4 Elements of Steve Jobs’ life Philosophy

steve jobs image

Here are the 4 elements of Steve Jobs‘ Life Philosophy that can change the way of your living.

You can’t connect the dots looking forward, you can only connect them looking backward.

connecting the dots together

Most often we confront situations where nothing seems to make sense of where we are, why and how. More importantly we find ourselves trapped by dogma of situation which is bigger than situation itself that why it is happening and how to get out of it. Steve, after dropping out of Reed College, began taking classes of calligraphy as calligraphy upturned his curiosity. At that time he had no idea whether this particular learning had any practical implantation. But ten years later, it all came back to him and Mac was first computer to have variety of beautiful fonts. Since Windows copied Apple it was likely that no PC would have typography if Steve didn’t drop in that single calligraphy class.

“You can’t connect the dots looking forward you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future.” -Steve Jobs

Have the courage to follow your heart and intuition.

Decision to drop out of Reed College was one of biggest of his life, as his biological parents required his adoptive parents that Steve must graduate from college. He didn’t have interest to study and get a job, instead he wanted to be known as one of those who left a mark on history. After dropping out, he started Apple in his parent’s garage with Steve Wozniak following his heart. Apple turned out to be one of most successful companies ever. Jobs faced a similar situation when was fired by Apple, he followed his heart and led onto found NeXT and Pixar studios and later restored his position at Apple.

“Have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.” -Steve Jobs

Remembering that you are going to die is the best way to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose.

steve jobs and his wife

One of key philosophy of Steve’s life was that he lived each day as it was his last day. It was this way of living which helped him to decide whether to go on a dinner with the girl who would become his wife or to attend a meeting of NeXT. It was a Thursday evening of October, 1978 when Steve went to attend an event at Stanford University, where he met a girl who asked him if he could join her on a dinner. Steve came to his car, while sitting in his car he asked himself the question if he were to die tomorrow would he be having dinner with this woman, or would be attending meeting at NeXT HQ, he knew the answer. He went straight to the woman and went to have dine with her, after that day they both were never separated as she became his wife.

“Remembering that I’ll be dead soon is the most important tool I’ve ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life,” he said. “Because almost everything-all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure-these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart. -Steve Jobs

Don’t let anything drown out your inner voice.

Very often people become someone else version of reality, they tend to become reality someone else opinion but someone else opinion hasn’t to be your reality. People tend to oppress and overlook their inner voice.

Steve never followed someone else opinions, he always built his own reality from dropping out from Reed College, to founding Apple, to founding NeXT and Pixar Studios.

“Don’t waste it living someone else’s life,” he 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.” -Steve Jobs