Steve Jobs and my dad are my heroes. Have been ever since I can remember the concept.

Having worked with Jobs in the tortured NeXT days, watching his beloved Apple flounder, I’m just glad that he was able to preside over Apple’s greatest moments, and chose to leave this time, knowing that he has secured symbolic immortality.

At the personal and corporate levels, it is the comeback story archetype turned hyperbole.

Remember the sentiment when he took the helm for the second time? The WIRED 1997 cover is a reminder.

What does his resignation mean? Who knows? Prognosticators should write their thoughts at this fascinating time to avoid the cloud of revisionist retrospection.

Apple is the exception to so many rules that we have to ascribe superhero status to Jobs.

On one hand, consumer hardware is a brutal business with more folly than franchise (Flip, Palm, etc.). Other than Apple, it’s hard to think of a consumer hardware company that you would have wanted to invest in for the long term. On the other hand, platform businesses can be milked for decades after any whisper of creative genius has long left the building. Witness Microsoft. Or perhaps there is a third hand. When we joined Apple, we all signed up to change the world. Perhaps the cult of Mac can flourish with another demagogue, if the board is wise enough to eschew the empty suits of Scully, Spindler, Amelio and Hancock. Perhaps Neo lies within.

42 responses to “Pray for Jobs”

  1. Pieces of Eye Avatar
    Pieces of Eye

    Well said.

    Reply
  2. msamaclean © Avatar
    msamaclean ©

    Yes.

    Reply
  3. solerena Avatar
    solerena

    Great that you said "pray"…it is easy to think as an atheist (this is probably the only way anyway), but it is very difficult (if not impossible) to feel like one in these circumstances.

    Reply
  4. drona Avatar
    drona

    I was also blessed to have worked at Apple between the Jobs’ eras — The Scully-Spindler Era — but everywhere you went Jobs’ stamp was omnipresent on One Infinite Drive. He redefined every industry he touched — personal computers, printers, digital movies, smart phones, music distribution…

    I was also fortunate to have been at the Commencement Address he gave at Stanford where he concluded his speech with the parting message "Stay Hungry, Stay Foolish"… He will be a beacon for Silicon Valley entrepreneurs forever.

    Reply
  5. heet_myser Avatar
    heet_myser

    [http://www.flickr.com/photos/drona] "He will be a beacon for Silicon Valley entrepreneurs forever." And, clearly, for plenty of others.

    Reply
  6. angry shock Avatar
    angry shock

    John Galt going John Galt, will remain John Galt.

    Reply
  7. solerena Avatar
    solerena

    Yes, he definitely has a very special place in my heart too… very sad… love Apple.

    Reply
  8. !MimosaMicheMichelle! Avatar
    !MimosaMicheMichelle!

    I always wanted to own Apple products, including a Mac computer, but I am still waiting to be able to do so.

    I am proud that Steve Jobs has done so much for our world. The true reasons for his retirement are private and certainly very personal. He will be missed at the company, I am sure. He knew when it was time to enjoy life in new ways and let his legacy take off on its own.

    Steve and Vasudev, you are both fortunate to have known and worked with (or for) such a man. Imagine how even your children and grandchildren will talk about this connection for decades to come.

    Reply
  9. angry shock Avatar
    angry shock

    Tony is my hero, too.

    Reply
  10. angry shock Avatar
    angry shock

    BTW, the visual search engine wants to report that the cover of WIRED pretty much resembles and might be inspired in the Three of Swords, the tarot card:

    http://www.google.com/search?q=three+of+swords+tarot&hl=en&a...

    I don’t know the contents of the publication, but the card is a really sad one. Its meanings range around: "Absence. Sorrow. Disappointment. Strife. Removal. Dispersion. Diversion. Opposition. Separation. Delay. Betrayal. Abandonment. Rejection. A reversal of fortune."
    "The Three of Swords indicates that the situation may become mournful due to absence or removal of something that is valued. The coming period will be full of opposition and delays. New ideas or actions will replace old ones, and something better will be established that could not have happened otherwise."
    http://www.biddytarot.com/card.php?id=60&name=Three%20of%20S...

