Lessons Learned in the Commencement Address of Steve Jobs

After reading the Commencement Address of Steve Jobs on his speech delivered way back June 12, 2005. I was so touch though I’m not listening on act to where he said all of it but the essence of all the words of wisdom he stated there makes me feel that I’m present and unswervingly listening to him too.

Reading between the lines in the commencement speech of Steve Jobs, I concluded some lessons which can help me to continue what I’ve started and serve as inspirational words to me to chase everything I’ve coveted. 

No one can even forget the words he said – “You’ve got to find what you love,” Job says. It’s really, truly, absolutely and definitely true. You can never be on a place when you were just force to do so by someone or anyone else. You, yourself should be the one to be eager to do that thing because you love too. You’ve got to follow your heart to where it truly beats. It’s just the same as taking a course in college, when you’re not interested to a course, you’ll never choose it. You’ll prefer to take the course you really love because that your fashion. You’re into it though maybe others not. It’s just concluding that everyone has its different place, different interest and different perspective in life. So you can never force yourself or even others to do things which they don’t want. Only oneself can bring him into his interests and do chase it someday.

Never underestimate yourself. Looking at the story of Steve Jobs, he said that he never graduated college. He never has been on a stage to have his diploma. But what’s the difference is he was on the stage on the one of the finest universities in the world which he never expected to happen. He even dropped out from the College of Reed just in the span of time of 6 months. However, he never gets rid of himself though others do. He never look himself as idiot because he was dropped out student instead he became stronger and grasp into it as an inspiration to start all over again. See how pathetic it was to have Steve Jobs in the field of computing. Steve Jobs who doesn’t got a degree. Thus, we should not undervalue whatever we have, even where we have been or what status we have in life. Because once you start fail to appreciate what you have, you’ll just making a way to make others think that you’re NOTHING.

 

Never stop believing and never afraid to continue to start again. Though it’s very tough experience for us student to continue again once we experiencing bad feedbacks from our studies, even a failing grades. It seems that were ashamed to continue because we think of what others will say unto us. The same as Steve Jobs even though he was dropped out by the school but he continue to find something new, something that he thinks that can be his field – the calligraphy, field of typography. The same unto us, when we’re something sort of experiencing bad things, never take it seriously, maybe learn to cope to with it. It’s just saying that you’re alive. You’re capable to experience and feel being down because were just human, no one is perfect and we are all vulnerable to feel pain, hatred and loss. When you feel that you’re not getting into that field, find something else. There’s nothing wrong in trying, at least you’ll try so hard to find so. It’s the process of searching of who you are.

 

Never look forward instead see backwards. In life, you can never tell what will happen tomorrow or the next day after tomorrow. All you can do is see backward, see what things you’ve gain and what you’ve got, see if you win or you loss. Cause there’s no guarantee that life is easy. No guarantee that everyone can be a successful. Once you see backwards of everything what you’ve got. You can say at the end you gain something. Its not that you failed to do things greatly than to passed rightly on it. For the reason that when you look backwards, you’ll see the connections, you’ll see how you gain what you already have on this day is a product of the things you do yesterday. So never set things forwards or never connect the dots forward instead connect it backwards, cause you’ll never know, at the end you can do more what you had expected. You need to believe in yourself, believe on your guts, your life and everything what you have. Perhaps, you can set your goals in life which can serve as your sword in getting along the way into your success.

Everything happens for a reason. The act of firing Steve Jobs from his own made-company is not that easy. Imagine being fired from your own company? From your own product of work, you will see it as very unfavorable. In reality, everything happens for a reason, maybe we don’t understand directly why but as time goes by you’ll see it will give you things even more. It’s just the same as the famous quote of “one you loss one, you will get the better.” In life, when you loss someone or something important, you loss it for a reason. Perhaps, God wants to give you something better than what you already have or maybe his trying to give you some lessons through getting something important from you because you can only see the importance of a thing when it’s already gone. Like in Steve Jobs, losing of his company makes him apparently create another one. And find it helpful to be again on his career. True to us, it’s not saying that when we loose something, we failed. Instead, it leads to another career, more efficient.

