Commencement Speech by Steve Jobs at Stanford University

Introduction

• Speaker: Steve Jobs
• Occasion: Commencement speech at Stanford University
• Theme: Sharing three personal stories

Story 1: Connecting the Dots

• Background:
  • Jobs dropped out of Reed College after 6 months, stayed around for 18 more months.
  • Biological mother was a young unwed student, wanted Jobs to be adopted by college graduates.
  • Adoption by a lawyer's family fell through; adopted by a couple who promised he would attend college.
• College Journey:
  • Attended an expensive college, felt uncertain about its value.
  • Dropped out to stop spending parents' savings, trusted future would work out.
• Life Lessons:
  • Attended calligraphy classes which influenced Macintosh design.
  • Importance of following curiosity and intuition.
  • Realization: You can only connect dots looking backwards, not forwards.
  • Trust in future connections through gut, destiny, or karma.

Story 2: Love and Loss

• Apple's Beginnings:
  • Co-founded Apple in parents' garage.
  • Company grew into a $2 billion company with 4,000 employees by the time Jobs was 30.
• Getting Fired:
  • Hired an executive whose vision diverged from Jobs', leading to Jobs being fired.
  • Public failure, self-doubt, but realization of continued love for work.
• Reinvention:
  • Started NeXT and Pixar.
  • Pixar's success with "Toy Story" and Apple's acquisition of NeXT.
  • Personal growth and family life.
• Life Lessons:
  • Finding love in work is essential for satisfaction.
  • Encouragement to find and pursue what you love without settling.

Story 3: Death

• Personal Reflection:
  • Motivated by a quote about living each day as if it were the last.
  • Emphasized decision-making guided by awareness of mortality.
• Cancer Diagnosis:
  • Diagnosed with a rare, curable form of pancreatic cancer.
  • Experience reinforced the importance of focusing on what truly matters.
• Life Lessons:
  • Awareness of death strips away fear, pride, and doubts.
  • Encouragement to live authentically and follow one's heart.
  • Death as a life’s change agent making way for new beginnings.

Conclusion

• Inspirational Farewell:
  • Reference to "The Whole Earth Catalog" and its message: "Stay hungry, stay foolish."
  • Jobs' wish for graduates to remain curious and adventurous.

• Visit Stanford University's website for more programs.