Steve jobs

Full The Icon of Technology Steven Paul Jobs, more popularly known as Steve Jobs, is an iconic figure in the world of technology. Modern civilization requires the use of technology as part of daily living so that it has become an important part of every individual. The technological advancements introduced by Jobs not only defines modern creativity but has marked the way people live. Communications has become better. Entertainment also reached a better level of delivering high quality pictures in theaters as well as home videos. Nevertheless, those are not the only qualities that make Jobs stand out among the crowd. He is one of the rare people who make it from rags to real riches. The characteristics of Jobs as an individual are clearly seen in his achievements as well as his failures which this paper will be dealing with. Steve Jobs was raised by foster parents who did not have remarkable traits or riches. Rather, they were just ordinary people who tried to raise their son the best they could and send him to college regardless of their circumstances. When Jobs went to Reed College during the early 1970’s, he said he had to drop out because he was spending much of his parents’ hard earned salaries. From there, he experimented on countercultural experiences such as taking LSD and understanding psychedelic practices as well as other things that he later described as very useful information in his profession ((Markoff). It is obvious that Jobs is not simply a genius in computers but he is an observant and creative person who uses every opportunity that presents itself as an advantage for his career. He is perhaps one of the many people who are not actually experts in human nature when it comes to education and research but he is very well-informed about them, observing their needs as well as their wants and using the information in his innovations. This is probably what made his creative works greatly loved and appreciated by his customers. Since Jobs has come from an ordinary family, he did not have much to invest on but his interest and talents. It is said that when he was young, he already showed fascination in electronics. This interest became more intense when he interned with William Hewlett, the founder of Hewlett-Packard, one summer after he called the man asking for some missing parts of a frequency counter he was assembling. In addition, he was also remarkably impressed and influenced by his long-time friend, Stephen Wozniak who eventually became the co-founder of Apple. Starting from practically nothing, the two friends started a technological business as hobbyists who have similar interests. They started making small amounts in their initial ventures but they eventually made it big in 1981 when Apple went public. From then on, more and more experiments with new products were made from which popular and most-loved gadgets have evolved from. As a creator, there is no doubt that Jobs is one of the most popular in modern times who did not just concur the world of technology but has set its standards as well. Nevertheless, he maintains his humility and acknowledges the contributions of the important people who have played their parts well in his success as well as the success of his company. When it comes to his proficiency, Jobs is describes as “ neither an engineer nor a software programmer, nor did he think of himself as a manager. He considered himself a technology leader, choosing the best people possible, encouraging and prodding them and making the final call on product design” (Markoff). From this statement, one can see that although Jobs did not pursue further education, he educated himself through observation and experience. He gathered various essential information and knowledge which he mastered and used for the benefit of his job. “ Choosing the best people possible” expresses what a genius of a manager Job is although as mentioned earlier, he did not see himself as such. Perhaps this could be based from the fact that he did not study management or he did not really see himself managing other people. Still, his ability to look for the people needed for his projects and his capabilities in making them work as a team, shows what kind of a manage he is. Some employees confess that Jobs had been hard and even harsh with his words but it was simply his style of bringing out the best from others so that even though tasks could really be difficult with his presence, the best results were achieved. This made his employees stay despite their complaints about their CEO. The descriptions made above may make one see Jobs as a successful person who did not really go through difficulties aside from his initial financial struggles as a young man. However, that is not all there is to the story. Jobs met several problems in his profession. Due to some fights in the company, he once left Apple and struggled to establish a new one. However, it seemed so difficult for him to get his feet on the ground until he sold his company. Ultimately, he returned to Apple as a CEO and made more innovations until his resignation in August, 2011 due to health problems. That same year, he died due to complications of pancreatic cancer. Jobs may not be in this world anymore nevertheless, his legacy lives on with the many inventions he shared with the world. Reference Markoff, John. “ Apple’s Visionary Redefined Digital Age”. New York Times. October 5, 2011. Web. November 23, 2013. .