Steve Jobs Fired Me 5 Times And I Still Loved Working With Him

Andy Cunningham helped launch Apple's original Macintosh. She is the founder and president of Cunningham Collective and author of the book "Get to Aha!: Discover Your Positioning DNA and Dominate Your Competition."

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Following is the transcript of the video:

Andy Cunningham: I think Steve Jobs fired me about 5 times. I’m Andy Cunningham and I run a marketing consulting company called Cunningham Collective and I've just written a book about positioning, which is a big practice in the marketing field. It's called "Get to Aha!"

The first time Steve fired me was actually probably the most traumatic because I thought it was going to be the last time I would ever work with him and he called me into his office, or into a conference room I should say, and his CFO was sitting there and he looked at me and he said, "I'm going to cut off my contract with you. I think the work you're doing is terrible and we’re just going to stop it right now so that's it, you're fired."

And of course I was taken– you know I was emotional. I was much younger. I didn't cry but I was on the verge of it and I didn't really know what to do so I said, "Okay, well you know you owe me $35,000 and so I’ll arrange you know for you to—" he goes, "I'm not going to pay you that because your work wasn't worth it." And I was just kind of taken aback so I left the room and I called my mentor who is a man named Regis McKenna and Regis said to me, "Well, if you want to get paid by Steve Jobs you’re going to have to have something over him." And I said, "I don't have anything over Steve Jobs, you know that Regis. And he said, "No, you do." And I said, "What is that?" He goes, "In your relationships with the business press." And I said, "Oh I get it."

So I went back and I got in a meeting with Steve because I was friendly with his CFO— she got me a meeting. I walked in there to the meeting, which he took, which was amazing, and I said, "Steve you owe me $35,000. I need that money. I have a start-up company. I need to make payroll and I want you to give me a check for what you owe me." And he said, "I'm not going to do that." And I said, I said, "You have to do that," and he said, "Why?"

And I said, "Well, just so you know Steve I get about 30 or 40 phone calls a week from the business press that we've made relationships over the last couple of years asking me what kind of a guy you are to work with and I currently tell them very nice things." And he wrote me a check immediately and then he hired me back.

Steve got angry with everybody that worked with him. He was very impatient. He had a vision of what it was that you were supposed to be accomplishing and if you didn't do it fast enough or you didn't do it right enough, he definitely got angry. He threw things at people, nothing heavy, but he threw wads of paper at people, swore at people, criticized their clothing. He did all those things. So what it did to certain people is it caused us to push even harder and try to be even better, but for some people it destroyed them. Fortunately for me, I was one of the first types and I am forever grateful to him actually for the experience because now I am so much better at what I do than I would have been without him.

[StarSunYT]

She only explained the first time she was fired not the other 4 times

[samtheammyk]

My boss is just like this and i recently quit. I'm much more productive and creative when someone isn't yelling at me all day

[talhak]

Not gonna tell us the other reasons you got Ok

[Davi_L]

I remember reading an interview with Steve Wozniak about he he’d hire people back after Jobs fired them

[bluerobot]

So Steve Jobs was basically the Gordon Ramsay of IPhones...

[evilwillhunting]

"The Beatles were four guys who kept each other in check." -- Steve Jobs

I always thought this line was ironic, because NOBODY kept Steve in check (except when Markkula fired him), and stories like this are legion. Steve was driven by results, true, but he also was an utter asshole and tyrant to his employees. Even when it wasn't called for.

Something I despised was how managers saw Steve's abrasive and cruel management style as valid, because Steve Jobs was the most successful CEO in the world. Insulting, abusing subordinates and filling them with resentment isn't healthy, even when it does achieve milestones.

[jerimas]

This actually made me really sad. It also furthers this image that you have to be a monster to be a leader, which is not true.

[aronaoi]

Now this is why from the first iPhone to iPhone 5 was the best iPhones. Because they are created under Steve’s eyes. From iPhone 6 and beyond, Steve isn’t there. Tim cook just went like “Oh. That’s a pretty good design let’s release it.”
where Steve would be like “No. Throw that into the corner, don’t even look at it. What kind of shit is that? Restart. You’re fired.”

[moealmasri]

Hmm, he criticized 'other' people for how they dressed. Hmm

[BlakeJPhoenix]

The fact that after being treated poorly for years you still show gratefulness tells me you haven't really acquired that strong mindset you say you have

[shamikhaneh]

In other words, you loved working for a person who kept humiliating you for 5 times!!!
Is it Masochism, or Stockholm Syndrom?

[siddharthchowdaryvunnam]

So she basically blackmailed Steve Jobs 5 times to get her job back? 😨

[PatrioticWorld]

he fired you 5 times? well you know what they say "fool me once shame on you fool me twice shame on me" he fooled you 5 times that's 5 times the shame

[itzwildyy]

Damn, I did not know that Steve Jobs acted like that. Now I’m gonna look at him differently.

[sinaniskan]

how can you be proud to be fired 5 times, and work again for the same kind of maniac that see you as a product.

[mad_titanthanos]

What was it like working for Steve Jobs?

Employee: I don't know, I only worked for three minutes .

[disarchitected]

You can excel without being bullied. One of my friends is like this woman too, says the music teacher Fletcher from the film Whiplash is great and we need more people like him. Honestly astonishing how some people think. It really makes me question their upbringing.

[The_McD]

Jobs was a perfectionist early on and became more patient with time from what I’ve read. To say this is difficult is an understatement. But you do get better faster.

[nuggetcentry]

Who feels bad watching this on an apple device

[valmerpower]

Morale of the story : if you arent good enough, ask someone important in your line of work to bully you.








Glad I am not her