First Peer Work - Job´s Speech

   More than a Lecture

Steve Jobs, who delivered the lecture in a degree celebration at the University of Stanford, was a CEO in Apple and Pixar Animation. In the video Steve Jobs’ 2005 Stanford Commencement Address from Stanford University’s Youtube channel, started his speech  revealing that he had never graduated from college. Therefore, Stanford's celebration was the nearer he had been to a similar event like that. The purpose of this paper is to summarize the three stories he included about his life in his speech.

In his discourse, Jobs called the first story connecting the dots in which he discussed the reasons for having dropped college. His ungraduated biological mother decided to give him in adoption to graduated parents. When he started a course of studies in college, he did not see the value of attending boring lessons. Therefore, he dropped them and went through group tutorials during what he claimed as the hardest financial stage in his life. In one of them, he received calligraphy instruction. He affirmed that if he had never dropped out from university, he would never have taken up a calligraphy course and Mac computers would not have the calligraphy they have these days. The idea of connecting the dots referred to the fact of doing it  since it could not be done looking forward. Dropping out seemed better after 10 years. For this reason, he encouraged people to believe in themselves when taking a crucial decision since if it is the correct one, the dots would connect in the future.

The second story was about love and loss. Jobs founded Apple in his parents’ garage during his 20’s and after 10 years, it turned out to be a 2 billion dollars company. Although Apple Company´s finances were flourishing, he was fired at the age of 30 and it made him felt devastated at first. However, he still loved what he did and so a light appeared just to start again and create 2 new companies called Next and Pixar. During those years, he met the woman who would be his wife and made a family together. What is more, Apple bought Next and he returned to the company stronger than ever. He suggested that everybody should find what they love and keep on looking no matter how hard it could be. It does not matter how hard life is, people should not lose faith. One can be truly satisfied when performing what can be called great work. This can only be achieved by loving what one is doing.

The last story was about death. During the last 33 years of his life, Jobs had been asking himself if it were the last day of his life what he would like to do. He argued that everything fails when you are at the door of death, everything turns important. About a year before this discourse he was diagnosed cancer in his pancreas. The doctors were not really optimistic and advised him to go home and get his affairs in order, it meant saying goodbye to his family, and made things easier for them. He felt he did not have many choices in life as he was going to die. He felt as if he was already naked. Nevertheless, after some more medical studies, the doctors told him that there was the possibility of a surgery and he recovered. From that experience he learnt that nobody wants to die although death is the destination all human beings share.

At the end of his discourse Jobs came to a conclusion, time is limited so nobody should waste it living another person's life. People should not let others’ opinion fall them down and should follow their inner voice. Then he remembered a publication from his youth “The Whole Earth Catalog”. There was a photograph with a message beneath it: “Stay hungry, stay foolish” and this was what  Jobs wanted for him and he wished for all his audience.

All in all, Jobs (2008) discussed his life in a 15’ minute talk where not only the students received information about his life but also a lesson that would benefit them for the rest of their lives. More than a lecture, Jobs delivered an encouraging message.

Reference

Stanford. (2008. May 8). Steve Jobs’ 2005 Stanford Commencement Address. [Video file].

Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UF8uR6Z6KLc