Never lose faith – Faith in oneself and faith in God. As what Steve Jobs said, “Life hits you sometimes in the head with a brick.”  All you need it to believe that you can stand again after those trials, after you lose in a game there is always be a place for standing again, for fighting again. Only you can make you still stand stronger after what happens and only you can kept you going and going whatever field you wanted. You only got to believe on your work, cause that is the only way to be satisfied on what you have, the only thing help you pursue everything what you’ve started.

Make each day important. Everyone is triggered when we hear the saying “If you live each day as if it was your last, someday you’ll most certainly be right.” What about you??? What will you do when you know that this would be your last day on earth?? Are you going to seat all day or do things that would make others happy because you were there or simply do nothing?? The life we have is just a borrowed life, we have borrowed time, and we live in a limited time. All of us will die, not necessarily at the same time but on our individual time. So live each day as your last day, make each day useful to fulfill things, make each day remarkable, inspirable and memorable not just to you but perhaps to others too. Make everyone happy because there were once you in their life. For you will never know, no one can predict how long will you be on this earth. You will never know how will you die, if might be you’ll die because of accident, because of disease or maybe be just because of fate. If dying can never be healed or avoided by any other medicine, then try to live life truly and inspirable, never be afraid of dying instead be ready to face it. As taken from the words of wisdom of Steve Jobs, he emphasizes that we should not waste time, 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.

Be humble – “Stay hungry and Stay foolish.” It only implies that never stop searching for a new ideas, new discoveries and new innovations. A process of learning never stop, it’s an unending and undying process of education for us individuals. Until you still have life and still breathing, never stop – never limit your self only in one place. As long as there is still a time for evolving, why not grab it and fight for it. Regardless of the age we have, it’s not the hindrance to continue learning. This “Stay Hungry” implies that stay hungry to know things, to face new ideas and “Stay Foolish” to understand new things. But when time comes that you, yourself know you knew a lot, Stay Humble – BE HUMBLE. Act as if you need more and act as if a lot more you are needed to know.

Listed above are just few of the lessons can be taken in the commencement address of Steve Jobs, there are still a lot more. Never limit yourself and try to discover things.     

   

Manifestation about the movie "Pirates of the Silicon Valley"

1. What are the factors that contributed to the success and failure of Steve Jobs as a technopreneur?


In the field of technology and business, bundles of factors should be in mind of the technopreneur. In the movie entitled “Pirates of the Silicon Valley”, Steve Jobs as business technopreneur got a good and bad side of it. As of his success on his business with the cooperation of his friend named Waz which has started their home made computers in the making at the garage. There are factors contributed to the success of Steve Jobs, first in the list is his “sense of curiosity”. Steve and company just started their creation of computers through the things they seen in the reality. Simple thing that makes him think of making or creating resourceful thing that could actually bring him to fortune and big changes to the society. Simple as presented in the movie, the contribution of watching movies gives him an idea to create a more creative invention that might others can’t. It’s just this simple, “Once we believe in ourselves, we can risk curiosity, wonder, spontaneous delight, or any experience that reveals the human spirit.” Steve Jobs just simply believe on what he got and what he already knows. He is full of determination to do what was his curiosity’s product. Mr. Jobs as a technopreneur in the movie set his mind not just inside the box but rather beyond the box and crosses every inch of opportunities that occurs and will occur to his life. He looks at his business “beyond his eyes” and arrived at a place of originality. 


Seconded by his “fearless attitude”, he is not afraid to do things and try to test everything whatever he made to see what would happen which actually good impact to their project proposals. At least, Steve Jobs and his company made a choice to test everything first before presenting it to the people inside the society. Quoted from one site I just visited, “The point is that your life is filled with challenges, triumphs, disappointments and victories. Every area of your life holds the potential for you to operate inside of fear, to push through your fears, or to be stopped cold by them”. The same as Steve Jobs does in the movie, he continues his business behind those disappointments and struggles he faced after what his competitor named Bill Gates. After he gave his trust to Gates and present everything what his company gets to Mr. Gates. And after losing his career made caused by the success of Bill Gates to diminished everything and get whatever he has in his business. Steve Jobs still stand and fight for fortune. He is not fear to everything that might happen to him after what had happen to his career as a technopreneur. As what I have seen in his character as Steve Jobs the technopreneur, he is not afraid to do what he feels fearful to him. 