    Reply
  11. Astrocatou Avatar
    Astrocatou

    I have never understood why someone could get so ill…and continue working.
    At least when you do not have to financially…
    Apple makes great products…but its not working on some critical world issue.
    I always thought maybe someone was maybe putting some (emotional) leverage on him to stay on…

    Not to take anything away from the guy…and the obvious respect you all have for him.
    Just always surprised me..

    Reply
  12. heet_myser Avatar
    heet_myser

    [http://www.flickr.com/photos/daveh56] "I have never understood why someone could get so ill…and continue working. At least when you do not have to financially… "

    Yes, well, I doubt Steve considers it "working."

    Reply
  13. drona Avatar
    drona

    @michelle: Didn’t meet him personally…but over the last twenty years, if you lived or worked in the Palo Alto or Cupertino neighborhoods it was not hard to run into him into coffee shops or restaurants. Also worked with people who worked with him at Apple and Next. I’m told that he doesn’t tolerate any fools…and very brutal and ruthless with competitors. Most recently heard first-hand accounts of his dealings regarding the 3.1.1 clause in the Apple Developer Agreement, and the Flash war with Adobe. A mercurial personality.

    Reply
  14. angry shock Avatar
    angry shock

    [http://www.flickr.com/photos/daveh56] Continuing working when being so ill has many interpretations…. from selfless heroism to blind omnipotence. It’s hard to tell in this case where Steve falls in the scope.

    And another thing from what you say, to comment on (good comments you made): Personally I hold respect, or "more" respect, if you will, to the respect other people have for him, specially those who I respect a lot (in the sense of admiration, like SJ here and Drona here), than having a direct respect (again, admiration in contemplation as role model) for him. In short: My respect to Jobs in indirect by respecting the respect people who I respect have for him.

    And my last words happen to bode well with drona’s comment above me about Jobs "mercurial personality".

    Reply
  15. jurvetson Avatar
    jurvetson

    [http://www.flickr.com/photos/drona] – So many stories there, where to begin. Let’s just say that the VP Marketing position at NeXT seemed to have a lifetime measured in months (they rode the "hero-s***head rollercoaster" – as the entire company basically knew where they stood in Jobs eyes, inevitably flipping in his estimation from polar extremes).

    He was so distraught over Apple’s mismanagement and his termination that he stabbed the apple logo off of his Mac. On walks that started with discussions over NeXT topics, the conversation would inevitably turn to "What should Apple do?…. Apple should buy NeXT."

    And he dove deep into all elements of design, even the details of retail architecture for the Apple store (e.g., he’s a named patent holder on architectural glass). On my first day on the job at NeXT, as we walked around the building, my colleagues shared in hushed voices that Jobs personally chose the wood flooring and various appointments. He even specified the outdoor sprinkler system layout.

    I witnessed his attention to detail first hand during a marketing reorg meeting. Jobs requested that the org charts be reprinted with the particular blue and green colors of his choosing, and provided the Pantone numbers to remove any ambiguity. He even reminded this Marketing VP that he could cut and paste those colors into his org chart. Clearly he was nearing the nadir of that roller coaster ride. =)

    But he really cares. Even when little people like me were departing, he could persuasively pull them back (getting me over to PIXAR to interview for example).

    He was memorable and inspirational. He is my mental archetype for the charismatic visionary leader, fiercely persuasive yet somewhat decoupled from the present. …which presents a transmission mismatch of perception for some.

    Some more fun memories
    The
    (RED)s
    Entrepreneur of the Year

    Reply
  16. solerena Avatar
    solerena

    Great Magister Ludi, i do not really have any words to describe him…not sure he is completely human…
    this artcle just came on linkedin: gigaom.com/2011/08/24/steve-jobs-the-sound-of-silence/

    Reply
  17. _sarchi Avatar
    _sarchi

    don’t remember when I came into this knowledge
    but I had a need to get things done probably
    sums up steve’s ideas ?

