Steve Jobs and the Art of Leaving Things Out

Back in September, I wrote about Steve Jobs' ability to capture an audience through his passion.

Now I want to focus on his ability to capture an audience through his restraint.

In this Sunday's NYT Week in Review, Steve Lohr writes about Jobs' signature simplicity in Apple's products. Lohr writes that the products "cut through complexity by consciously leaving things out- not cramming every feature that came into an engineer's head, an affliction known as "featuritis" that burdens so many technology products."


"'A defining quality of Apple has been design restraint,' says Paul Saffo, a technology forecaster and and consultant in Silicon Valley."

Design restraint is at the core of Apple's success and should be at the core of your speech-writing process.

From the Green Room: When you craft a presentation, avoid "featuritis." Make conscious decisions to leave any information out that is not absolutely essential to your message.