Third, the “ability to have a good quality communiqué skill”. Mr. Steve Jobs have the allure or charisma to influence and convince other people. He got the minds and trust of others in terms of business negotiations. Like what the movie had, he can directly convince other people to have their partnership on hands with him to make a good production of business. He has the ability to convince other to rely their trust and worthy to Steve Jobs as if nothing bad will happen to the business if they give their asset to Steve and give the rest of the business matters to Steve Jobs. Mr. Jobs is not just mentally good in facing other business man but also he has knowledge and skills of observing what a businessman looks like- I mean physically. Steve even cuts his hair just to look good in front of his business partners to be.


Lastly,” his goal setting to be a BOSS “rather than an employee. He prefers to be the employer than to be an employee which actually successfully filled in the movie. Based on his skills, determination and any other attitude he has got him spot to be the right one in the field of business as the boss. He is smart and wise enough to lead a business. It is said that to be a good businessman, you need to focus and not to limit your self to be JUST an employee but rather more perfectly to be a good, skillful employer. 


Through factors contributed in the success of Steve Jobs stated above, still he does experience rocks on his way in his career as the technopreneur. Here are some factors contributed to his failure in his career:

First, the cause and effect of KARMA. Steve Jobs stole a thing called mouse and the graphic interface produced by XEROX Company which made Steve Jobs to be a powerful and leading technology-based businessman in the society at that time. He made historical mark in the place. Though he made it successfully to stole what he don’t owns but a revenge will came maybe not from the people he played but maybe in the character of others. The stolen product of Steve Jobs from XEROX again- stole by Bill Gates which made Steve Jobs lose his career and bestow down from his thrown. Maybe it just this simple yet so true, Karma is the term about the cycle of cause and effect, it involves what happens to a person, happens because they caused it with their actions. After all, it’s neither a punishment nor reward; its just makes people feels responsible about their life and how they treat others.

Lastly, forgotten when he started. As Steve Jobs go along to his business and reach the highest point of it, he had forgotten the things that made him in the top. Not just things but especially those whom he shared and whom had shared their ideas and knowledge to the business. Like the people behind the business, they are not machine just plugged-in and start to work. They are people who have their limits to do everything. Yet Steve Jobs forgot it everything, he is making worst and even worst to treat others as if he don’t see the positive part that his employees contributed to his business. The partnership of employee and employer sets a big role in developing a business. Everyone needs each other to survive and fills what consumers needed. 

After presented the factors contributed in the success and failure of Steve Jobs in the movie “Pirates of the Silicon Valley”, a thought from a source pull it on as one. “Being a technopreneur is about more than just starting a business or two, it is about having attitude and the drive to succeed in business. All successful Technopreneurs have a similar way of thinking and posses several key personal qualities that make them so successful in their field and business”.





References 
http://www.spiritheart.net/media/Curiosity.pdf
http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=97328380014
http://www.woopidoo.com/articles/geimure/entrepreneur-article.htm






2. How do you see yourself as a technopreneur? 



Me, myself and I as an technopreneur???...hmmmmmmm….sounds different but why not??Everyone has the opportunity to engage in that thing. Maybe me or maybe you in the NEAR future. In fact in business, money moves fast. But seriously, when I enrolled this subject and got some introduction of what technopreneurship is. I suddenly think why not engaging in the craze and more involve about the reality. Specially now, all people are craving for money even the richest man still craving for a lot more. Mostly, when I’d seen the movie “Pirates of the Silicon Valley”, I convinced even more to proceed not to be employee but a great employer. I will frankly say, I badly needed money not because of power but to survive in this kind of world we’re living today.

