Lessons from Steve Jobs: Focus Means Saying No
"People think focus means saying yes to the thing you've got to focus on. But that's not what it means at all. It means saying no to a hundred other good ideas." — Steve Jobs
Context & Relevance

Steve Jobs is often held up as a symbol of relentless focus. But he wasn’t focused because he had all the answers he was focused because he was willing to strip away everything that didn’t matter.
This ties directly to what we’re exploring this month: real habit change and self-leadership aren’t about adding more. They’re about understanding what really matters, and having the courage to say no to what doesn’t.
His Approach
Simplicity as a Practice
At Apple, Jobs cut dozens of product lines down to just four. He believed clarity comes from subtraction.
The Courage to Say No
He was ruthless about letting go of even good ideas if they didn’t serve the bigger vision. That’s what made the iPod, iPhone, and iPad possible.
Intuition Over Noise
Jobs didn’t just follow data or trends. He trusted his gut — even when others disagreed.
The Messiness
It’s easy to romanticise Jobs’ clarity, but the truth is messier. Saying no meant conflict. It meant letting people down. It meant risk. But it also meant making space for the things that really mattered.
My Reflection

I learned this lesson during the pandemic. In Berlin, I was leading a digital campaign for 7,000 colleagues across 14 countries. I was brand new to the job and I felt like I had to say yes to everything. Every request. Every idea. Every need.
My days felt like a tidal wave of Zoom calls, Slack pings, and to-do lists. The more I said yes, the less progress we made.
Then I saw an old clip of Jobs from WWDC'97: “Focus isn’t about what you say yes to, it’s about what you’re willing to say no to.”
I started to cut. I said no to new projects that didn’t fit the goal. I stopped sugarcoating. I focused on the one thing that would actually make a difference: creating a single, clear learning experience that could reach everyone.
It wasn’t easy. I worried people would be disappointed, or think I was unhelpful. But every time I said no to something that didn’t serve the bigger vision, I felt lighter. More purposeful. More human.
That’s the real power of saying no, not perfection, but the freedom to focus on what matters.
Try This Now
Write This Down:
  1. What’s the one project or habit that would truly move the needle for you right now?
  1. What’s one thing you’re saying yes to out of habit, not intention?
  1. What’s the one thing you’ll say no to this week?
Try This:
  • Keep these three questions somewhere you’ll see them.
  • Each morning this week, take 3 minutes to revisit them.
  • Notice how your decisions and habits shift when you put real focus first.
Seriously, Give this a Try:
Write down one thing you’re going to say no to this week and what that might create space for.
Final Thought
Steve Jobs didn’t just build great products he created the space for them to exist by saying no to the noise. That’s the heart of self-coaching too: not doing more, but choosing better.
Thanks for reading
Want more deep dives like this each month? I’m testing these out to see what’s most useful let me know what you think, or what you’d like to see next!