就如何创办一家公司而言，史蒂夫·乔布斯给我们的启发恐怕比其他任何人都要多，而我有幸在苹果公司Macintosh部门为他工作过一段时间。

在那几年工作期间，以及随后20年对他的观察，我学到了关于创业公司最重要的五件事情。

1. 人们不会告诉你他们需要什么

人们可以告诉你他们想要什么，无非就是希望现有产品变得更好、更快、更便宜。例如，在20世纪80年代，苹果的消费者想要更好、更快、更便宜的苹果二代电脑。但没有人说他们需要Macintosh。真正成功的企业家能创造出人们没有明确表达出需求的产品。

2. 专家没法告诉你要做什么

专家擅于告诉你现在出了什么问题。但他们没法告诉你怎么解决问题，像消费者一样，他们也不能告诉你如何超越当下市场领先的品牌。

3. 要在新的层面展开行动

19世纪30年代，冰块工厂淘汰了冰块采集器。19世纪50年代，冰箱公司淘汰了冰块工厂。改善现有状况当然有回报，不过真正的创新和企业家精神在于你进入新的层面，创建新的趋势。

4. 设计很重要

不是每个人都看重设计，但好的设计能打动足够多的人，从而让一家创业公司获得成功。单纯的性能优良已经不够了。你的产品或服务现在需要用一种优雅而令人愉悦的方式来完成它们的使命。史蒂夫·乔布斯和苹果已经把人们的期望值永久性地拔高了。

5. 价值和价格不是一回事

价格只是清单上印着的数字。而价值则是一个产品的成本和它带给消费者的福利的总和。有时候，价格更高的产品的价值也更高，因为它降低了培训等成本，产生了更好的效果。不要关注价格，要把心思放在提供和传递价值上。

还有另一件事：史蒂夫·乔布斯告诉我，有些事情需要先相信才能实现。怀疑论者总是认为眼见为实。但如果你想成为一名企业家，就必须相信你的理念。这就是为什么史蒂夫·乔布斯改变了世界，而大多数人都在等待世界改变。（财富中文网）

本文最初发表在Entrepreneur网站上。

译者：严匡正

审校：任文科

No one could have taught you more about starting a company than Steve Jobs, and I had the privilege and honor of working for him in the Macintosh division of Apple.

Over the course of several years, and then watching him for another two decades, these are the five most important things that I learned about startups from him.

1. People cannot tell you what they need.

They can tell you what they want, and it’s usually along the lines of a better, faster and cheaper status quo. For example, in the 1980s, Apple’s customers wanted a better, faster and cheaper Apple II. No one asked for a Macintosh. Truly successful entrepreneurs create what people cannot articulate.

2. Experts cannot tell you what to do.

Experts are good at telling you what’s wrong with the current state of the art. They cannot tell you how to fix what’s wrong, nor, like customers, tell you how to leapfrog the current leaders.

3. The action is on the next curve.

In the 1830s, ice harvesters were wiped out by ice factories. In the 1850s, ice factories were wiped out by refrigerator companies. Duking it out on the current curve can work, but true innovation and entrepreneurship occurs when you get to the next curve or create a new one.

4. Design counts.

It might not matter to everyone, but design matters to enough people to make a startup successful. Simple functionality isn’t enough anymore. Now your product or service has to do the job in an elegant and pleasing way. Steve Jobs and Apple have raised people’s expectations forever.

5. Value is not the same thing as price.

Price is a number printed on a list. Value is the totality of the costs and benefits of a product. Something with a higher price can have a better value because it reduces costs, such as training, and produces better results. Don’t focus on price — focus on providing and communicating value.

One more thing: Steve Jobs taught me that some things need to be believed to be seen. Skeptics refuse to believe in something until they see it. If you want to be an entrepreneur, you have to believe in your idea. This is why Steve Jobs changed the world while most people waited for the world to change.

This piece was originally published on Entrepreneur.