Bill Gates recently revealed an interesting conversation he had with Steve Jobs, during which Jobs gave him surprising advice.
Gates told Fortune that Jobs once told him he should have used some drugs while designing computer products.
He said in The Independent, “Steve Jobs once said that he wished I’d take acid because then maybe I would have had more taste in my design of my products.”
Jobs revolutionized product design in the 1990s and early 2000s, making it a key aspect of the tech world with the launch of products like the iPod, iMac, iPad, and iPhone.
On the other hand, Microsoft was focused on building cloud-computing software and rolling out office-friendly services like Word and Excel.
Although these innovations changed the world, they didn’t impress Jobs, who always prioritized product design. Gates explained that while he focused on coding, Jobs saw his calling in marketing and design, noting, “Because his talents and mine – other than being kind of an energetic leader, and pushing the limits, they didn’t overlap much.”
Gates admitted that while they had a love-hate relationship, he admired Jobs’ ability to think about design and marketing, stating, “[Jobs] wouldn’t know what a line of code meant, and his ability to think about design and marketing and things like that… I envy those skills. I’m not in his league.”
Gates had previously admitted to using recreational drugs during his youth, confirming that he smoked marijuana in high school. He revealed it was out of curiosity, adding, “I thought maybe I would look cool and some girl would think that was interesting. It didn’t succeed, so I gave it up.”
Notably, Gates refrained from using drugs after starting Microsoft with co-founder Paul Allen, to keep his mind sharp during work.