    Reply
  18. drona Avatar
    drona

    Yesterday Vic Gundotra had a great story on Job’s attention to detail titled "Icon Ambulance". Evidently he was peeved that the second "O" on the Google logo on the iPhone had a yellow grade off a bit, so he called Vic on a Sunday morning, to fix that problem…

    Reply
  19. Josh Thompson Avatar
    Josh Thompson

    For whatever reason I’ve never been an Apple fanboy. I’ve never wanted a Mac, and I’m typing this now on my boring Lenovo running Vista (with cygwin on top for doing real work). But Jobs’s genius is that he even managed to sell stuff to guys like me — when I wanted a digital music player I didn’t think twice before getting an iPod. My wife was forced to use Macs at work for years and *hates* them, and yet she voluntarily bought an iPod Touch. My parents have never used Macs but now my mom has an iPad (granted, she got it free in a contest…but now she loves it).

    And we shouldn’t forget that the world’s first web server was a NeXT box

    Reply
  20. Paul Cardin (Never Was An Arrow II) Avatar
    Paul Cardin (Never Was An Arrow II)

    I’VE BEEN a long time Apple customer since 1993, and I remember that cryptic issue of Wired!

    STEVE JOBS certainly took personal computing in the direction it needed to go—in order to eventually be, accessible, and accepted, by the multitudes. Code-crunchers need not apply.

    Now if only he could have gotten himself where he needed to be.

    Spiritually.

    Oh well, at least as a Buddhist he struggled and got himself half way there. Buddhists at least half-heartedly acknowledge the need for the spiritual. Buddhism has no sin, it has no God, it really has a whole lot of nothing!

    ‘Course, Steve would never be comfortable with Catholicism, it certainly wouldn’t make him comfortable!

    Mr Jobs would be forced to take a closer look at his own personal failings. Doubtful he’s ready for that.

    Besides God’s eternal kingdom is a Kingdom of forgiveness and those who can’t forgive are not only never allowed in, they are not allowed to even catch a glimpse of that miraculous place. Or know the dweller there. As always, what begins here, reaches into eternity.

    While everything at Apple is pretty well wrapped up, Steve still has much to do before he dies.

    His biological father, John Jandali, has made various attempts to reach out to Steve. Recently, and most sadly, in this on-line NY Post article of all places! Mr Jandali has even reached out to Steve’s first daughter through Facebook. All—to no avail.

    Is this what it has come down to, pagans?

    SEE: http://www.macpost.net/1060/steve-jobs-biological-father-abdulfa...

    Buddhism doesn’t have a "Honor your father and mother." commandment. Obviously.

    The divine fatherhood is the source of human fatherhood. (Ephesians 3:14) This is the foundation of the honour owed to parents. … It is required by God’s commandment. (Exodus 20:12)
    — Catechism of the Catholic Church 2214

    Reconciliation with his biological father, of course, would not diminish anything the Jobs have done for Steve.

    Mr Jandali gave Steve life, and the Jobs…gave Steve everything else.

    There is no competition.

    But what has Steve given back?

    I guess, in the twilight of his life, Steve still can’t find true peace. OR forgiveness.

    Steve can’t find it in his heart to forgive an 80 year old man, also in the twilight of years—also, with too much personal pride, but who has openly acknowledged that he made a few mistakes as a young adult. An old man who wants nothing more than to be reconciled, if only for a moment, with a hostile and estranged son—an estrangement that, by the way, was forced upon him—by Steve’s mother at the time.

    May God have mercy on us all.

    That such hardness of hearts exists. And that we should have to witness it.

    Well, that’s my prayer.

    What ails Steve Jobs is far worse than anything that has to do with his latest bout of cancer.

