Steve
Jobs

Think Different 

A man who needs no introduction—Steve Jobs. One of the founding fathers of innovation in the modern tech era and co-founder of Apple Computer.    

Jobs always had a unique passion for curiosity and thinking about things differently. This led him to audit a number of classes outside his major such as calligraphy at Reed college where he briefly attended in 1972. He was fascinated and inspired by art and design. This led him to not only embark on a journey to “build computers” but to build beautifully designed and intuitive technology to help the world create great things.  

And he did. 

In 1976 after a journey to India seeking enlightenment, before later studying Zen Buddism, Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniac founded Apple computer. Their mission was to further develop and sell Wozniak's Apple I personal computer. Together, the duo gained fame and wealth a year later with production and sale of the Apple II, one of the first highly successful mass-produced microcomputers.    

In 1985, Jobs left Apple after a power struggle with its then CEO John Scully. He recruited some Apple employees with him to start NExT, a computer platform that focused on building powerful computers for higher-education and business. In 1986, NExT purchased the computer graphics division of LucasFilm that would become Pixar, the leading computer animated graphics film studio. The company would produce the world’s first computer animated film, Toy Story, of which Jobs was very involved in.   

Apple acquired NeXT in 1997 and brought Jobs back on as CEO. He is credited with saving the fledgling company from bankruptcy and catapulting them into one of the most valuable tech companies on the planet.   

He completely rebranded Apple and their vision for the future through their “Think Different” ad campaign that is still iconic today. This led to a series of inventions that would revolutionize technology, first with the iPod, then iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch. Apple completely transformed our culture with the invention of the smart phone.   

In 2003, Jobs was diagnosed with a pancreatic neuroendocrine tumor. He died of tumor-related respiratory arrest in 2011. He left behind a legacy of dreamer, innovator, and drive that resulted in some of the most state of the art personal technology the world has ever known. He stuck true to the mantra of “think different” when asked by someone, “Do you ever ask consumers what they want?” His answer, drawing inspiration from Henry Ford was, “No, if I asked customers what they wanted, they wouldn’ve have said, an iPhone.”