Steve Jobs Parenting Style: Why Did The Founder Not Let His Kids Use iPad?
Steve Jobs, the Apple founder, did not let his kids use the iPad even though he reportedly created to for educational purposes.
This was a peculiar rule for the eccentric founder since he was criticized for avoiding his responsibility to his first child, Lisa, to focus on his work on Apple. Lisa and Steve’s relationship has been in turmoil from the very beginning, with Jobs arguing with Lisa’s mother all the time.
There even came to a point where he did not talk to her for years and did not commit to paying her college tuition fee.
Though they had a rocky relationship, Jobs was said to be very fond of Lisa. They had the same intuitiveness and curiosity. Since they had a lot in common, it could also be one of the reasons why they clash most of the time.
Jobs also had other kids later in his life. According to New York University professor and book author Adam Alter, Steve Jobs was a kind of a disciplinarian when it comes to his kids.
Steve Jobs in 2010 was on the stage at the Apple event releasing the iPad and he described it as a wonderful device that brought you educational tools. It allowed you to surf the web, it allowed you to watch videos, it allowed you to interact with other people. And he basically said it’s the best way to do all those things.
It was also written in his biography that one of his most memorable encounters with Lisa was when he taught her how to use the computer. But, why did the great Steve Jobs prevented his kids to use a product he innovated?
In an interview in 2012, Jobs said that they do not allow iPads in their home.
“We think it’s too dangerous for them in effect.”
Jobs said he already knew about the addictive factors of the iPad. It was so addictive that it can create a gap in communication.
“Once you had the iPad in front of you, or when you took it away from the home with you, you’d always have access to these platforms that were very addictive. That were hard to resist,” said Alter.
“So where his kids were very well adapted, well adjusted, may not have been prime targets for say substance abuse, they like everyone else, are susceptible to the charms of something like an iPad and what it delivers.”
Meanwhile, Jobs’ legacy continues to reign. Though it is now debatable if Apple is still as innovative and creative as before, the company continues to rise to the stock market.
According to Yahoo! Apple’s progress report was somehow positive. Even after Jobs’ passing on Oct. 5, 2011, the company made sure they were able to follow through with this visions.
Jobs was a futuristic innovator at heart. Though it has nothing to do with the line of technology Apple makes, Jobs wanted to create his own Spaceship Headquarters.
To celebrate the founder’s supposed 62nd birthday last week, a theater on the new 175-acre Apple Park was named after him. The campus also had a one-of-a-kind design with curved glasses, footpaths, research labs and more.
Apple Chief Design Officer Jony Ive said that they would like to highlight Apple’s obsession with designs in this new project.
“We have approached the design, engineering and making off our new campus with the same enthusiasm and design principles that characterize our products.”
The other project that Apple continued on to follow Jobs’ endeavor in Apple would be the iPhone 5, the last Apple project Jobs was a part of.
From parenting to leaving a legacy, Steve Jobs has truly been one of a kind.
[Featured Image by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images]
