Steve Jobs

For the last few months, I have been reading the Biography of Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson. I just finished it on Friday and I thought I would write a few things that I took away from it. Let me start by saying that I am not an Apple fan-boy. I did not decide to start this book because I believe in every product they make, and in many cases I think they're kind of dumb. My older brother Eric mentioned to me some time last year that he had read it and liked it. I have always been a fan of computers, and tinkering and learning more about them has been a hobby of mine for the last few years. I knew a fair amount of how Steve Jobs made his mark on the history of computers and technology throughout his life, and this book helped to elaborate even more on those aspects and some. However, the interesting part about this book was that, unlike most biographies, this one was written at the request of the subject.

A few years before his death, Steve Jobs approached Walter Isaacson and requested that he write a biography about his life. He even offered to sit down for personal interviews to talk about his past. Steve Jobs, knowing that he had little time left to live, craved for some sort of memorandum to document and hopefully explain his life and his intentions to the world and especially so his children. I connect with that desire in a personal way. It's one of the reasons why I keep this blog. I hope that not only would it show a part of myself to others that would otherwise go unnoticed, but it could possibly be something my future children could look back on in 30 years and could understand the type of person their father was when I was their age. It's always bothered me that my parents never had something similar. The book shows incredible detail of the background and driving force behind a man that impacted in so many ways the lives of millions. Whether you liked him as a person or not (and many did not), he changed the world. He will not be forgotten, and his achievements cannot be downplayed by anyone.

I cannot say that I would want to live his life though. He had many ups and downs, and he angered many people in the process. I do however admire him and his persistence towards achieving the unbelievable. I have struggled for the last few years to find my focus and my great passion in life, but reading the story about a man who so truly knew his life's aspirations gives me hope for my future.