    Reply
  21. jurvetson Avatar
    jurvetson

    Some adopted children choose not to meet their genetic parents (from wikipedia, most adoptees do not seek reunion). You ask some personal questions, and Steve lives a very private life, so we don’t have his answers at out disposal. But we can be pretty sure Catholicism is not the answer to questions of morality. These echoes of a medieval patriarchy are a bit out of place in modernity.

    Reply
  22. solerena Avatar
    solerena

    Steve Jobs is Buddhist as per wiki (we can always assume that wiki is correct at least 80%) we also know that he has his own "journey to the orient" period prior to starting Apple. He does not eat any meat (only fish) – i have heard and he has mentioned reincarnation (as a joke of course:D – very interesting idea to play with actually) at least once… he is probably not a practicing Buddhist but he seems sympathetic to exploration of some of the ideas of Buddhism at least. I do not believe that people who do not believe in whatever we choose to believe will go to hell or should suffer from whatever God sends on them – this is very close-minded, crazy and rigid – yep, Catholic Church has never been really a vehicle of progress in a modern world.

    Reply
  23. Astrocatou Avatar
    Astrocatou

    Yes the facts here may be A,B,C etc…as to what happened.
    But for each person the decision to link up with biological parents is intensely personal,and private.
    We have to respect each individuals choice on this.
    I felt uncomfortable reading that info.

    Reply
  24. angry shock Avatar
    angry shock

    It could be interpreted that in a post named "Pray for Jobs" questions on religion and personal and private beliefs could be brought to the table and discussed. Specially those questions regarding Steve Jobs private life. But nothing can be more wrong or mistaken.

    When you pray for someone, if you are a believer, whatever your creed, you don’t pass judgment upon the subject of your prayer. You are not entitled to judge anyone, but to ask for mercy, both for yourself and the subject of your prayer.

    And if you don’t believe in prayers and praying, then you most likely not consider passing judgments on other people’s lives, specially based on a religious morality, or on their religious beliefs. Ultimate feelings of human compassion may apply, or not, depending on the affinity you had or didn’t have for the subject, or your intrinsic sense of the fragility of the human condition. So, yet again, judging the private life or belief of a person, not being a believer is plain wrong. And it’s even more wrong when the person who is being talked about is absent and cannot defend themselves.

    In conclusion, judging other people’s private decisions on religion, creed, morality, family, etc, is always mistaken, from every point of view and can only lead to false assumptions.

    So this dissection of Steve Jobs personal life disguised as a prayer is completely out of place, even from a real religious perspective. Whatever Steve Jobs does with his life is none of our business, whether we choose to pray for him or we choose not to. Whether we believe in God or some other form of divine justice or higher order of morality, or we don’t.

    I only restrict my comments and impressions on Steve Jobs to what is related to his achievements and his temper at work (related to his working achievements). If there’s anything we may be allowed to comment on is that: what he decided to share with the world and exposed himself for. The rest is not of our business.

    I share the uncomfortable feelings here.

    Reply
  25. Astrocatou Avatar
    Astrocatou

    +2

    Reply
  26. solerena Avatar
    solerena

    Vennetaj – I have never heard from anybody about killing one-self in heaven:D good one…although I think we are all one…need to learn to deal with "self".

    Reply
  27. solerena Avatar
    solerena

    🙂 yep, with caution part makes sense since devil is always in the detail….

    Reply
  28. solerena Avatar
    solerena

    “A hero is born among a hundred, a wise man is found among a thousand, but an accomplished one might not be found even among a hundred thousand men. ”
    ― Plato
    for me, Steve Jobs is an accomplished one, although this ratio is different in our days, may be one in 6 billion:)

    Reply
  29. jurvetson Avatar
    jurvetson

    Steve Jobs just passed away. The Apple site has become:

    Screen shot 2011-10-05 at 4.49.17 PM

    and someone there has his design aesthetic

    Reply
  30. complexify. Avatar
    complexify.

