Steve Jobs — Always Hungry, Always Foolish
To say Steve Jobs is a legend is an understatement.
My friend Ted Merz recently wrote a post on LinkedIn highlighting the new website, stevejobsarchive.com — a collection of personal writings and interviews from the late, great Apple co-founder.
As Ted points out, Jobs is larger-than-life and it’s hard to think of him as a normal person. And the email Jobs wrote to himself is a quick lesson in the humanity of this business icon:
I grow little of the food I eat, and of the little I do grow
I did not breed or perfect the seeds.
I do not make any of my own clothing.
I speak a language I did not invent or refine.
I did not discover the mathematics I use.
I am protected by freedoms and laws I did not conceive
of or legislate, and do not enforce or adjudicate.
I am moved by music I did not create myself.
When I needed medical attention, I was helpless
to help myself survive.
I did not invent the transistor, the microprocessor,
object oriented programming, or most of the technology
I work with.
I love and admire my species, living and dead, and am
totally dependent on them for my life and well being.
Sent from my iPad
The email shows the humanity, the very last line shows the genius: “Sent from my iPad” — the combination of a status symbol and ‘free’ advertising.
According to a McKinsey report, 44 percent of tech professionals start in nontech occupations. I’ve always looked up to Steve Jobs for lessons on how nontechies can thrive in a digital world.
“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of other’s opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.” — Steve Jobs
