you truly believe in, ensuring the design's success absolutely necessitates pressing forward against all odds. And why is that?
Because no matter how hard it is to woo those around you about its value, it is not as difficult - not even remotely so, in fact - as convincing someone of "combining your TV with your typewriter."