Premium: Potency of focus – how investors can learn from the late Steve Jobs

Many of Charlie Munger's one-liners stick. Among them a reminder that "we can learn a lot from dead guys." It's normally in reference to his favourites Marcus Aurelius, Socrates, Cicero and Benjamin Franklin. But Warren Buffett's long-time business partner could also be pointing us towards Steve Jobs..The founder and then rescuer of the $3trn giant Apple Inc died a decade back at just 56. But by then Jobs had entrenched a culture which lives on, ensuring his creation continues to flourish – and will do so long into the future. That was the true brilliance of the man..___STEADY_PAYWALL___.Walter Isaacson's masterful biography on Jobs is my most trusted "how to" textbook for my own business endeavours. Especially when I'm looking for ideas or mulling a big decision. It often serves as an eye-opener to the most rational solution..Jobs believed in obsessive focus and explained it means "saying no to the hundred other good ideas that there are……you have to pick carefully…..innovation is saying 'no' to 1 000 things." With investing, too. Buffett reckons the greatest success comes from having our eggs in a single one basket and watching them closely. Jobs, for sure, would have agreed..More for you to read today:.Elon Musk-Backed EV Battery Technology Rises to Dominance in China. Tesla, Chinese makers take lead over rivals in using less-expensive iron in place of nickel.China's Startups Are Awash With Money as Beijing Shifts Focus to 'Hard Tech'. Investors embrace Beijing's pivot, but companies like Naspers associate Tencent are no longer seen by Chinese leaders as serving the national interest.Dow Closes Lower as Bank Stocks Fall. Major banks JPMorgan Chase and Citigroup post declining profits..* Cracking content in our team's first week back. Catch up via link to this week's interactive BizNews Digest: https://bit.ly/33cVd9i.NB FOR YOUR WALL STREET JOURNAL ACCESS….As a Premium subscriber you are entitled to full membership of wsj.com (normal price $29 a month). Be sure to action your access through the Premium link on the BizNews website. Because of The Wall Street Journal's credential requirements, be sure to create a password which has at least 8 characters and includes at least one letter and one number – NB it MAY NOT contain any special characters (ie #, !, @ etc). To maintain access to WSJ.com, you MUST enter our partner's website via BizNews Premium at least once a month. A final PS, if you had previously signed up for WSJ you'll need to clear the cookies from your device. Our help desk can assist – support@biznews.com.If you'd like to help sustain our independent voice, why not share the love by making a gift that keeps giving? Click here to access the BizNews Premium subscription signup form, and be sure tick the relevant box (see below). At R100 a month and inclusive of full membership of The Wall Street Journal, it's a mind-expanding gift at an incredibly modest price.

Premium: Potency of focus – how investors can learn from the late Steve Jobs

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