What a landmark day for the world – 5 October 2011 – seeing the passing of Steve Jobs, chief executive officer and co-founder of Apple Computer and of Pixar Animation Studios, aged 56. The profound impact of his phenomenal life reaches beyond borders and through psyches to touch so many of us in some way or another.
The first thing we found on Facebook this morning (courtesy of Tim Goodenough, co-author of In the zone with South Africa’s sports heroes and Mental Toughness expert at RugbyIQ.com) was the following unforgettable address that Steve gave to Stanford students in 2005. The video is 15 minutes long, every one worth gold. I urge you to watch it through to the end, where he closes with the message to “Stay hungry. Stay foolish.” In a word – brilliant.
My mind boggles at how much we would have missed without Steve’s contributions to the world, from the genius of Apple computers and iPhones (he’s Dave’s hero for these) to the genius of animated movies like Toy Story (I reckon he’s my stepson’s hero for this). But most of all we’d be poorer if he hadn’t shared the insight that will forever set him apart as a global thought leader and business icon.
An article from Forbes.com, Quote Box: Apple’s Steve Jobs remembered, shares a collection of tributes from key influencers, including this one:
“I believe history will remember Steve Jobs as one of the greatest innovators of all time, the Thomas Edison of the 21st Century. And I will also remember him as someone who had my total admiration for his unwavering dedication to improving mankind.” – U.S. Rep. Mary Bono Mack, R-Calif.
Bill Gates said this a few hours ago on Twitter: “For those of us lucky enough to get to work with Steve, it’s been an insanely great honor. I will miss Steve immensely.” He included a link to a message on his site, The Gates Notes. (Promise I didn’t copy his site title, having just come across it
From a personal perspective, there is sadness attached to the illness (pancreatic cancer) that Steve suffered from before his passing, especially because my father succumbed to the same fate in 1998, aged 62. My heart goes out to Steve’s family for all that they have been through, and my deepest condolences are with them now. By strange synchronicity, 5 October was also my father’s birthday.
On that note, I’d like to take this opportunity to thank Jamie Dedes, a uniquely special soul, who invited me to share my experience in relation to my father’s disease, in a “Perspectives on Cancer Series” that she is featuring on her blog, Into the Bardo . . . where I’ve just discovered she has posted her own tribute to Steve Jobs: PERSPECTIVES ON CANCER #23: Steve Jobs “Death is life’s change agent”. (And talking of synchronicity, she has included the same video that you see above. “Great minds”, Jamie
My contribution, PERSPECTIVES ON CANCER #3: All Is Not Lost, addresses acceptance in particular, which I have come to learn is key to healing. So much so that it forms a central theme in my next novel, Lost in Light (see My Books), which deals with loss and associated fear. Not to worry, though, it won’t be too heavy. I’m simply infusing a thought-provoking message throughout a dialogue-rich, chick-lit celebration of being alive and loving it – in line with the wisdom that Steve shares above.
Sincere thanks to him for shining his light on us all, and blessings from the heart for whatever lies ahead.
