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The momentum of Steve Jobs
- richardburton 15y agoWhat a fantastic humanisation of a legend. He was a human being like all of us. He is a legend unlike any of us. Thank you for sharing these thoughts.
- mcav 15y agoI had a similar experience upon moving to Palo Alto last June. Living, working, and walking in places where "the greats" work changes your perspective immensely. Yes, it humanizes them, but it also emphasizes that you could just as well create something yourself as tremendous, valuable, and worthwhile. You don't have to be a god. They weren't.
- artursapek 15y agoA very well-written piece. Warranted many pauses to think
- andyl 15y ago"I’ll remember how he chose to pursue ideas that inspired a man staring down death." I've always been leery of people who are obsessed with work to this extent. If work is your only metric, then yeah, its great. I sure would love my employees to have a 'work till you die' attitude. But life != work. Or rather, life > work. For me, Steve was an interesting curiosity. Not an example to emulate. I live in the neighborhood. I love so many aspects of silicon valley culture. But when I hear that train late at night, I'm not thinking "alone on my journey, on the edge of chaos, exploding into the future". Hell no. Steve authorized his biography so that his kids would know him. Inspirational? For me, it sounds like a nightmare. Water is necessary for life, but if you drink too much water you will die. Positive traits like creativity/focus/passion are crucial, but unchecked they can become destructive. Live in balance.
- philwelch 15y ago> Steve authorized his biography so that his kids would know him. Inspirational? For me, it sounds like a nightmare. My father lived most of his life long before I was born, and while he always told stories, the simple fact is, you never really know what your parents were like before you were born. If you can get a biography professionally written, no matter how much time you spent with them, your kids will probably appreciate it, whoever you are.
- microarchitect 15y agoI've always been leery of people who are obsessed with work to this extent. If work is your only metric, then yeah, its great. I sure would love my employees to have a 'work till you die' attitude. But life != work. Or rather, life > work. It takes all kinds to make up a society. Some of us want a balanced life; we want to be reasonably good at everything. Some others want to be the best at a certain thing and are willing to sacrifice almost everything else to achieve that goal. To a very crude approximation, those from the former group keep society going while those from the latter push human society forward. For me, Steve was an interesting curiosity. Not an example to emulate. On the face of it, there's nothing wrong with being either type, but it does seem like each type cannot fathom why the other behaves the way it does.
- kbutler 15y agoA human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects. -- Heinlein
- erikpukinskis 15y agoCareful with that word "should". Using it on others opens the Pandora's Box. It will try to destroy your sense of self.
- 15y ago
- kpennell 15y agoI wonder if Steve Jobs did or Bill Gates does get the same joy out of cleaning one's ears with a q-tip after getting out of the shower.