“Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all.”
-Hellen Keller
Yesterday, Steve Jobs announced his retirement as CEO of Apple. In his announcement, Steve indicated that he always said if there came a day when he could no longer meet his duties and expectations as Apple’s CEO, he would be the first to let people know. Unfortunately, Steve said that yesterday that day had come. We can only speculate the reason for his announcement but it would seem that it is related to his declining health, likely somehow related to his battle with pancreatic neurorndocrine cancer.
Steve Jobs has been another mentor of mine and he is such an amazing example of someone with vision and passion. He has much more to teach us all. In 2005 he gave a Commencement Address at Stanford University. Below is a link to the written transcript of that address:
Stay Hungry, Stay Foolish (Written Transcript)
Here is a link to a video of that Address:
The Address was titled, ‘Stay Hungry, Stay Foolish’ and is one of the most impactful messages I have ever read. I have this speech loaded digitally onto all of my electronic devices and I also carry a tattered paper copy in my laptop bag that I re-read at least once a week. While we are all likely to hear the message through our own unique filters, here is what this message said to me.
Steve recognized that the work you do is going to occupy a large part of your life. He accurately said that the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. The only way to do great work is to love what you do. So, find something you love to do and don’t ‘settle’. While the audience for Steve’s message was fresh college graduates, this message rings true for each of us.
I hope you LOVE the dental profession! If there are elements of your practice or your profession that you do not love, ask yourself the following question, ‘What would need to change for you to LOVE it?’ Let me encourage you to make those changes……………Life is too short and precious to not LOVE what you do!
I will be keeping Steve Jobs in my thoughts and wish him well as he deals with his challenges. Keep smiling!
