Elizabeth Goodspeed on the importance of taste – and how to acquire it

April 5, 2024

Steve Jobs famously said (this one is on video it’s not some apocryphal quote)

The only problem with Microsoft is they just have no taste.”

It’s harsh bit not entirely unfair, but the implications are more subtle. Jobs had great taste–not like in pricing out clothes or wine (he may have wine but those dad jeans and Tuttle neck and new balance-yeesh, I guess dad core was a thing).
But he had taste when it came to devices and interfaces. But the irony is for the first act of Jobs and Apple’s life it didn’t matter It was a world of utility, where businesses paid and design seemed like a frippery. Microsoft knew this.

Then computers actually became personal. iPods, iPhones, and taste mattered.

Anyway I got sidetracked. Taste is often considered innate. But it’s acquired. And not just when you are young, it can be acquitted, developed, at any age. Godspeed hassle thoughts as to how you might go about it–I recommend you give them some thought.