I think we can all agree that Steve Jobs is the ultimate Design Thinker. I felt extremely nostalgic as I watched this valedictorian speech to the Stanford graduating class because he did address how he overcame cancer but we all know that his illness wasn’t treatable in the end. However, as we know how eclectic Steve is, he had many great comments throughout his speech that I would like to discuss further.
Quote #1: “You can’t connect the dots looking forward, you only connect them looking back.” This resonated with me because I always viewed that planning my life for as far down as I could see would be the most effective way to succeed. But this is very true, you never know what the future will bring and the best that you can do today is trust and believe in yourself to succeed. This quote also represents a divergent way of thinking as it moves away from the step 1, step 2, step 3 type analytical process on how to approach life and geared more towards taking risks, chances, exploring your ideas and dreams.
Quote #2: “I’ve been rejected, but still in love.” Steve spoke about how he was fired from Apple but how this ended up being the best thing that ever happened to him because it jump-started his creativity and was a defining moment in his life. Specifically, he commented that the “heaviness” of being successful at Apple was being replaced by the “lightness” of being a beginner again. This lightness, in the sense that business pressure, media spotlight, and general public scrutiny was lifted, allowed him to really reflect on his ambitions, his vision, and what he wanted to accomplish in life. In that period when he wasn’t with Apple, Steve went on to create the powerful animation studio Pixar and also Next, a company that was eventually bought by Apple and Steve returned to work with his original company.
This was especially inspiring because many view failure in a very negative sense but you really need to approach failure with a grain of salt and an optimistic view because you really can turn a failure into a success. I think Failure is a really good unexpected tool which allows the individual to reflect on their mistakes and push forward harder with the knowledge of what they should have done better the first time. The “lightness” which Steve experienced also allowed him to really exercise his creativity fully and that is another lesson I take with me – to not get lost in the burdens and pressure of everyday work and life in generally to always have that ability to stay creative and progressive.
Quote #3: “No one wants to die. Even the people who want to go to Heaven don’t want to die to get there.” This section of Steve’s speech was extremely reflective of what he had experienced in the past few years regarding his battle with cancer. Some really inspirational words regarding not taking anything for granted, really living for today, always strive to accomplish everything you want out of life. I think that Steve was also hinting at taking the time to explore the world, explore new ways of thinking, and to explore your potential.