Stay Hungry, Stay Foolish



Steve Jobs.  An innovator?  Yes.  A visionary?  Definitely.  Someone who changed the world?  Without question.  I am incredibly saddened to hear the news of his passing and even though I didn't know him personally, I cannot help but feel an uneasy and inexplicable mourning over who without question is the outward thinker that spanned not only mine, but my parent's generation as well. 

As news of his death filtered throughout the world and throughout my family, I sat glued to my twitter page, remarking to myself the impact that his death had...and I'm not even a Mac user...or an iPhone user.  "I know it's silly, but I feel like I've lost a friend," my Dad said.  It's amazing to me think upon how the evolution of Apple has transcended my parents generation and run on into my own.  Nearly the same age as my parents, Steve Jobs and Apple followed my parents' careers with the evolution of the personal computer...and it guided my childhood as I remember sitting in the computer lab at Crestwood Elementary and Playing Oregon Trail on the computer with the colorful fruit on it. 

It wasn't just the computer lab though...it was everything.  I remember watching "Pirates of Silicon Valley" with my parents when I was 15 and thinking "yeah, Bill Gates rocks!" while quickly forgetting who paved the way for him.  Though I have never been one to jump on the technology bandwagon (I much prefer to spend my extra money on a great pair of boots than the latest phone/tablet/iPod)...I admire the impact that one man's ideas has had on my life.  It may have begun with Oregon Trail, but it evolved as my eyes lit up for the Thanksgiving showing of Toy Story when I was 11, and the Sunday nights I spent watching Carrie Bradshaw type "and then I got to thinking...." on her Mac, and the hilarity of seeing The Dunphy's scramble to find an iPad 2 for Phil's birthday on Modern Family, and the peaceful feeling I get when I step out for a run with my iPod in my ear on a perfect fall afternoon. 

As sad as I am about Steve's passing and what it may mean for Apple, I find myself more compelled to mourn the idea of a man who found what he loved to do...and changed the world doing it. 

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. - Stanford Speech, 2005

It makes me wonder...am I doing what I love?  Can I challenge myself to do better?  And the answer is yes...I can.  I've read many of Steve's articles and his mantras are words to live by.  But it's when he speaks about what he does and what he wants for his legacy that is truly inspiring.  But I think it's these words that I appreciate the most...

Here's to the crazy ones, the misfits, the rebels, the troublemakers, the round pegs in the square holes ... the ones who see things differently -- they're not fond of rules, and they have no respect for the status quo. ... You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them, but the only thing you can't do is ignore them because they change things. ... They push the human race forward, and while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius, because the people who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world, are the ones who do.

It's an amazing legacy that Steve has left...and even though I have no doubt that Apple will continue to thrive, it will always feel a little less special now that one of it's founding fathers is gone. 

RIP Steve Jobs...you will be missed.

Stay hungry.  Stay foolish.