I’ll be honest: I didn’t know much about Apple co-founder Steve Jobs until he died yesterday.
Sure, I knew that he as the visionary behind the once-floundering tech company, changing the way we navigate the web — and, let’s face it, life — with iTunes, the iPod and, most recently, the tablet. Because of his design and ingenuity, we browse the web, get our news, communicate with friends and share our lives differently.
And yeah, I knew that he was a college drop-out — what amazing person isn’t these days — and made the smartest (if not luckiest) business decision to buy Pixar Animation Studios right before “Toy Story” hit theaters.
But I didn’t know one thing: how passionate he was about this job that he loved. I mean, really loved.
We all have those moments where we’re sitting in our cubicle, pondering how we got there. You hate your job, you hate your boss, you hate the fact that you do nothing productive or meaningful for 40, 50, 60 hours a week. That’s a lot of time to waste — and you’re doing it.
You always hear people talk about loving your job, working in a career that you love so it doesn’t feel like work at all. Yeah, yeah, whatever. Try paying a mortgage, student loans and credit card bills from Christmas 2007 on an [insert dream job] salary.
But it was something Jobs said during a commencement address at Stanford University in 2005 that really struck me:
“Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on.”
Watch the entire commencement address
He’s right.
Life is too short to do something we hate 2,080 hours a year.
So look around. If you’re not happy, if you’re not passionate about what you’re doing, if you feel like you’re living an unfilled life — stop, drop and roll. Happiness may be waiting for you to clock out.
14 Comments
See you on the other side of the interface Steve, thanks for everything except the Apple Lisa. Isn’t it interesting that all the truly successful people dropped out of college. and all the really interesting people as well. While others study entrepreneurship, people like you, you had what it took to be one. An unfailing belief in the future, a superhuman ability to live with uncertainty, and an ever present optimism of spirit. You believed you could change the world and in many ways did.
RIP, you will be missed in totality.
I’m wondering if the graduating class there was quite aware of just how landmark and quotable that commencement speech would become, and especially now will continue to become…
Steve’s contribution goes well beyond e-gadgets. Another little known fact is that his computer company that he started after he was booted from Apple, NeXT, would bear the computer that the world wide web was created on–meaning the graphical browser interface of the internet. Somehow, it’s not surprising that something so innovative was born from a Steve Jobs device.
And Pixar was more than a lucky decision, it was calculated. He bought it in 1986 when it was just a George Lucas side project. Over the next ten years he fostered it into the what would be known as Pixar today. Pixar was all Steve. And like all things Steve, Pixar set the standard.
I’m not normally so affected by the deaths of people I don’t personally know. In fact, the last time I can remember being this greatly affected was from Michael Hedges’ death in 1997, (one of the greatest guitarists ever). But I’ve been a Mac user since 1985… for real, haha! And since 1990 or so, I have followed the story of Steve Jobs, and suffice it to say, he is indeed an idol of mine.
Great post Cat.
“And the only way to do great work is to love what you do.”
Amen to that.
I’m really taking this to heart. Really.
“I didn’t know much about Apple co-founder Steve Jobs until he died yesterday.”
I’ve had a similar experience many times–I go to someone’s funeral, or read an obituary, and hear that person’s life story and discover all sorts of things of which I had no idea while that person was alive. This being Hawai’i, I’ve discovered all sorts of personal connections when people died.
E.g., I had no idea of any connection to someone in my office, and found out when her dad died that my dad was the best man at her parents’ wedding.
At another funeral, I found out another co-worker’s husband and my dad are calabash cousins.
Apples that changed the world:
The apple that Eve ate; the apple that fell on Sir Isaac Newton’s head; and the Apple that Steve helped create. RIP Steve….
Well said!
“did not know much about Jobs . . .”
To add to our knowledge (especially from a local angle), might you get us some stories or insights about the halcyon days of Apple (when Jobs was with Woz) by interviewing Guy Kawasaki?
Thanks.
That would be great, actually. I wish I had access to folks who knew him personally. That’s the thing, I think he was a really private person… I’ll see what I can do.
He’s right and you are too. Still, happiness seems to me an unworthy goal. A sense of purpose and meaning is the key for me. If happiness is its companion, fantastic. If not, that’s OK too.
I’m still using my Apple II from 1977. Thank you Steve Jobs.
I watched this video, (yet, again) and it’s still a never-ending source of inspiration. But watching it again tonight makes my eyes leak, as they did last night. I woke up this morning and felt a new mission to work harder and push myself more. Some of my (very few) jobs are awesome and some are relatively boring. But, I’m glad that I least I found something that I love to do. Thanks for sharing, Cat.
You’re welcome! Glad it resonated with you!
It’s a great reminder to never give up finding a passion in your life. Great speech!!