What Steve Jobs did at 12 (that most are afraid to do their entire life)
Read time: 4 minutes
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What Steve Jobs did at 12 (that most are afraid to do their entire life)
One of my favorite stories about Steve Jobs has nothing to do with Apple, innovation, or billion-dollar success.
It’s a much simpler story…and in many ways, a much more important one.
When Steve Jobs was 12 years old, he wanted to build a frequency counter. He didn’t have the parts he needed, and he didn’t have access, connections, or any obvious way to get them.
So he did something most people would never even consider doing.
He opened the phone book, found the number of Bill Hewlett, the co-founder of Hewlett-Packard, and called him directly.
Just imagine that for a moment.
A 12-year-old boy, picking up the phone, calling a complete stranger who happened to be one of the most respected figures in the industry… and asking for help.
What’s even more surprising is what happened next.
Hewlett didn’t dismiss him.
He didn’t ignore him.
He didn’t say no.
He gave him the parts, and then he offered him a summer job.
Years later, Jobs reflected on this moment and said something that has stayed with me ever since:
“I’ve never found anybody that didn’t want to help me if I asked them for help.”
And the more I think about it, the more I realize how quietly powerful that lesson is.
Because most opportunities in our lives don’t disappear because we were rejected.
They disappear because we never gave them a chance to exist in the first place.
We don’t ask.
We don’t ask for the introduction that could expand our world.
We don’t ask for feedback that could sharpen our thinking.
We don’t ask for the opportunity that could stretch us.
We don’t ask the question that’s been sitting in our mind for weeks.
We don’t send the message we’ve drafted and redrafted a hundred times.
Instead, we decide the answer for someone else before they’ve even had a chance to respond.
And the answer we assume is almost always the same:
“No.”
But if you don’t ask, the answer is already no.
No connection.
No opportunity.
No growth.
No possibility.
And yet, we convince ourselves that we are “playing it safe,” when in reality, we are quietly disqualifying ourselves.
Especially as women…
We’ve been conditioned to believe that we must be fully ready before we step forward.
That we should only apply when we meet every single requirement.
That asking for help somehow makes us look less capable.
That our work should speak for itself, and if it’s good enough, it will be noticed.
But the world doesn’t always work that way.
Visibility doesn’t come from silent excellence.
Opportunities don’t always come from being the most prepared person in the room.
And growth rarely comes from staying within the boundaries of what feels comfortable and certain.
More often than not, it comes from a simple, uncomfortable, courageous act:
Asking.
The people we admire aren’t necessarily fearless.
They still feel the hesitation, the doubt, the fear of rejection.
But they are willing to risk hearing no.
Because they understand something that most people underestimate:
One conversation can change the trajectory of your career.
One email can open a door you didn’t even know existed.
One question can shift how someone sees you – and how you see yourself.
But none of those moments happen unless you are willing to ask.
And sometimes, when you finally do, you discover something surprising.
You didn’t need permission all along.
You just needed to give yourself the courage to take the first step.
So let me leave you with this:
What is something you’ve been wanting to ask for…but haven’t yet?
An opportunity?
A collaboration?
Guidance?
Visibility?
Support?
What would change if you stopped waiting to feel ready…and simply asked?
The life and career you’re building will not just be shaped by how hard you work.
It will also be shaped by the moments you choose to speak up, reach out, and claim what you want – before the world offers it to you.
Listen to my new podcast with Dominic Siow
Recently, I spoke on the Inspiring Leadership podcast with Dominic Siow, where we explored something that many high-achieving women experience but rarely articulate: the quiet gap between success and fulfillment.
When we don’t create space to pause, reflect, and realign, it’s easy to keep chasing goal after goal…only to arrive and feel like something is still missing.
There’s actually a name for this – the arrival fallacy – the belief that “once I get there, I’ll feel fulfilled.”
But what I’ve come to realize is that fulfillment doesn’t come from constantly moving forward. It comes from aligning what you’re achieving externally with who you are becoming internally.
And that alignment is only possible when you create moments of stillness.
If this resonates with you, I’d really encourage you to watch the full conversation. It’s a deeper, more honest exploration of success, ambition, and what it truly means to feel fulfilled in the life you’re building.
→ Watch the podcast here:
I’d love to hear what stayed with you.
With warmth + intention,
Bhavna