In his short 56 years on earth, Steve Jobs managed to fit in several careers and several lifetimes, which is why he’s the perfect person to go to for the key to living life well.
In his commencement speech to Stanford’s graduating class of 2005, Jobs touched on the experiences that shaped his life including his decision to drop out of college, getting fired from Apple, and finally getting diagnosed with cancer.
3. Trust that the dots will connect.
When Jobs dropped out of Reed College, he was terrified because he had no idea what to do with his life, but dropping out of classes he didn’t enjoy freed up time that allowed him to drop into classes he did. It all seemed useless to him then, but became priceless knowledge as he grew older. “You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backward. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something — your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.”
2. The worst things in your life may not be what they seem.
In Jobs’ opinion, the ‘worst’ thing that had ever happened to him was getting fired from the very company he started, yet, in the end, it proved to be the best thing to ever happen to him. He may have been fired from his company, but that had not changed his love for what he did.
“I didn’t see it then, but it turned out that getting fired from Apple was the best thing that could have ever happened to me. The heaviness of being successful was replaced by the lightness of being a beginner again, less sure about everything. It freed me to enter one of the most creative periods of my life.”
“Sometimes life hits you in the head with a brick. Don’t lose faith. I’m convinced that the only thing that kept me going was that I loved what I did. You’ve got to find what you love.”
1. Remember that life is finite.
After his first cancer diagnosis and surgery, Jobs reminded the students that life is limited, so follow your heart since you really have nothing to lose in reality. “Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life,” Jobs said. “Don’t be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.”
Watch the entire speech below to hear Jobs’ incredibly powerful speech.
Were you inspired by this commencement address? Let us know in the comments below, and please SHARE this on Facebook.
[Featured image credit: Stanford]