APPLE

In the light of the 30th birthday of Macintosh, I’ve been thinking ways that I can improve, in my own skills and trade, my inspirations and methodologies, my visions and knowledge and connections, to develop into a business model which would mimic the way Apple, a truly magnificent company, grew.

Mimic seems to be taboo word in this day and age. For one it suggests plagiarism, unoriginal complacency, evil immorality; for another it is a statement that says, hey guys, I’m starting something here, don’t worry, it is a copy-cat, and by the way, it will never be as big as the real thing.

Personally I consider mimicry a form of art, as it forms a dynamic link between an empathetic being to a metamorphic process. I see, so I shall be.

How fucking difficult that is!

Besides legal implications, mimicry is also decidedly different from plagiarism, as one follows the trajectory of creation and the other, superficial representation of creation. Xiaomi, for instance, was once a pathetic copy cat of the iphone and some of the popular android models, but then it tapped into user experience, it built a team, it aimed for a market, it had a mission, now it is one of the most blooming companies that China has to offer.

Come to think of it, so was Tencent, and Alibaba, as when a plagiarist became master of the art as he learnt his way to the temple, he is likely to be a master of his own style and character.

But enough with that.

I want this little post to be a constant reminder for myself, that somewhere in the history of Apple, traces, bits and pieces from which the great Iphone was born, there are plenty of lessons to be learnt.

I want to remind myself that, in a day and age when technology was rough, unrefined and often ended up at the edge of social hotness radar, it is important to offer something that is less technological advanced but most integrated as an artistic product; and when every single competitor tries to catch up with cosmetics, it is important to quietly shift energy and resources to the next undiscovered territory.

I want to remind myself that, a platform almost always attracts more loyalty than individual gadgets, even if that gadget is the Iphone, that loyalty sometimes is a mere way of life that people find too troublesome to change.

I want to remind myself that, aluminium is one of the strongest, most adaptable, most expressive material of our life time.

I want to remind myself that, just because you are chased out of the company that you founded, doesn’t mean your life is ended; keep on working, exceed, follow the same principles that are proved to be sound.

And most important of all, I shall not forget, how very important it is, to stay hungry and stay foolish; nobody has the answer, but the answer is everywhere.