One of the most intriguing qualities about Steve Jobs is described as his “reality distortion field.” It seemed like he was able to bend reality to his will. For example, with its influence, he occasionally made unrealistic deadlines happen like the original Apple Macintosh computer, or going public with the Pixar IPO right after Toy Story’s debut.

But even Steve had limits to his abilities; he couldn’t make his original vision for NeXT’s black cubes work, and the business needed to pivot into selling enterprise software to survive. He denied that Lisa Brennan-Jobs was his daughter for many years. And, he couldn’t distort his way out of cancer.

I had once planned on writing a book about reality distortion, and how today’s business leaders seem to have continued the tradition. As the years go by, I’ve grown to see its undisciplined use as a risky, unhealthy, and unreliable practice. 

Engaging a healthy, expansive, and optimistic attitude is different from engaging an extreme delusional perspective. 

Reality catches up. There are much more constructive ways to deal with painful reality checks. As Will Smith wrote, “The bigger the fantasy you live, the more painful the inevitable collision with reality. Reality is going to pay you back in equal proportion to your delusion.”

When you want to connect with reality, loosen up your grip on what you believe and your vision for the future, and see what happens. As Philip K. Dick wrote, “Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn’t go away.” Or as Oliver Burkeman paraphrases Michael Singer, “Reality doesn’t need you to help operate it.”