“Being the richest man in the cemetery doesn't matter to me. Going to bed at night saying we've done something wonderful... that's what matters to me.” -Steve Jobs
Steve Jobs has been a captain of innovation his whole life. Curiosity and perseverance enabled him to become a successful pioneer in the computing industry. As his quote suggests, he was not driven by riches. That’s not to say that he cursed the profits that followed his success. My argument is that the most successful entrepreneurs make it because they want to make a difference in people’s lives. Arguably, there is a lot of luck involved too as Malcolm Gladwell repetitively points out in Outliers. With that said, people make it big when they want to change the world and the world is ready for the change.
Too many of us are chasing the job that pays the best salary. In the process we have put family and happiness on the back burner. I believe we need more people who want to make a difference in a community. When you look back on your life– do you want to be proud of what you accomplished or be proud of how much money you made? Or even better, how many lives did you affect?
There are two ways to excel in life. You can work hard, follow the rules, and do as your told. The other option is to veer from the beaten path and think for yourself. The best sign that I have seen from the Occupy Wall Street protest was one which said “Think for yourself or be thought for.”
My generation knows something about everything but not everything about something. We have been falling deeper into a hedonistic, sound-bite society. Facebook status updates have supplanted conversations while reality television has replaced true relationships. I hope the meaning of life is a little more than being entertained and having a job. We should question everything around us and ask why that is the way it is. This world still needs a lot of work. Where are our Ghandis, Mother Teresas, Bob Marleys, or Thomas Jeffersons? It’s time to leave your mark.
Ben getting philosophical? I like it..and I like your points.
ReplyDeleteI also agree with your statement about steering off the beaten path. There's a book call "Who's your City" by Robert Florida in which he very convincingly explains that we need to be just as picky about what city we live in as who we marry and what job we use to pay the bills. His point is that many cities have become specialties for certain careers, attract certain types of people, and have their own 'vibe's' and that we should place ourselves in a place that we can succeed.
The other phenomenon he writes about in the book, which agrees with your point, is something he calls the 'rise of the creative class'. Manufacturing and agriculture jobs have been dwindling in the US and have been leaving behind lower paying service jobs. To keep yourself from landing in a service job, you need to be original enough to develop your own career or a creative thinker capable of finding novel solutions to current business and scientific problems.