It’s 13 years since the late Steve Jobs delivered that memorable speech to the graduating class at Stanford University. The 15 minute address which has been watched more than 30m times on Youtube, contains a passage which resonates strongly at this reflective time of year.
Jobs, whose pancreatic cancer was in remission when he gave the speech, shared how at 17 he read how it was best to live every day as though it were your last, because one day it will be. Ever since, he said, when looking in the morning mirror, Jobs would ask himself “If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?”
Apple Inc’s founder continued: “Whenever the answer has been ‘no’ for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something. Your work is going to fill a large part of your life. 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.”
He added: “If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking, And don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it.” Less than six years after that speech one of the greatest visionaries of our age passed away. Leaving us with more than smart phones and the best computers ever made. Also, some pretty good life advice.
