I don’t know if the world is ready for yet another tribute to Steve Jobs but here goes anyways. I never met the man and don’t own a single Apple device. Some would say I have no right to pay tribute to the man.
Yet a tribute is not about knowing a person or buying their products, it is a desire to show respect, admiration, or gratitude. From the tributes I’ve seen in the last day, most have been all three of those. Steve Jobs was just an ordinary man. By his own declaration he did not complete his college education. He probably skinned his knees as a kid and surely suffered through some of the same life experiences that all of humanity experience.
Yet something was special about the man. He had a gift for innovation. The ability to make changes to something that already existed. He did this by making a new product, or by changing ideas. Making us all look at things differently. And many have taken his ideas and tried to improve upon them. Microsoft has been copying Jobs’ work for years. Every cellular phone created after the iPhone has copied the innovations. And they follow in the footsteps of Mr. Jobs. Taking someone else’s ideas and trying to make something new or better.
Thank you Steve for being able to grab onto the gift so uniquely your own. You are an inspiration. The gift that you leave behind will be with us for years to come. The innovations empowered you to reach greatness. A status you did not seek, but seems to have found you. And may we use it as a catalyst to develop further innovative ideas, methods and yes products, that can change and improve the world around us