The Night the Show Must Go On

It was 1997. Steve Jobs had returned to Apple, a company on the brink. The MacWorld Expo, a lifeline for the struggling brand, was hours away. Then, disaster struck. A critical product demo, the centrepiece of Jobs' keynote, crashed.

Panic pulsed through the team. Engineers scrambled, but the clock was ticking. Jobs, known for his mercurial temper, could have exploded. Instead, he took a breath. Defeat wasn't an option.

"We'll improvise," he declared.

The keynote stage was his battleground. Jobs, the master storyteller, pivoted. He painted a vision of Apple's future, reigniting the forgotten passion within the audience. He spoke of innovation, of courage, and of changing the world. The faulty demo was a mere footnote.

By the time the lights dimmed, Jobs hadn't just saved the day – he had breathed new life into Apple. The crowd roared. Hope flickered back to life.

My observation

In business, as in life, things rarely go according to plan. True resilience isn't about the absence of setbacks; it's about forging ahead when the perfect plan crumbles. Steve Jobs embodied that tenacious spirit in that high-pressure moment.

Sometimes, the most inspiring performance is the one you give when everything's falling apart, the one fuelled by the unwavering belief that the show MUST go on.

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