Anyone developing new products and new technology needs one characteristic above all else: hope.

Failure is an enigma. You worry about it, and it teaches you something.

In the digital age of "overnight" success stories such as Facebook, the hard slog is easily overlooked.

I just want things to work properly.

After the idea, there is plenty of time to learn the technology

I've obviously used fans - I wouldn't say all my life, because we couldn't afford them when I was young, but from my 20s and onwards we've had to use fans. And I've always loathed them. Everything about them. The way you adjust them, getting them at the angle you want. Carrying them. Cleaning them. The danger of putting your finger in them.

I learned that the moment you want to slow down is the moment you should accelerate.