It’s hard to write anything about Steve Jobs without being awed by his life and career. Apple and Pixar. What a stunning legacy.

Above is his Stanford Commencement speech from 2005, and it’s as inspiring as it is instructive. What a man.

‘Just make it great.’

‘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 others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition.’

‘Be a yardstick of quality. Some people aren’t used to an environment where excellence is expected.’

‘Most overnight successes took a long time.’

‘Remembering that I’ll be dead soon is the most important tool I’ve ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything – all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure – these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important.’

‘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.’

‘Sometimes life hits you in the head with a brick. Don’t lose faith.’

‘Creativity is just connecting things. When you ask creative people how they did something, they feel a little guilty because they didn’t really do it, they just saw something. It seemed obvious to them after a while. That’s because they were able to connect experiences they’ve had and synthesize new things.’

‘When you’re a carpenter making a beautiful chest of drawers, you’re not going to use a piece of plywood on the back, even though it faces the wall and nobody will ever see it. You’ll know it’s there, so you’re going to use a beautiful piece of wood on the back.’

‘Stay hungry, stay foolish.’

Onwards and upwards!

Chris Jones
My movies www.LivingSpiritGroup.com
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