Many people are surprised to discover that the high-tech giant Apple Inc. has three founders. Everyone knows the famous billionaires, the late Steven Jobs and Steve Wozniak. But who was the third founder?
The third founder of Apple was a man named Ronald Gerald Wayne. Wayne was born on May 17, 1934. He worked, without any particular distinction, in the electronics industry. Wayne co-founded Apple Inc., along with Steve Wozniak and Steve Jobs, both of whom were considerably younger than him. Wayne provided management services for the new company.
Three months after Apple was created, Wayne sold his 10% stake in the now gargantuan $900+ billion US corporation for just $800! Wayne later agreed to $1,500 to waive any claim against Apple. Today, Wayne’s 10% stake in Apple would be worth about $90 billion!
Here are three life lessons from Wayne:
1. Be patient
Wayne was clearly impatient with the company he helped found. He wasn’t sure about his future. Wayne was also reportedly upset about previous business failures. Only Wayne knows how much he needed the $800 he initially received for selling his share of Apple. However, it seems likely that she could have managed without him for a while. The first lesson, from Wayne, is to be patient. Past failures need not predict our future.
2. Respect the power of doing nothing
Very often doing nothing is the best course of action. Our culture is obsessed with action; constantly doing things. However, not all action is productive. Not every action brings us closer to where we want to be. Sometimes, we sabotage ourselves with unnecessary actions. Like Wayne did. If Wayne had just done nothing, after co-founding Apple, he would be far richer today than Oprah Winfrey and Paul McCartney combined.
3. Some people are not cut out to be the center of attention.
Wayne had at least one other remarkable experience with endless selling. He sold an original Apple contract, which he had created, to an autograph collector for $500. The collector later sold it at auction for $1.6 million. Wayne was apparently plagued with financial problems throughout his adult life. However, he insists that he did not regret his decision to leave Apple.
This is how Wayne explains his decision. “I was 40 years old and these guys (Jobs and Wozniak) were in their 20s. They were a whirlwind, it was like having a tiger by the tail. If I had stayed at Apple, I probably would have ended up the richest man in the graveyard.” “.
Maybe Wayne is right. Some people (perhaps many) are happier avoiding being the center of attention.
