Just yesterday Steve Jobs, the genius behind more than three decades of revolutionary innovation at Apple, Pixar and Disney, lost his battle with cancer at the age of 56. Upon hearing of Jobs’ death, Steven Spielberg commented that “Steve Jobs was the greatest inventor since Thomas Edison” because of his ability to bring world-changing technology into the lives of ordinary people.
Someone suggested to me that the Church needs a Steve Jobs-type leader and asked, “What could such a person do if committed to the mission of the church?” At first, this sounds like a great idea, but further reflection causes me to wonder if that would really work. As I think about the role of a pastor in the church, I need to remember why I love the leadership of Jobs. Here are some of the qualities that stand out most.
- A rebel. Jobs was never satisfied with the status quo. He wasn’t afraid to disagree with people nor did he shy away from conflict. He consistently rebelled against the reigning systems in an effort to do something different, progressive and new.
- An optimist. Never willing to succumb to defeat, Jobs always saw the future and reached for it. Even when fired from Apple in 1985, he was able to forge new pathways and envision fresh possibilities. This led him toward development of the NeXT computer and Pixar. While not ignoring what could be learned from the past, he was able to see the best in the future and move toward it.
- A dreamer. Not many CEOs can be credited with such a creative and imaginative spirit. Jobs was never inclined to do things the same as everyone else. He had the ability to dream about what could be and then inspire people to join him in pursuit of the dream. He didn’t just have imagination, he was imagination.
- An enabler. Apple employees have often noted that Jobs was not only creative, but he allowed them to be creative. Jobs enabled, empowered and equipped his people to dream and think for themselves. He did not require them to fit in neatly defined boxes. He trusted them and released them to be imaginative.
- An adapter. One of Jobs’ most remarkable qualities was his ability to shift quickly with and adapt to the changing world around him. Cultural shifts were not something to be feared, they were opportunities to move in new directions. However, Jobs famously refused to use focus groups. He was not a politician holding his finger to the wind in a reactionary manner. He boldly proclaimed the future, and was able to move his gargantuan corporation in and with the culture in almost prophetic ways.
- A philanthropist. When Jobs was accused of being stingy with his money earlier this year, the rock star Bono shot back in the New York Times. In defense of Jobs, Bono commented that Apple had given “tens of millions of dollars that have transformed the lives of more than two million Africans through H.I.V. testing, treatment and counseling.” Though intensely private, Jobs demonstrated a commitment to caring for the world around him. When asked by Bono to join the (RED) campaign, Jobs replied, “There is nothing better than the chance to save lives.”
In sum, Steve Jobs was much more than a CEO. He was an artist. When he set out to develop a product, he approached it as a poet. His computers, music players and phones were not merely technical gadgets, they were paintings. Jobs was not interested in function alone. He developed form around visual colors and tactile sensations. He saw the world as an artist would and his leadership style reflected the heart of a master sculptor.
Was Steve Jobs a great leader? Most definitely. And there is much that church leadership can learn from this innovative, imaginative craftsman. Unfortunately, this is precisely the type of person that most churches drive from their midst because they are fearful of and threatened by such people. The artist is rarely welcome in institutional Christianity. These kinds of folks see the world differently and often annoy traditional church systems. Even as tough as Jobs was, many churches would just chew him up and spit him out. He'd be fired for sure.
I think Steve Jobs was a great leader, but I’m pretty sure he would make a terrible pastor.
PS On a related note, as we say "Goodbye" to Steve Jobs, we say "Happy 10th Anniversary" this month to the iPod, just one of Jobs' devices that changed the world. And here's another creative partnership that stretched way outside of the box:
Full-time professor, part-time pastor, husband, father of two small boys, news writer for @U2 (atu2.com), just trying to find my way in a new world.
After reading this I think you've sumerised wrong, just because the institutional church or "traditional" or whatever church would spit him out, doesn't mean he'd make a BAD pastor, actually would probably make him a superb one, because he'd be a church pioneer and planter, designing a "new" type of church, isn't perhaps, Mark Driscoll of Mars Hill, Seattle a little tiny weeny bit like this (not saying he's anywhere near Jobs on imaginative or artiness, but certainly on the pioneering front, churching the most-unchurched city in the USA and all that in less than 10 years, oh like the ipod) or many others, I think instead of saying he'd have made a bad pastor, you should say he'd make an unconventional and unaccepted pastor - like many great pastors are, unconventional and unaccepted until their latter years. PS - Not a fan of Apple, never have been never will be.
Posted by: Pastor Peter-Edmund Conroy | October 12, 2011 at 08:30 PM
Peter, you're right on. You got it. I was, of course, being facetious. By my standards, Steve would be a creative leader/pastor. But in most churches he would be considered a dismal failure. Thanks for the comment!
Tim
Posted by: Tim | October 18, 2011 at 12:55 PM
Just a thought, a few months on, is it conceivable that the modern Church has become so integrated into the world that it's standards of failure and success aren't the same as God's and resemble more likely the worlds - an example being Jeremiah (in his own time)?
Posted by: Peter-Edmund Conroy | June 06, 2012 at 02:36 AM