As I know myself above what others know about me, I am not actually have that enough knowledge and skills to be a successful technopreneur but I’m wilingl to- willing to take a risks to have what it takes to be a successful one. Not the same as what Steve Jobs and Waz nor Bill Gates and company got in the movie but I’ll make my own way of improving myself and be determine and responsible to do things which are morally upright. As of looking myself in the mirror as a technopreneur, I can’t deny the fact that I can’t do what the characters portrayed in the movie. Maybe if I were in their place, maybe I’ll do the same. Hence, I’ll tries to set a goal to avoid things that could bring difficulties to others and hit them behind their backs. As long as I can manage not to do so, then I’m willing to abide all things to save what I have not just business but also the people involve in the industry.

Like in the movie a competition arise between Gates and Jobs, possibly if I’m in the place that stands to what I believe, maybe so I’ll do the same. But not in the highest point of even drowning and stealing others’ things just to excel in the field but rather to do things outside the involvement of others- I mean to do things on my own simple ways without hitting others. I’ll make use of my creativeness and curiosity to make my own products and be more original.

Relating it to reality, putting up a business is always good for the economy. Technopreneurship supplies new products and services to the market, increases competition, and generates jobs and expendable income. I have searched some successful attitudes start-up revealed by the successful pinoy technopreneur. Stated by a pinoy technopreneur named Joey Gurango –a founder and CEO of software development startup WEBWORKS OS the top 3 secret factors how a business lasts at a long time. First,  the business needs a real technopreneur at its helm. A real entrepreneur, according to Joey Gurango, is someone who has the ability to create a clear vision, effectively communicate that vision to other people (employees, investors and shareholders, customers), and pursue it relentlessly. Take this for an example, not because you know how to bake a cake you will stand a business of cake shop. What is important is the business itself. In other words it’s not about the secret cake recipe but the business strategy that will get the cake efficiently produced and distributed. Over all, an idea is just not enough in putting up a business but to analyze it deeper and read beneath the lines.


Second,  the right time when to start the business. Most businessmen don’t believe that there is ever a bad time to start a business. What important is it must be carefully consider prevailing business conditions in order to position your product or service properly and increase your chances of succeeding. Like in the movie, Steve and Gates don’t consider what season to start their businesses. What they do is to consider the facilities they already on hands to start what career they wanted to start and offer to fellowmen.

Finally,  stay committed to their vision. According to CEO Joey Gurango, It’s not that easy to stay to what is your vision. It doesn’t go smoothly like as the wind goes by, not even the same as safe and sound. It does not go straight to your goals, plans and projections. The reality is there will be moments when you might not be hitting your margins or you have to sacrifice your own salary to be able to pay your employees - but as long as the business is making a profit, stick it out.

That how technopreneurship molds the world. From simple to more complex but reliable sources of knowledge intertwined within in the minds of technopreneur. And this is what Technopreneur aims to provide you with, the latest information on new, emerging Internet technology trends, sifting the hype from business reality. Business and technology are almost always entwined. Evolution of technology inadvertently leads to evolution in business. The one who spots technological trends and learns to use it, gains an upper hand over their competition.

Based on the Singaporean research about IT career goals and career management, as an IT student, I’m very much eager to have what the institution of computing expected to their IT students- to be a successful TECHNOPRENEUR. Confronted above, the world needs IT to develop more what we already have, I’m not deliberately to be the one but from now on I’m trying to be one of those future members of the flocks. Not because the institute wants but rather I myself want to be change. Change everything what had the culture started, I am more curious about being employer that to be employee. Though I know right know I’m not that good and wise enough to be a technopreneur but a great determination of mine to get what I want in my life maybe can bring me stand on the top. The same as of Steve Jobs, Bill Gates and each company in the movie, they were not exactly looking for fortune about money but a deep determination and obsession of them to produce something new to the society.
References:
http://www.computer.org/portal/web/csdl/doi/10.1109/HICSS.2001.927182
http://www3.mb.com.ph/node/170331


3. Would you take the same career path that Steve Jobs took? Why or why not? 


Definitely a big NO! In the first place, I’m different from Steve Jobs so why trying to do the same path of career like what he had? Not the same in the sense of how he uses his knowledge to have what he had to reach the highest peak of his career. If I were to choose what career I would take up, I would definitely choose what is right for me not just because I see others became successful of choosing the same field of career.
In the world of technopreneurship, people are tempted to do these which are not good. It’s up to the technopreneur if he chooses to be selfish just to outclass above others. A good technopreneur stands not to be egotistic neither self-centered. Everyone has the opportunity to become rich even richer and richest in the world without replication to others neither scenarios nor degrading others or even stealing things from others just to sense the feeling of superiority.



