10 Amazing Facts About Steve Jobs You May Not Know

A truly iconic man and a fighter who has brought back Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) from the brink of bankruptcy to become the second most valuable company in the United States. Yes, I am talking about Steve Jobs – CEO and former CEO of Apple. We all know him well; we have heard many things about him, many praise him as a god, while many as a business mentor.

But, just like many other people, there are a few interesting but less known facts about Steve Jobs that may not go with his stature and personality but remain true. On 19 January 2011, Steve Jobs unexpectedly took unscheduled leave due to his health problems, which later proved fatal to him. Later that year, on October 5, 2011, the visionary CEO and a great mentor left us for heavenly aboard.

Here are a few lesser-known yet most amazing facts about Steve Jobs, the enfant terrible of silicon valley:

Timeline

In 1973, Steve dropped out of college, following which he joined ATARI. In the same year, he went to India to look for enlightenment. Later in 1976, before Microsoft, he formed Apple. After 9 years of esteem hard work, he left Apple in 1985 only to establish another venture called NeXt. Very next year, Steve bought an animation studio firm called PIXAR. He came back to Apple in 1996, and in 2006 he finally sold Pixer.

Dyslexia Patient

Steve Jobs was a Dyslexic. He couldn’t read, write and understand the characters. Despite such complications, he has managed to build the second most valuable technology company. Interestingly, this put him on the elite list of well-known personalities like Graham Bell, Albert Einstein, and Henry Ford, who also suffered some of the same “intelligent personality” diseases.

A Troublemaker

In the early days of learning, Steve Jobs remained a terror to his classmates. He spent 3^rd grade as a self-claimed “little terror” that used to leave snakes in classrooms and explode bombs.

Steve Jobs: Employee No “0” (Zero)

In my professional career, I never saw anyone holding an identity as “0” before I found out about Steve Jobs. In Apple, he held an employee ID as 0. In the early days of its formation, Apple’s board of directors wanted to tag all the employees with IDs in the order they were hired. Steve Wozniak, Apple’s co-founder, got employee No 1, and Jobs was assigned 2. Jobs continued to protest against this until he received 0 because it came before 1.

Calligraphy Lover

After dropping out of his classes at Reed, he sat in on a calligraphy class and got fascinated with fonts and penmanship. He attributes the original Apple true type font face (later copied by Windows).

Steve: A Dirty Fellow

Have you ever heard about an employee who got reshuffled for night shifts just because of his dressing sense and poor hygiene habits? Yes, it was Steve Jobs, if no one else. He used to smell terrible, which had forced the Atari management to send him for night shifts.

Steve Jobs Daily Uniform

Try to Google Steve’s photograph. Most often, you will find him only in a black St. Croix cashmere/silk high-neck T-shirt, Levis blue jeans, and New Balance sneakers. He owns more than 100 jeans of the same make, size, and colour.

Steve Jobs Salary: 1 Dollar Per Year

Steve Jobs withdrew just US$1 as his annual remuneration from Apple’s account as CEO. However, he earned more than $48 million per year from Disney shares.

President Of PepsiCo To Work for Apple

Steve jobs had always been known as a good negotiator. He convinced John Sculley – then, the President of PepsiCo – to quit his job and join Apple as CEO by saying, “Do you want to sell sugared water for the whole of your life, or do you want to change the world?”

A Strict Fruitarian

The logic behind forming his company with the name “Apple’ is a strong vegetarian habit of Steve Jobs and Apple being his favourite fruit. He and his wife both are strict vegans, no matter what happens.

These amazing facts about Steve Jobs can teach you a number of valuable life lessons, regardless of whether you’re a student, a working professional, or an aspiring entrepreneur.