Powerful leaders often possess “reality distortion” fields. Steve Jobs is an example:
Among his own employees at Apple, Steve was famous for what they jokingly called his reality distortion field… The way Apple insiders described it, Steve had the power to alter real facts and the laws of science. Apple engineers and programmers would argue that something Steve wanted them to do wasn’t physically possible, but he would convince them that it was. Sometimes Steve had to give in, but more often than not, he motivated the work group to try something they thought was impossible and end up finding a completely different way to solve the problem.
Randall Collins and Maren McConnell, Napoleon Never Slept
On its face, this is not a Stoic idea. Philosophers should pursue knowledge, not misunderstanding. Jobs was no Stoic.
Yet, this ability, whatever its name, had the ability to move mountains. It forged Apple into a force of nature. Arguably, it’s one that all great leaders in history have possessed. It can be used well.
Steve Jobs convinced people to do what they previously thought was impossible. Setting others’ aspirations higher is empowering when those expectations are too low. Job’s energy was contagious and would spread to teams. He was famously obsessive and would laser in on a single goal. As a result, his teams were better aligned and charged. Many people did their…