All people are lying in this world one of a kind. Steve Jobs and Bill Gates are just one of the exemplar in which we can say or conclude that everyone can never be in the same field – in which both of the two are in the top. Most of the instances exist that only one can be on the top. Thus, for me as a new existence of the field would frankly say that I can be a successful and be richest technopreneur as what Steve Jobs and Bill Gates without using the techniques that they modeled in the movie. I believe that all good things which exist are fruits of originality. The sense of creativity, obsession to your chosen passion, prefer to be different from anybody else and the intimate relation with the work is just few of the lifting words that can be apply into the reality to become a successful technopreneur.



A quotation attributed to Art Buchward (1925-2007), “An economist is a man who knows 100 ways of making love but doesn't know any women”. Like in the field of technology or make it straight in the field of technopreneurship, every each of us has the chance to choice where we wanted to engage our knowledge. There are so many bundles of field or kind of technopreneurial businesses that we may encounter to and be in it. Steve Jobs and Bill Gates just got one of it. In relation to the question, I as a new bloomer of this field of career, trying immensely to cope up with the new development installed already in the society. An intense and creative motion of my vision to reach my career goals gives me an idea to set ways to achieve it. In my case, maybe I will be a technopreneur someday but not the same of what Mr. Jobs’ way of created his own career.



Choosing a career is dependent on how you set your career path. It can be anything; it only defines how you spend your life to engage in that career for almost a lifetime. There must be a career goal setting regardless of what kind of career you choose. Maybe I will be a technopreneur but not in the same damn way Steve Jobs of Gates done just to be a successful one. I can make use of my own simple, reliable and fair play way to become near of what Jobs got. Simply because I badly disagree on how Steve Jobs finds a way to develop and established a business from a wrong and dirty parts he played in the story.
Understanding technopreneurship understands how to be a good technopreneur. Being technopreneur relies on what fundamental goals you had settled on your mind-setting before doing an act. Some sources from internet rely to these two fundamental goals on how to accomplish and reach success in the field of technopreneurship. First is to generate the interest of oneself to produce a product of good technopreneurial; interest of ones can engender to send you to your chosen career. And lastly, to spread awareness of not only the advantages of being your own boss but also the discipline and the challenges you must face in the process. Relating it to the movie, as what Steve Jobs acted, he sometimes acted that he don’t need anyone. He set himself as the one whom others badly needed in them order to survive. A technopreneur must be responsive to its environment and co-workers without looking at the status they had within the company.
After I watched the movie and touched by the scenes portrayed, I suddenly figured it out that the best way to decide what career you spend your life is stated on how the analysis, criticize you’ve took first just to figure out to what talents that would certainly suit to the requirement of the chosen field. Remember that career goals don't stop when you've landed a job in your dream career. In order to keep your career goals on track, you'll probably find that you need to keep setting new career goals. The movie “Pirates of the Silicon Valley” triggers me to fulfill and finish what I’ve started. This movie strikes a lesson to reality, reality of making yourself worthy and be a successful ones on the near future. Especially for those students who invoke in the field of computing like me and any other hundreds of students whom are wishing to fulfill there dreams and be contented on what they had reach.



After all, the decision is always on the hand of the individual. For me, I would rather be on my originality than to copy-right what others done to be high-quality technopreneur. Me as an ordinary individual can be as what Jobs and Gates reach if only I believe on myself. Because a globally competitive technopreneur takes challenges and strive to live their lives with greater success. They don’t fear to fail otherwise they take failures as a learning experience, a stimulator to look things differently and stride for next challenges. It goes to a process of developing and continual improvements of oneself. Technopreneurial takes processes that require strategic decision-making and bib hit of wise availability.

Reference:
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/369728/what_is_technopreneurship.html