    Such sad news. Amazing to think what he accomplished since that 1997 Wired cover. But he leaves us far too soon…

    Reply
  31. angry shock Avatar
    angry shock

    Life happens. It’s good that some of us know how to do something meaningful in the meantime.

    Reply
  32. solerena Avatar
    solerena

    very sad, he was so young and could live a lot longer life… and there is so much life in his eyes .. light beams… cannot even find any words here…tears… if a person like this would lead not just one company but our world in a larger sense… we lost a lot!!! and SV, Apple and Cupertino will never be the same without him.

    Reply
  33. jurvetson Avatar
    jurvetson

    …strangely, just this afternoon, I suggested that we should recruit Jobs for the Tesla board.

    He could have loved that company too, I believe.

    The book of Jobs is a powerful parable of passion, parsimony and people.

    Steve Jobs is intensely passionate about his products, effusing an infectious enthusiasm that spans from interpersonal recruiting pitches to auditorium-scale demagoguery. It all comes so naturally for him because he was in love, like a Shakespearean sonnet, with tragic turns, an unrequited era of exile and ultimately the triumphant reunion.

    Reply
  34. Resh B. Avatar
    Resh B.

    So beautifully put!

    Reply
  35. !MimosaMicheMichelle! Avatar
    !MimosaMicheMichelle!

    Profoundly sad. Younger than me…too young. He contributed to the world in an immeasurable way.

    Reply
  36. solerena Avatar
    solerena

    this is from Intel’s main entrance – if Intel and HP would be Silicon Valley mind, Steve Jobs could be remembered as SV heart: [http://www.flickr.com/photos/solerena/6214958928/in/photostream]
    his intuitive approach was advanced for his time and it was anti-macho approach in essence:) waiting for something to grow – people here like word "evolve" – to evolve… vs. to control and plan… seems at the very core of what his legacy was about to me… sorry, if a strong opinion again here… it is the only way to lead in the 21st century and the only way to survive for our civilization… to be or not to be… is to follow his legacy in all aspects of life including politics!

    Reply
  37. « Joseph » Avatar
    « Joseph »

    It’s devastating to me that he won’t get to see more of the future that he had such a large role in creating. From his quotes, he had great (and humble) perspective on the role of death in humanity’s advancement, however… he was just way too young. He still had more mountains to move.

    Reply
  38. heet_myser Avatar
    heet_myser

    Steve, you know better than most people that the worlds of technology, science, and art are filled with people smarter than Steve was, many of whom are doing things that actually save human lives. Even so, this whole world, today, feels emptier for having lost Steve. I hope his family is doing OK.

    Reply
  39. solerena Avatar
    solerena

    found also this:
    blogs.hbr.org/cs/2011/10/steve_jobs_legacy_de sign_your.html
    http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/eric-schmidt-on -steve-jobs-…
    "Steve and I were talking about children one time, and he said the problem with children is that they carry your heart with them. The exact phrase was, “It’s your heart running around outside your body.” That’s a Steve Jobs quote. He had a level of perception about feelings and emotions that was far beyond anything I’ve met in my entire life. His legacy will last for many years, through people he’s trained and people he’s influenced. But what death means is you can’t call—you can’t call him. It’s a loss. I’ll miss talking to him."
    Eric Schmidt

    Reply
  40. angry shock Avatar
    angry shock

    I can easily see the building up of a neon god, a techno buddha or something… how death can enlarge people into myths is amazing. In this accelerated world, it takes less than 24hs. I can imagine SJ being himself a bit like worried about it.

    This ADHD world we live in… how long will it take until everybody forgets?

    Reply
  41. solerena Avatar
    solerena

    oh, yes – true for some but Steve Jobs was a myth prior to his death…

    Reply
  42. angry shock Avatar
    angry shock

    It’s the The Sound of Silence revisited.
    http://www.goear.com/listen/9ee5380/the-sound-of-silence-paul-si...
    "- What’s next?"

    Reply

Leave a Reply to jurvetson Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *