Jobs Tells Stanford Graduates to Follow Intuition, Embrace Mortality

JoshuaG

Embracing the inevitability of death serves as the ultimate tool to strip away external expectations and empower individuals to follow their own intuition.

AI-assisted summary of Steve Jobs Stanford Commencement Speech 2005 — original source. Check the original for full context.

Source published: 2006-03-06

Key ideas

Steve Jobs highlights the unexpected value of auditing a calligraphy class at Reed College, which directly led to the Macintosh becoming the first computer with elegant, proportionally spaced typography. (0:39)
After being publicly dismissed from Apple at age 30, Jobs founded NeXT and Pixar, demonstrating how the freedom of starting over can drive massive creative and commercial success. (5:22)
A near-death experience with a rare, treatable pancreatic cancer diagnosis reinforced Jobs's belief that contemplating mortality is the ultimate tool for making authentic life choices. (8:48)
Jobs urges graduates to reject dogma—defined as living by the results of other people's thinking—and instead prioritize internal intuition and heart. (11:43)

Detailed notes

## Background Published on YouTube by JoshuaG on March 6, 2006, this video documents Steve Jobs delivering his 2005 commencement address to graduates at Stanford University. The accompanying description notes that Jobs reflects on pivotal milestones, including his 1985 firing from Apple, as well as broader themes of life and death.

## TL;DR Delivering his 2005 Stanford commencement address, Steve Jobs presents three foundational personal stories centered on connecting the dots, love and loss, and mortality. He explains how dropping out of Reed College allowed him to audit calligraphy classes that later inspired the Mac's elegant typography, and how his public ousting from Apple enabled the creative renewal that produced NeXT and Pixar. Drawing on his diagnosis with a rare form of pancreatic cancer, Jobs presents death as life's indispensable change agent that clarifies what truly matters. He concludes by urging the graduating class to reject dogma, trust their intuition, and embrace the iconic maxim from The Whole Earth Catalog: “Stay hungry, stay foolish.”

## Atmosphere & style The address has a remarkably intimate, unassuming, and reflective tone, disarming the ceremonial grandeur of Stanford's commencement with dry wit and genuine humility. Jobs speaks with steady, quiet candor, guiding the audience through an emotional arc that moves from early bohemian struggles and public professional heartbreak to confronting the reality of terminal illness. The resulting atmosphere feels both sobering and deeply galvanizing, leaving listeners with an urgent, philosophical invitation to live honestly and without fear.

## Bulletin - [00:39](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=39s) Steve Jobs highlights the unexpected value of auditing a calligraphy class at Reed College, which directly led to the Macintosh becoming the first computer with elegant, proportionally spaced typography. - [05:22](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=322s) After being publicly dismissed from Apple at age 30, Jobs founded NeXT and Pixar, demonstrating how the freedom of starting over can drive massive creative and commercial success. - [08:48](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=528s) A near-death experience with a rare, treatable pancreatic cancer diagnosis reinforced Jobs's belief that contemplating mortality is the ultimate tool for making authentic life choices. - [11:43](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=703s) Jobs urges graduates to reject dogma—defined as living by the results of other people's thinking—and instead prioritize internal intuition and heart.

## Key takeaways - [00:00](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=0s) Jobs opens by admitting he never graduated from college, framing his address around three simple personal stories. - [00:39](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=39s) His biological mother initially refused to sign adoption papers because his adoptive parents lacked college degrees, relenting only when they promised he would attend college. - [00:39](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=39s) Jobs dropped out of Reed College after six months to avoid wasting his working-class parents' life savings on an education whose value he did not see. - [00:39](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=39s) Dropping out allowed Jobs to audit creative courses, including a calligraphy class that later inspired the typography of the first Macintosh computer. - [00:39](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=39s) Jobs emphasizes that life's 'dots' cannot be connected looking forward, but only looking backward, requiring trust in one's future path. - [05:22](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=322s) At age 30, Jobs was publicly fired from Apple, the $2 billion company he co-founded in his parents' garage at age 20. - [05:22](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=322s) Being fired from Apple freed Jobs from the burden of success, allowing him to enter a highly creative period where he founded NeXT and Pixar. - [05:22](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=322s) Jobs advises that the only way to be truly satisfied in life is to do great work, which is only possible by loving what you do and refusing to settle. - [08:48](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=528s) A daily mirror ritual since age 17—asking if he would want to do his scheduled tasks if it were his last day—guided Jobs's major life decisions. - [08:48](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=528s) Remembering personal mortality serves as the ultimate tool to strip away vanity, fear of failure, and external expectations. - [08:48](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=528s) A diagnosis of a rare, surgically treatable pancreatic cancer gave Jobs a firsthand encounter with mortality, transforming death from an abstract concept into a tangible reality. - [11:43](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=703s) Jobs frames death as life's single best invention and primary change agent, clearing out the old generation to make room for the new. - [11:43](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=703s) He defines dogma as living with the results of other people's thinking, urging graduates to prioritize their own heart and intuition over external opinions. - [12:52](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=772s) The Whole Earth Catalog, created by Stewart Brand in the late 1960s, served as an analog, paperback precursor to Google for Jobs's generation. - [12:52](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=772s) Jobs concludes by passing on the catalog's final farewell message, 'Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish,' as a guiding principle for the graduating class.

## Detailed walkthrough ### [00:00](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=0s) Introduction: Three Stories, No Big Deal

Steve Jobs begins his address by expressing his honor at attending the commencement ceremony at Stanford University, which he describes as “one of the finest universities in the world.” He immediately disarms the audience with an honest confession about his own academic credentials, pointing out that he never actually graduated from college and that this ceremony is the closest he has ever come to a real college graduation. Establishing an unpretentious tone, he announces that he has not prepared a grand lecture: “Today I want to tell you three stories from my life that's it no big deal just three stories.”

[00:39](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=39s) Story 1: Connecting the Dots

Jobs’s first story begins before his birth. His biological mother was a young, unwed graduate student who decided to place him for adoption under the strict condition that his adoptive parents must be college graduates. An arrangement was made for an attorney and his wife to adopt him at birth. However, when Jobs was born, the prospective parents abruptly decided at the last minute that they actually wanted a baby girl. His adoptive parents, who were next on the waiting list, received a late-night phone call asking whether they wanted an unexpected baby boy, to which they immediately agreed.

Trouble arose when his biological mother discovered that his new mother had never graduated from college and his father had never finished high school. She refused to sign the final adoption papers, relenting only months later when his adoptive parents made a solemn promise that he would one day attend college. Seventeen years later, Jobs did go to college, but he chose Reed College—an institution whose tuition rivaled Stanford's. Watching his working-class parents spend their life savings on his education without knowing what he wanted to do or how college would help him find out, Jobs dropped out after the first six months.

```mermaid flowchart TD accTitle: The Reed College Journey accDescr: Diagram illustrating Steve Jobs's path from dropping out of Reed College to auditing calligraphy and designing the Mac fonts.

subgraph College["College Years"] A["Drops out of required classes<br/>(First 6 months)"] --> B["Drops in on creative courses<br/>(Next 18 months)"] B --> C["Takes calligraphy class<br/>(Serif, sans-serif, spacing)"] end

subgraph DormLife["Campus Reality"] D["Sleeps on dorm floors"] E["Returns 5¢ Coke bottles for food"] F["7-mile walk to Hare Krishna temple"] end

subgraph DecadeLater["10 Years Later"] C --> G["Designs first Macintosh computer"] G --> H["Proportionally spaced typography<br/>copied by Windows to PC"] end ```

Dropping out meant he could cease attending uninteresting required classes and instead drop in on lectures that intrigued him. The lifestyle was far from glamorous: lacking a dorm room, he slept on friends’ floors, financed his meals by returning Coca-Cola bottles for five-cent deposits, and walked seven miles across town every Sunday night to get a hot meal at the local Hare Krishna temple.

Reed College had what Jobs considered perhaps the finest calligraphy program in the country, evident across every hand-calligraphed label and poster on campus. Free from core curriculum obligations, Jobs enrolled in calligraphy classes, immersing himself in serif and sans-serif typefaces, variable kerning, and the artistic intricacies of typography. Although it lacked any practical application at the time, this knowledge became vital ten years later when he and his team designed the original Macintosh computer—the first personal computer with proportionally spaced fonts and elegant typography. Looking back, he notes that Windows simply copied the Mac, meaning personal computers might never have had modern typography had he not audited that single course.

- Biological mother: Unwed graduate student who insisted on adoptive parents holding college degrees. - Adoptive parents: Father had not completed high school; mother had not completed college. - Cost: Reed College tuition was nearly as expensive as Stanford University. - Subsistence: Slept on friends' floors, returned bottles for 5¢ deposits, walked 7 miles every Sunday to the Hare Krishna temple. - Retrospective insight: “You can't connect the dots looking forward you can only connect them looking backwards so you have to trust that the dots will somehow now connect in your future.”

[05:22](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=322s) Story 2: Love and Loss

Jobs’s second story focuses on love and loss. He considers himself fortunate to have discovered his passion early, founding Apple in his parents' garage alongside Steve Wozniak at age 20. Over the following decade, Apple expanded from two people in a garage into a public company worth $2 billion with over 4,000 employees. Just after turning 30, right after releasing their flagship innovation—the Macintosh—Jobs was fired from the company he created.

The rupture occurred after the board of directors sided with a talented executive Jobs had recruited to help run the company, following a divergence in their visions for the future. The dismissal was devastating and public. Jobs felt he had failed the valley's prior generation of innovators, even arranging meetings with David Packard and Bob Noyce to apologize for dropping the baton. He briefly considered leaving Silicon Valley altogether, but realized he still loved what he did.

Being pushed out proved liberating. The burden of maintaining corporate success was replaced by the lightness of becoming an unburdened beginner again. Over the next five years, Jobs founded NeXT, acquired and built Pixar—which produced the first computer-animated feature film, *Toy Story*—and met his future wife, Laurene. When Apple later acquired NeXT, Jobs returned to the company, incorporating NeXT’s technology into Apple's historic resurgence.

- Age milestones: Founded Apple at age 20; ousted from Apple at age 30. - Scale of Apple: Grew in 10 years from 2 people in a garage to $2 billion and 4,000+ employees. - New ventures launched during exile: NeXT (whose software drove Apple's renaissance) and Pixar (creator of *Toy Story*). - Personal advice on perseverance: “Your work is going to fill a large part of your life and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work and the only way to do great work is to love what you do.” - Warning against settling: “If you haven't found it yet keep looking and don't settle.”

[08:48](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=528s) Story 3: Death and Perspective

Jobs introduces his third story with a quote he read at age 17: “If you live each day as if it was your last someday you'll most certainly be right.” That line sparked a daily morning ritual spanning 33 years, where he looked into the mirror and evaluated whether he would want to do his scheduled tasks if it were the final day of his life. Whenever the answer remained “no” for several consecutive days, he knew a life change was required.

Jobs describes the contemplation of death as the ultimate decision-making tool, stripping away vanity, social expectations, and fear of failure, leaving only what is vital. He tells the graduates that they are already stripped bare, leaving no justification for ignoring their inner convictions: “Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose.”

He shares his experience from about a year prior, when a 7:30 a.m. scan revealed a pancreatic tumor. Jobs had not previously known what a pancreas was, and doctors warned him that the tumor was virtually certain to be an incurable form of pancreatic cancer with an expected life expectancy of three to six months. His physician instructed him to go home and get his affairs in order—which Jobs characterizes as medical code to prepare for death, spend precious final months saying goodbyes, and cram ten years of guidance for his children into a few weeks.

That evening, doctors conducted a biopsy, guiding an endoscope down his throat, through the stomach into the intestines, and inserting a needle directly into the pancreas to extract tumor cells. Jobs was sedated, but his wife recounted that when the medical team examined the sample under the microscope, the doctors began weeping with relief: it was an exceptionally rare form of pancreatic cancer treatable via surgery. Jobs underwent the procedure and was restored to health, giving him a tangible, firsthand encounter with mortality rather than viewing death as an abstract intellectual concept.

[11:43](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=703s) Death as Life's Change Agent and Following Your Heart

Steve Jobs reflects on the universal reality of mortality, observing the paradox that even people who wish to reach heaven do not want to die to get there. Yet, death remains the single destination shared by every human being, and Jobs argues that this is precisely how it should be. He frames death not as a tragedy, but as an essential evolutionary force: “No one has ever escaped it and that is as it should be, because death is very likely the single best invention of life.” Death acts as life's primary change agent, sweeping out the old to make room for the new. Addressing the graduates directly, Jobs points out that while they are currently the new, the day will arrive before long when they gradually become the old and are cleared away themselves, jokingly apologizing for sounding overly dramatic while insisting it is simply the truth.

Because time is inherently finite, Jobs urges the audience not to squander it by conforming to expectations or living someone else's life. He cautions them against being trapped by dogma—which he defines as living according to the results of other people's thinking—and warns against letting the clamor of external opinions overpower personal conviction. Above all, he stresses the necessity of listening to one’s deepest impulses: “And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition; they somehow already know what you truly want to become.” In his view, everything else beyond that core truth is entirely secondary.

- **Death as Life's Mechanism:** Serves as the ultimate change agent by clearing out the old generation to make space for the new. - **The Definition of Dogma:** Living with the conclusions, rules, and expectations generated by other people's thoughts. - **The Primacy of Intuition:** Jobs emphasizes that internal intuition already understands a person's authentic path, rendering all other external pressures secondary.

---

[12:52](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=772s) The Whole Earth Catalog and "Stay Hungry, Stay Foolish"

Jobs turns to an influential touchstone from his youth: an extraordinary publication known as *The Whole Earth Catalog*, created by Stewart Brand not far away in Menlo Park. Describing it as one of the definitive “Bibles” of his generation, Jobs explains that Brand brought the publication to life with a distinct poetic touch during the late 1960s. Because this was prior to the advent of personal computers and desktop publishing tools, the entire catalog had to be handcrafted using manual tools like typewriters, scissors, and Polaroid cameras. Jobs characterizes the catalog as essentially an analog precursor to modern information retrieval: “It was sort of like Google in paperback form, 35 years before Google came along.” The publication was fundamentally idealistic, brimming with clever tools, practical guides, and expansive notions.

```mermaid flowchart TD accTitle: The Legacy of The Whole Earth Catalog accDescr: Diagram showing how Stewart Brand created the publication in the late 1960s leading to its final mid-1970s message to Steve Jobs and the graduates.

subgraph Creation["Late 1960s: Menlo Park"] A["Stewart Brand"] --> B["The Whole Earth Catalog"] B --> C["Typewriters, scissors & Polaroid cameras"] end

subgraph Impact["Mid-1970s: Final Issue"] C --> D["Paperback precursor to Google"] D --> E["Back cover: Early morning country road"] E --> F["Farewell message: 'Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish.'"] end

subgraph Legacy["Commencement 2005"] F --> G["Lifelong personal guide for Steve Jobs"] G --> H["Graduation blessing for Stanford class"] end ```

Stewart Brand and his team produced several issues of the catalog until it eventually ran its natural course in the mid-1970s, right around the time Jobs was the same age as the graduating students in the audience. On the back cover of their final issue, the creators printed a photograph of an early morning country road—the kind of quiet backroad a traveler might find themselves hitchhiking along on an adventure. Beneath the photograph sat their parting message: “Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish.” Jobs shares that this phrase served as his own enduring touchstone throughout his life, and he passes it along to the graduating class as they set out on their next chapter: “And now, as you graduate to begin anew, I wish that for you: Stay hungry, stay foolish.”

- **Publication Origins:** Created in Menlo Park by Stewart Brand in the late 1960s using typewriters, scissors, and Polaroid cameras. - **Cultural Significance:** Described as "Google in paperback form 35 years before Google came along," defined by idealism and practical tools. - **The Final Send-off:** Concluded publication in the mid-1970s with a back-cover photograph of an early morning country road and the parting words: “Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish.”

## Notable quotes > [08:48](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=528s) Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. — Steve Jobs

> [05:22](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=322s) Your work is going to fill a large part of your life and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work and the only way to do great work is to love what you do. — Steve Jobs

> [11:43](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=703s) have the courage to follow your heart and intuition; they somehow already know what you truly want to become. — Steve Jobs

## Mentioned Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, David Packard, Bob Noyce, Laurene Powell Jobs, Stewart Brand, Stanford University, Reed College, Hare Krishna temple, Apple, NeXT, Pixar, Toy Story, Macintosh, Windows, Google, The Whole Earth Catalog

## Video description Here we see Steve Jobs delivering his commencement speech to the graduates of Stanford University in 2005. In it he talks about getting fired from Apple in 1985, life & death

[Source](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA)

中文简报

乔布斯告诫斯坦福毕业生追随直觉、正视死亡坦然面对死亡的必然性是摆脱外界期望、赋予人们追随内在直觉力量的终极工具。在2005年斯坦福大学毕业典礼演讲中，史蒂夫·乔布斯分享了关于串联生命点滴、爱与失去以及死亡的三段核心亲身经历。他讲述了从里德学院退学后旁听书法课的经历，这后来启发了Mac电脑优雅的字体设计；他还谈到被苹果公司公开解雇如何促成了他创意上的新生，进而创立了NeXT和皮克斯。乔布斯结合自己确诊罕见胰腺癌的经历，将死亡阐释为生命中不可或缺的变革力量，能够让人认清真正重要的事情。最后，他敦促毕业生们不要受教条束缚，要相信自己的直觉，并践行《全球概览》（The Whole Earth Catalog）中的经典格言：“求知若饥，虚心若愚。” 史蒂夫·乔布斯强调了在里德学院旁听书法课带来的意外收获，这直接促成Macintosh成为首台拥有优美比例排版字体的计算机。 (0:39) 在30岁被苹果公司公开解雇后，乔布斯创立了NeXT和皮克斯，证明了重新开始的自由能够带来巨大的创意与商业成功。 (5:22) 确诊患有一种罕见且可治疗的胰腺癌并经历濒死后，乔布斯更加坚信，正视死亡是做出本真人生选择的终极工具。 (8:48) 乔布斯敦促毕业生摒弃教条——即不要活在他人思考的结果中——转而优先听从内在的直觉和心声。 (11:43)

Reading summary

In his 2005 Stanford commencement address, Apple co-founder Steve Jobs argues that personal innovation and resilience depend on following unmapped curiosity, using professional setbacks as opportunities for renewal, and relying on mortality as the ultimate filter against living by external dogma. Connecting Unplanned Experiences in Retrospect (0:39) Jobs explains that transformative personal developments often arise from unstructured, intuitive choices whose value only becomes clear in hindsight. After dropping out of Reed College after six months—relieving his working-class parents of steep tuition costs—he spent 18 months dropping in on classes that interested him while sleeping on friends' floors, collecting five-cent bottle deposits for food, and walking seven miles on Sundays for meals at a Hare Krishna temple. Free from standard curriculum requirements, he audited calligraphy classes covering serif and sans-serif typefaces, variable kerning, and artistic typography. At the time, this coursework lacked practical application, but ten years later it formed the foundation for the original Macintosh's proportionally spaced typography, which was subsequently adopted by Windows and personal computing at large. Jobs stresses that individuals cannot connect their experiences looking forward; they must instead trust that intuitive detours will coalesce productively in the future. Reinvention and Purpose Following Public Failure (5:22) Jobs recounts that getting fired at age 30 from Apple—a company he co-founded in a garage at 20 and grew into a $2 billion public enterprise with over 4,000 employees—became a vital turning point. After a public rift with an executive and the board of directors, Jobs initially felt disgraced and considered leaving Silicon Valley, even apologizing to tech pioneers David Packard and Bob Noyce. However, his enduring passion for the work led him to realize that the burden of corporate success had been replaced by the creative freedom of being a beginner again. This release catalyzed five productive years in which Jobs founded the computer company NeXT, acquired Pixar—which produced the first computer-animated feature film, Toy Story—and met his future wife, Laurene. When Apple acquired NeXT, its software powered Apple's resurgence. Jobs emphasizes to the graduates that meaningful satisfaction requires doing what one believes is great work, which is impossible without loving one's pursuit and refusing to settle. Mortality as Life's Essential Change Agent (8:48) Reflecting on a quote he encountered at age 17, Jobs shares his 33-year morning ritual of looking in the mirror to evaluate whether he would want to do his scheduled tasks if it were the final day of his life. Persistent negative answers signaled the necessity of a course correction. He cites his diagnosis a year prior with a rare, surgically treatable pancreatic tumor—initially feared to be an incurable cancer with an estimated three to six months of life expectancy—as a direct confrontation with mortality that transitioned the concept from an abstraction into an experiential reality. Jobs characterizes death as life's primary change agent, an evolutionary mechanism that sweeps out the old to make room for the new. He warns graduates against dogma, which he defines as living according to the conclusions of other people's thinking, and urges them to ignore the clamor of external opinions so they can prioritize their own internal intuition. Intellectual Openness and Staying Foolish (12:52) To frame his parting guidance, Jobs references The Whole Earth Catalog, an idealistic publication created in Menlo Park by Stewart Brand during the late 1960s. Handcrafted with typewriters, scissors, and Polaroid cameras before personal computing existed, Jobs describes the catalog as an analog precursor to Google, packed with practical tools and wide-ranging ideas. When the publication ended its run in the mid-1970s, its final issue carried a back-cover photograph of an early morning country road beneath the phrase: “Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish.” Jobs concludes that this commitment to continual learning, experimentation, and humble ambition served as his lifelong personal benchmark, offering it as his central wish for the graduating class as they begin their careers. Jobs grounds his reflections in the premise that time is inherently finite, meaning individuals must avoid conforming to societal pressures and instead follow their own instincts to find fulfilling work.

精炼阅读摘要

苹果公司联合创始人史蒂夫·乔布斯在2005年斯坦福大学毕业典礼上指出，人生各阶段的经历往往只能在事后建立逻辑关联；个体应当基于对所爱事业的执着、对死亡必然性的清醒认识以及对内心直觉的信任，摆脱世俗教条度过有限的一生。人生轨迹的不可预测与经验的滞后兑现 (0:39) 乔布斯回顾了自己的出生与求学经历：其生母为未婚研究生，坚持要求由大学学历家庭收养，最终在收养承诺让其上大学的协议下完成手续，而实际收养他的养父高中未毕业、养母未大学毕业。17年后，乔布斯入读学费与斯坦福大学相近的里德学院，但因不忍耗尽工薪阶层父母积蓄且迷茫于未来方向，在入学6个月后退学。退学后，他脱离了必修课程体系，以旁听生身份继续在校园生活了18个月。在此期间，他没有固定宿舍，借宿朋友房间地板，依靠收集并退还5美分的可乐瓶押金换取餐费，并在每周日晚徒步7英里前往当地克里希那神庙换取一顿热饭。在里德学院期间，乔布斯选修了该校享有盛誉的书法课程，学习了衬线、无衬线字体设计及可变字间距等版式艺术规则。虽然这些知识在当时看似不具备实际应用价值，但在10年后其团队设计初代Macintosh计算机时，这些排版美学被完整植入，使Mac成为首款支持比例间距字体的个人电脑；乔布斯认为后续Windows系统仅是复制了Mac的设计。乔布斯据此提出，人在向前看时无法预先串联各个事件节点，只有向后回顾才能看清脉络，因此必须对未来的经验沉淀抱有信任。解构职业失败与重拾热情的创造力 (5:22) 乔布斯将早年确立事业热情视为自身幸事。他20岁时与斯蒂夫·沃兹尼亚克在父母车库创立苹果公司，10年间企业拓展至4000余名员工、市值达20亿美元的规模。然而刚过30岁且刚推出旗舰产品Macintosh后，由于与受聘高管在公司愿景上发生分歧，董事会倒向对方，乔布斯被公开解职。这次解雇造成了公开而沉重的打击，促使他先后向硅谷前辈戴维·帕卡德和鲍勃·诺伊斯道歉，甚至一度考虑离开硅谷。但乔布斯意识到自己依然热爱所做的事，离开苹果反而消除了维持商业成功的重担，使自己重新回到轻装上阵的初学者状态。在随后的5年间，他创立了NeXT公司，收购并建设了推出全球首部电脑动画长片《玩具总动员》的皮克斯动画工作室，并结识了妻子劳伦。随后苹果收购NeXT，其技术成为苹果复兴的核心支柱。乔布斯总结认为，工作占据生活的大部分空间，获得真正满足的唯一方式是从事自己坚信的伟大事业，而成就伟大事业的前提是热爱所做的事；在找到该目标前，不应草率妥协。死亡认知作为决策工具与生命演化机制 (8:48) 从17岁接触关于向死而生的名言起，乔布斯便形成了长达33年的晨间自省习惯：每天清晨面对镜子，询问若当天是生命最后一天是否仍愿意执行既定日程；若连续多天得到否定答案，便意味着必须做出改变。他指出，记住死亡是避免陷入害怕失去等心理陷阱的最佳工具，因为面对死亡，虚荣、社会期待和对失败的恐惧都会褪去，唯有核心事务得以保留。在发表演讲约一年前，乔布斯在清晨7点30分的扫描检查中发现胰腺肿瘤，医生最初根据肿瘤特征判断其属于极难治愈的晚期胰腺癌，预期寿命仅剩3至6个月，并建议其回家安排后事——乔布斯将其解释为医学上关于准备死亡、压缩交代未来十年育儿指引并告别的信号。然而当晚通过内窥镜深入肠道并用针刺提取胰腺细胞进行活检后，镜检显示该肿瘤属于极其罕见、可通过手术切除治愈的类型，术后乔布斯恢复了健康。这一经历使其对死亡从纯粹的智识理解转向具身体验。他向毕业生阐明，死亡是全人类共通的终点与最有效的生命变革机制，其功能在于淘汰旧生代、为新生力量腾出空间。摆脱教条束缚与追随内心的处世哲学 (11:43) 基于生命的时间限制，乔布斯告诫斯坦福毕业生切勿把时间耗费在遵循他人设定的生活轨迹上。他将“教条”定义为生活在他人思考得出的结论之中，并警告外界舆论的喧嚣不应压制个人内心的声音。他强调最重要的是具备追随内心与直觉的勇气，因为直觉在潜意识层面早已知晓个体的真实追求，其他外部衡量标准皆属次要。为总结对毕业生的寄语，乔布斯回顾了青年时代由斯图尔特·布兰德在门洛帕克创办的《全地球目录》。他将该刊物形容为20世纪60年代末“纸质形态的谷歌”，其完全借助打字机、剪刀和宝丽来相机等手工工具制作，兼具实用工具指导与理想主义色彩。该刊物在20世纪70年代中期停刊，最后一期的封底印有一张清晨乡村公路的照片，附有告别箴言：“求知若饥，虚心若愚”（Stay Hungry, Stay Foolish）。乔布斯表示这一格言贯穿了自己一生的实践，并以此作为赠予斯坦福毕业班新征程的最终祝福。乔布斯通过高度个人化的叙事，构建了以直面死亡、拥抱不确定性与坚守个人热情为核心的实存主义行动哲学。然而，该观点高度依附于其个人罕见的天赋禀赋、时代风口以及特定的医学幸存经历，并未提供在缺乏资源缓冲或现实生存压力沉重时，普通个体如何在理想冒险与客观生存之间求得平衡的系统性方案。

Detailed notes — zh

## Background 该视频由 YouTube 频道 JoshuaG 于 2006 年 3 月 6 日发布。页面描述显示，内容为史蒂夫·乔布斯（Steve Jobs）在 2005 年斯坦福大学毕业典礼上发表的著名演讲，他在其中分享了自己 1985 年被苹果解雇的经历，以及关于生与死的深刻思考。 ## TL;DR 乔布斯在演讲中摒弃宏大说教，通过讲述自己人生中的三个真实故事展开：从里德学院退学后随性修读书法课、多年后将优美字体融入 Macintosh 的“串联生命点滴”；三十岁被一手创办的苹果解雇后重燃热爱，进而创办 NeXT 与 Pixar 的“爱与失去”；以及确诊胰腺肿瘤后向死而生的“死亡”体悟。他指出死亡是生命最伟大的发明与新陈代谢机制，告诫年轻人切勿被教条禁锢或活在别人的生活里。最后，乔布斯引用青年时代精神读物《全球概览》停刊号上的告别语“求知若饥，虚心若愚”（Stay hungry, stay foolish），作为赠予毕业生的终极人生箴言。 ## Atmosphere & style 整场演讲氛围真挚平实而富有哲思，乔布斯没有居高临下的布道姿态，而是以平静、坦荡且略带自嘲的口吻剖析自己人生中最脆弱、最困顿的时刻。从睡地板蹭饭的清苦青春，到被公开驱逐的耻辱，再到直面仅剩数月寿命的死亡判决，情绪在冷酷现实与精神觉醒之间层层递进。现场既有充满时代共鸣的幽默自侃，又激荡着直击心灵的向死而生力量，给聆听者带来一种洗尽铅华后纯粹、澄澈且充满勇气的深沉震撼。 ## Bulletin - [00:00](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=0s) Steve Jobs 在斯坦福大学毕业典礼上分享了人生三个故事，坦诚自己从未从大学毕业，并提出回望生命才能串联点滴的个人哲学。 - [05:22](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=322s) 30岁被苹果解雇成为 Jobs 人生的关键转折点，随后创立 NeXT 与 Pixar 并制作了首部全电脑动画长片《玩具总动员》，最终推动其重返苹果并引领公司复兴。 - [08:52](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=532s) 在经历极为罕见且经手术治愈的胰腺癌后，Jobs 强调死亡是生命最好的代谢发明，告诫年轻人不要活在教条与他人的期望之中。 - [12:52](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=772s) Jobs 引用《全球概览》（The Whole Earth Catalog）停刊号封底的座右铭“Stay hungry, stay foolish”（求知若饥，虚心若愚），作为赠予毕业生的终极临别寄语。 ## Key takeaways - [00:39](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=39s) 虽然在里德学院就读6个月后退学，但作为旁听生选修的书法课为10年后 Macintosh 电脑引入精美排版与比例间距字体奠定了基础。 - [00:39](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=39s) 人生无法前瞻性地串联点滴，只有在回望时才能将经历连成线，因此必须对直觉、命运或因果报应抱有坚定信念。 - [05:22](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=322s) 20岁在车库联合创立苹果公司，并在10年间将其发展为拥有4000余名员工、市值20亿美元的企业。 - [05:22](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=322s) 30岁因愿景分歧被苹果董事会驱逐，但放下成功的沉重、重新以初学者的轻松姿态出发，反倒开启了一生中最具创造力的时期。 - [05:22](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=322s) 取得卓越成就的唯一途径是热爱所从事的事业，若尚未找到就应“保持寻找，绝不将就”（Keep looking, don't settle）。 - [08:52](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=532s) 坚持33年每日晨起对镜自问“若今天为生命最后一天，是否仍愿做今天之事”，以此作为人生做出重大抉择的核心审视工具。 - [08:52](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=532s) 面对死亡的真实存在，世俗的期望、虚荣以及对失败的恐惧都会烟消云散，它是避免陷入“患得患失”心理陷阱的最佳途径。 - [08:52](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=532s) 曾被初步诊断为仅剩3至6个月寿命的绝症，随后活检证实为可通过外科手术切除治愈的罕见胰腺神经内分泌肿瘤，使他对生命的脆弱有了切身体验。 - [11:43](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=703s) 死亡是生命最好的发明，充当了推动代谢的变革催化剂，负责清除陈旧腐朽以让位给新生力量。 - [11:43](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=703s) 生命有限，切勿将时间浪费在过他人的生活或盲从教条上，绝不能让外界噪音淹没自己内心的声音与直觉。 - [12:52](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=772s) 将创刊于20世纪60年代末的《全球概览》比作手工拼贴时代的纸质 Google，其停刊号承载了深刻的理想主义情怀。 - [12:52](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=772s) 以“Stay hungry, stay foolish”（保持饥饿，保持愚蠢 / 求知若饥，虚心若愚）作为勉励新一代毕业生的终极人生准则。 ## Detailed walkthrough ### [00:00](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=0s) 开场致辞与大学毕业的坦白 Steve Jobs 出席斯坦福大学毕业典礼并向在场毕业生致意，称赞斯坦福是世界上最顶尖的大学之一。他随即坦诚交代，自己其实从未从大学毕业，而今天这场斯坦福的毕业典礼，是他这辈子距离大学毕业最近的一刻。Jobs 明确表示，自己当天不打算谈什么宏大道理，只想分享人生中的三个故事。 Jobs 开门见山地宣布演讲的主题： > “Today I want to tell you three stories from my life. That’s it. No big deal. Just three stories.” ### [00:39](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=39s) 第一个故事：串联生命中的点滴（Connecting the Dots） Jobs 的第一个故事关乎如何“把点连成线”。他提到自己在里德学院（Reed College）就读六个月后便决定退学，不过退学后并没有立刻离开，而是以旁听生身份继续在学校游荡了大约18个月才真正离开。退学的原因要追溯到他的身世：他的生母是一名年轻且未婚的大学研究生，由于无力抚养，决定在 Jobs 出生前将他送给他人收养。生母态度非常坚决，坚持要求养父母必须是大学毕业生。原本一对律师夫妇已经敲定要在 Jobs 出生时领养他，但当他呱呱坠地那一刻，这对夫妇却在最后一分钟改变主意，表示他们真正想要的是一个女婴。随后，位于领养等候名单上的另一对夫妇——Jobs 的养父母——在深夜接到医院打来的紧急电话，询问他们是否愿意领养一个意外降生的男婴，他们毫不犹豫地答应了。然而，Jobs 的生母后来发现女方从未上过大学，男方甚至连高中都没毕业，因此愤然拒绝签署最终领养文件。直到几个月后，养父母郑重承诺一定会供 Jobs 读大学，生母才最终妥协。 17年后，Jobs 真的上了大学，但他天真地选择了一所学费几乎与斯坦福一样昂贵的大学（里德学院）。作为工薪阶层的养父母耗尽了一辈子的积蓄来为他支付学费。在读了6个月后，Jobs 看不到大学教育的价值何在。他不知道自己的人生该做什么，也不清楚大学如何能帮助他理清方向，而此时自己却在花光父母一生的积蓄。因此，他毅然决定退学，并坚信一切都会好起来。当时这个决定让他感到十分害怕，但回首过去，他认为这是自己一生中做出的最棒的决定之一。退学后，Jobs 终于不必去上那些毫无兴趣的必修课，转而可以去旁听那些看起来更有意思的课程。真实生活并不浪漫：他失去了宿舍，只能睡在朋友房间的地板上；为了换取食物，他四处收集可退5美分押金的退可乐瓶；每个星期天晚上，他都会步行7英里穿过城镇，去哈瑞·奎师那神庙（Hare Krishna Temple）蹭一顿每周唯一的好饭。但 Jobs 坦言自己深爱这样的生活。他随性凭着好奇心与直觉探索所偶遇的一切，在日后都被证明是无价之宝。当时里德学院拥有全美也许是最好的书法课程（Calligraphy）。校园内随处可见手写书法海报与抽屉标签，工艺极为精湛。因为已经退学，Jobs 便报名参加了书法课。他在课堂上学到了衬线（serif）与无衬线（sans serif）字体、字符间距的变化，以及是什么造就了出色的排版学。这种兼具历史感与艺术精妙性的美，是科学无法完全捕捉的。当时他完全没指望这些技能能在实际生活中派上任何用场。然而10年后，当团队在设计第一代 Macintosh 电脑时，这些知识全部涌回他的脑海，并被完整融入到了 Mac 中，使其成为了第一台具备优美排版字体的计算机。Jobs 打趣道，若非如此，Mac 绝不可能拥有多种字体或比例间距字体；而由于 Windows 只是抄袭了 Mac，很可能当今所有的个人电脑都不会具备这些精美的排版。 ```mermaid flowchart TD accTitle: 串联点滴的逻辑流程 accDescr: 展示乔布斯从退学、旁听书法到将排版融入麦金塔电脑并总结人生信念的过程。 subgraph College["里德学院抉择"] A["耗尽父母积蓄且迷茫"] --> B["退学成为旁听生"] B --> C["凭直觉选修书法课"] end subgraph Mac["10年后的应用"] C -.->|"无法前瞻关联"| D["设计第一代 Macintosh"] D --> E["首创优美多字体与比例间距排版"] end subgraph Philosophy["人生信念总结"] E --> F["回望才能串联点滴 (Looking Backwards)"] F --> G["信任直觉、命运与 Karma"] end ``` 关于如何看待人生的转折点，Jobs 总结道： > “Again, you can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future.” - 里德学院学费昂贵，使得工薪阶层父母积蓄被迅速掏空。 - 依靠收集5美分可乐瓶退款换取伙食费。 - 每周日徒步7英里前往 Hare Krishna 神庙吃一顿饱饭。 - 10年后将书法课程中的衬线、无衬线字体与比例间距设计运用于 Macintosh。 - 强调面对未来必须信赖直觉、命运、生命或因果报应（Karma）。 ### [05:22](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=322s) 第二个故事：爱与失去（Love and Loss） Jobs 的第二个故事关于爱与失去。他非常幸运地在很年轻时就找到了毕生所爱的事业。20岁那年，他和 Steve Wozniak 在父母的车库里创立了苹果公司（Apple）。经过十年的艰苦创业，苹果从车库里的两个人，飞速成长为一家拥有4000多名员工、市值20亿美元的庞大企业。而就在他们刚刚发布了公司最杰出的作品——Macintosh 电脑的一年后，刚刚迈入30岁的 Jobs 却被解雇了。面对“自己创立的公司怎么会被解雇”的疑问，Jobs 解释了原委：随着公司规模扩张，苹果聘请了一位他认为极具才能的职业经理人与他共同管理公司。起初一年运转顺利，但随后两人对公司未来的愿景发生分歧，最终爆发矛盾。董事会选择站在了那位经理人一边，导致30岁的 Jobs 被逐出公司，而且过程极为公开。曾经作为他整个成年生活重心的事业瞬间灰飞烟灭，这让他遭受了毁灭性的打击。接下来的几个月里，Jobs 彻底不知所措。他深感自己辜负了上一代硅谷创业家的期望，犹如在接力棒交接时将接力棒掉落在地。他私下会见了 David Packard（惠普联合创始人）与 Robert Noyce（英特尔联合创始人），试图为自己把事情搞得一团糟而当面道歉。作为一名人尽皆知的公开失败者，他甚至一度想过逃离硅谷。然而，迷茫中他逐渐领悟到一件事：他依然热爱自己所从事的事业。苹果公司发生的事变没有丝毫削弱他对技术与创造的热爱。即便被抛弃，他依然深陷热爱之中，于是他下定决心从头再来。事后回想，Jobs 发现被苹果解雇反而是他人生中遇到的最好事情： > “The heaviness of being successful was replaced by the lightness of being a beginner again, less sure about everything. It freed me to enter one of the most creative periods of my life.” 在接下来的5年里，Jobs 迎来了人生最具创造力的时期： 1. 创办了 NeXT 电脑公司； 2. 创立了皮克斯动画工作室（Pixar）； 3. 结识了一位后来成为他妻子的非凡女性 Laurene。皮克斯制作了世界上首部全电脑动画长片《玩具总动员》（Toy Story），并迅速成长为全球最成功的动画工作室。随后戏剧性的事情发生了：苹果收购了 NeXT，Jobs 重返苹果，而他们在 NeXT 开发的技术构成了后来苹果复兴的核心基石。同时，他与妻子 Laurene 组成了幸福的家庭。Jobs 感慨道，被苹果解雇就像是一剂苦药，但这个病人确实需要它。他鼓励在场学生，生活有时会用砖头砸你的脑袋，但千万不要失去信念。 Jobs 坚定地告诫即将踏入社会的年轻人： > “Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle.” - 20岁在车库创业，30岁拥有20亿美元市值与超4000名员工。 - 30岁被董事会公开驱逐，曾一度想要逃离硅谷。 - 离开苹果后创立 NeXT 与 Pixar，Pixar 制作了首部全电脑动画电影《玩具总动员》。 - 苹果收购 NeXT 使其重返公司，NeXT 技术成为苹果复兴的核心。 - 坚持“保持寻找，绝不将就”（Keep looking, don't settle）的职业与人生信条。 ### [08:52](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=532s) 第三个故事：死亡（Death） Jobs 转向第三个主题：死亡。17岁那年，他读到过一句话，大意是：“如果你把每一天都当作生命的最后一天去过，总有一天你一定会是对的。”这句话给他留下了不可磨灭的深刻印象。在此后的33年里，Jobs 每天早晨都会对着镜子审视自己并自问：“如果今天是我生命中的最后一天，我还想做我今天要做的事情吗？”每当连续多天的答案都是“不”时，他便清楚地知道自己必须做出改变。 Jobs 认为，谨记自己即将死去，是他用来帮助自己做出人生重大抉择的最重要工具。因为在死亡面前，世间几乎所有的一切——外界的期望、所有的虚荣、对难堪或失败的恐惧——都会烟消云散，唯有真正重要的东西才会留存。牢记死亡是避免陷入“患得患失”心理陷阱的最佳途径；人在本质上早已一无所有，因此没有任何理由不去追随自己的内心。接着，Jobs 讲述了自己在演讲前大约一年前确诊癌症的亲身经历。清晨7点半，他做了一次扫描，结果清晰地显示胰腺上长了一个肿瘤。当时他甚至连胰腺是什么器官都不知道。医生极其笃定地告诉他，这几乎肯定是一种无法治愈的胰腺癌，他的预期寿命只有短短3到6个月。医生建议他回家将后事料理停当，而这正是医学界“准备迎接死亡”的隐语。这意味着必须在几个月内把原本以为未来10年才能对孩子们交代的话说完；要把所有事情安排妥帖，尽量减轻家人的负担；并且要和至亲至爱做好最后的告别。 Jobs 怀揣着这一死刑判决般的诊断度过了整整一天。直到当天傍晚，他接受了内窥镜活检手术。医生将内窥镜经由他的喉咙穿过胃部进入肠道，用一根细针对胰腺肿瘤进行了穿刺取样。手术时 Jobs 处于镇静状态，在场的妻子随后告诉他，当医生们在显微镜下观察提取出的肿瘤细胞时，竟激动得哭了出来——因为这被证实是一种极其罕见的胰腺癌类型，居然可以通过外科手术进行治愈。Jobs 随后接受了手术切除，并成功恢复了健康。直面死亡的经历让 Jobs 对生命的脆弱与宝贵有了更切肤的体会。他感慨这是自己距离死亡最近的一次，并由衷希望在未来几十年里这也是离死亡最近的一次经历。经历过这次生死劫难后，他坦言死亡不再只是一个有用却抽象的纯智力概念，而是更加确定的人生命题： > “Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.” - 17岁读到的座右铭成为长达33年每日晨起对镜自省的准则。 - 演讲一年前（约2004年）早上7:30扫描确诊胰腺肿瘤，最初被预估仅剩3至6个月寿命。 - 医生给出的“料理后事”（get affairs in order）建议即代表通知准备面对死亡。 - 当晚通过内窥镜肠道细针活检（Biopsy），发现属于极少数可通过手术切除治愈的胰腺神经内分泌肿瘤罕见类型。 - 成功实施手术并康复，将死亡由“哲学认知”升华为直面生命本质的切身体验。 ### [11:43](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=703s) 死亡是生命最好的发明与听从内心的声音谈及生死，史蒂夫·乔布斯（Steve Jobs）坦言，即便是那些向往天堂的人，也没有谁真正愿意为了去那里而死去。然而，死亡是所有人最终共同的归宿，自古以来无人能逃脱。乔布斯指出，事情本该如此，因为死亡极有可能是生命中最棒的发明；它是生命完成新陈代谢的推动力量，负责清除陈旧腐朽的事物，从而为新生代腾出空间。他直视台下的毕业生说道，眼下他们正是那股充满生机的新生力量，但在不远的将来，他们也会渐渐变老并被历史淘汰清理。他半开玩笑地向听众致歉，说自己讲得也许有些过于戏剧化，但这确实是不可动摇的事实。正因人生短暂而终局注定，乔布斯告诫大家绝不能把光阴虚掷在模仿或承受他人的生活轨迹上。他敦促学生们不要被教条（Dogma）所禁锢，因为盲从教条本质上就是活在别人思考的产物之中。他特别提醒毕业生们，切莫让周围嘈杂的纷纭众议淹没自己内心的声音，而最关键的是要拥有追随本心与直觉的勇气。他指出，人的内心与直觉冥冥之中早就洞悉你真正渴望成为怎样的人，除此之外的所有外在杂音与世俗期待全都是次要的。正如乔布斯在演讲中所强调的那句掷地有声的警醒： “Your time is limited so don't waste it living someone else's life.” - **生命的变革推动者**：死亡负责代谢旧事物，为新事物开辟道路，维持生命的代际更迭。 - **摆脱教条的枷锁**：警惕被他人的思考结论与价值判定左右自己的人生抉择。 - **直觉与本心的指引**：人的心智和直觉远比外部世界的喧嚣更清楚自己真正的志向所在。 --- ### [12:52](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=772s) 《全球概览》与“求知若饥，虚心若愚”的毕业赠言乔布斯随后分享了影响他青年时代的一段深远记忆。在他年轻时，有一本名为《全球概览》（The Whole Earth Catalog）的非凡出版物，被他们那一代年轻人奉为精神圣经。该刊物由斯图尔特·布兰德（Stewart Brand）在距斯坦福大学不远的门洛帕克（Menlo Park）创办，布兰德凭借其诗意的情怀让这本刊物焕发出独特的生命力。那是在 20 世纪 60 年代末，个人电脑与桌面出版技术尚未诞生，整本刊物的排版与印制完全依赖打字机、剪刀和宝丽来（Polaroid）拍立得相机手工拼贴完成。乔布斯形容它就像是“35年前以平装书形式呈现的 Google”，充满了理想主义色彩，书中满载着各种灵巧好用的工具以及伟大的思想与洞见。斯图尔特和他的团队陆续推出了多期《全球概览》，当它走完全部历程后，团队在 20 世纪 70 年代中期出版了停刊号，而乔布斯当时恰好正处于台下毕业生的年龄。在那期停刊号的封底上印有一幅照片：清晨乡间一条蜿蜒的公路，正是那种如果你生性喜欢冒险、便会站在路旁伸出拇指等待搭便车的乡间公路。在画面下方，写着编辑团队最后留下的告别寄语：“Stay hungry, stay foolish”（求知若饥，虚心若愚）。乔布斯动情地回忆，自那时起，他便一直以此句作为自己的座右铭和人生期许。面对即将迈出校门、开启崭新人生阶段的斯坦福毕业生们，他将这句铭刻一生的箴言作为最终的临别赠礼送给大家。乔布斯在演讲的尾声动情地嘱托： “Stay hungry, stay foolish and I have always wished that for myself, and now as you graduate to begin anew, I wish that for you.” - **《全球概览》（The Whole Earth Catalog）的时代背景**：20 世纪 60 年代末由 Stewart Brand 在 Menlo Park 创刊，采用打字机、剪刀和宝丽来相机手工拼版，堪称纸质平装版的 Google。 - **停刊号封底意象**：清晨可供冒险者搭便车的乡间公路，象征探索未知的前路。 - **终极告别箴言**：“Stay hungry, stay foolish”（保持饥饿，保持愚蠢 / 求知若饥，虚心若愚）。 ## Notable quotes > [11:43](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=703s) Your time is limited so don't waste it living someone else's life. — Steve Jobs > [05:22](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=322s) And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. — Steve Jobs > [08:52](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=532s) Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart. — Steve Jobs > [00:39](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA&t=39s) Again, you can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. — Steve Jobs ## Mentioned Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, David Packard, Robert Noyce, Laurene Powell Jobs, Stewart Brand, Apple, Macintosh, NeXT, Pixar, Google, Windows, 里德学院 (Reed College), 斯坦福大学 (Stanford University), 哈瑞·奎师那神庙 (Hare Krishna Temple), 《玩具总动员》 (Toy Story), 《全球概览》 (The Whole Earth Catalog) ## Video description Here we see Steve Jobs delivering his commencement speech to the graduates of Stanford University in 2005. In it he talks about getting fired from Apple in 1985, life & death [Source](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1R-jKKp3NA)

Source quotes

[11:43] Steve Jobs: Your time is limited so don't waste it living someone else's life. [5:22] Steve Jobs: And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. [8:52] Steve Jobs: Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart. [0:39] Steve Jobs: Again, you can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future.

Source quotes

[8:48] Steve Jobs: Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. [5:22] Steve Jobs: Your work is going to fill a large part of your life and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work and the only way to do great work is to love what you do. [11:43] Steve Jobs: have the courage to follow your heart and intuition; they somehow already know what you truly want to become.

Original transcript

[0:00] [Applause] [0:06] thank [0:11] you I'm uh honored to be with you today [0:14] for your commencement from one of the [0:15] finest universities in the [0:18] [Applause] [0:19] world truth be [0:22] told uh I never graduated from [0:25] college and uh this is the closest I've [0:28] ever gotten to a college graduation [0:32] today I want to tell you three stories [0:34] from my life that's it no big deal just [0:38] three [0:39] stories the first story is about [0:42] connecting the [0:44] dots I dropped out of Reed College after [0:47] the first six months but then stayed [0:49] around as a drop in for another 18 [0:51] months or so before I really [0:53] quit so why' I drop [0:56] out it started before I was born [1:00] my biological mother was a young unwed [1:02] graduate student and she decided to put [1:05] me up for [1:06] adoption she felt very strongly that I [1:08] should be adopted by college graduates [1:10] so everything was all set for me to be [1:13] adopted at Birth by a lawyer and his [1:15] wife except that when I popped out they [1:18] decided at the last minute that they [1:20] really wanted a [1:21] girl so my parents who were on a waiting [1:24] list got a call in the middle of the [1:26] night asking we've got an unexpected [1:29] baby boy boy do you want him they said [1:33] of [1:34] course my biological mother found out [1:37] later that my mother had never graduated [1:39] from college and that my father had [1:41] never graduated from high school she [1:44] refused to sign the final adoption [1:47] papers she only relented a few months [1:49] later when my parents promised that I [1:52] would go to college this was the start [1:55] in my [1:57] life and 17 years later [2:00] I did go to college but I naively chose [2:03] a college that was almost as expensive [2:05] as [2:06] Stanford and all of my workingclass [2:08] parents savings were being spent on my [2:10] college [2:11] tuition after 6 months I couldn't see [2:14] the value in it I had no idea what I [2:16] wanted to do with my life and no idea [2:19] how College was going to help me figure [2:20] it out and here I was spending all the [2:23] money my parents had saved their entire [2:26] life so I decided to drop out and Trust [2:29] the it would all work out okay it was [2:32] pretty scary at the time but looking [2:34] back it was one of the best decisions I [2:36] ever [2:37] made the minute I dropped out I could [2:41] stop taking the required classes that [2:43] didn't interest me and begin dropping in [2:45] on the ones that looked far more [2:48] interesting it wasn't all romantic I [2:51] didn't have a dorm room so I slept on [2:53] the floor in friends rooms I returned [2:55] Coke bottles for the 5-cent deposits to [2:58] buy food with and I would walk the seven [3:00] miles across town every Sunday night to [3:03] get one good meal a week at the Hari [3:05] Krishna Temple I loved it and much of [3:09] what I stumbled into by following my [3:11] curiosity and intuition turned out to be [3:13] Priceless later on let me give you one [3:16] example Reed College at that time [3:19] offered perhaps the best calligraphy [3:21] instruction in the country throughout [3:23] the campus every poster every label on [3:26] every drawer was beautifully hand [3:28] calligraphed because I had dropped out [3:31] and didn't have to take the normal [3:33] classes I decided to take a calligraphy [3:35] class to learn how to do this I learned [3:38] about serif and Sans serif type faces [3:41] about varying the amount of space [3:42] between different letter combinations [3:44] about what makes great typography [3:47] great it was beautiful historical [3:50] artistically subtle in a way that [3:52] science can't capture and I found it [3:55] fascinating none of this had even a hope [3:58] of any practical application [4:00] in my [4:01] life but 10 years later when we were [4:04] designing the first Macintosh computer [4:06] it all came back to me and we designed [4:08] it all into the Mac it was the first [4:11] computer with beautiful [4:13] typography if I had never dropped in on [4:15] that single course in college the Mac [4:18] would have never had multiple type faces [4:19] or proportionally spaced fonts and since [4:22] Windows just copied the Mac it's likely [4:24] that no personal computer would have [4:26] them [4:34] if I had never dropped out I would have [4:36] never dropped in on that calligraphy [4:38] class and personal computers might not [4:40] have the wonderful typography that they [4:42] do of course it was impossible to [4:44] connect the dots looking forward when I [4:46] was in college but it was very very [4:48] clear looking backwards 10 years later [4:51] again you can't connect the dots looking [4:54] forward you can only connect them [4:56] looking backwards so you have to trust [4:58] that the dots will somehow now connect [5:00] in your future you have to trust in [5:02] something your gut Destiny Life Karma [5:05] whatever because believing that the dots [5:07] will connect down the road will give you [5:10] the confidence to follow your heart even [5:12] when it leads you off the well-worn path [5:15] and that will make all the [5:22] difference my second story is about love [5:26] and [5:27] loss I was lucky I found what I Lov to [5:31] do early in life W and I started Apple [5:34] in my parents garage when I was 20 we [5:36] worked hard and in 10 years Apple had [5:38] grown from Just the Two of Us in a [5:40] garage into A2 billion company with over [5:42] 4,000 employees we just released our [5:45] finest creation the Macintosh a year [5:48] earlier and I just turned [5:49] 30 and then I got [5:52] fired how can you get fired from a [5:54] company you [5:56] started well as Apple grew we hired [5:59] someone who I thought was very talented [6:01] to run the company with me and for the [6:03] first year or so things went well but [6:05] then our visions of the future began to [6:07] diverge and eventually we had a falling [6:09] out when we did our board of directors [6:12] sided with him and so at 30 I was out [6:15] and very publicly out what had been the [6:18] focus of my entire adult life was gone [6:20] and it was [6:22] devastating I really didn't know what to [6:24] do for a few months I felt that IID let [6:26] the previous generation of entrepreneurs [6:28] down that I dropped the Baton as it was [6:30] being passed to me I met with David [6:33] Packard and Bob noise and tried to [6:36] apologize for screwing up so badly I was [6:39] a very public failure and I even thought [6:41] about running away from the valley but [6:43] something slowly began to dawn on me I [6:46] still loved what I [6:48] did the turn of events at Apple had not [6:51] changed that one bit I'd been rejected [6:54] but I was still in [6:55] love and so I decided to start [6:58] over I I didn't see it then but it [7:01] turned out that getting fired from Apple [7:02] was the best thing that could have ever [7:04] happened to me the heaviness of being [7:06] successful was replaced by the lightness [7:09] of being a beginner again less sure [7:11] about everything it freed me to enter [7:13] one of the most creative periods of my [7:14] life during the next five years I [7:17] started a company named next another [7:19] company named Pixar and fell in love [7:21] with an amazing woman who would become [7:22] my wife Pixar went on to create the [7:25] world's first computer animated feature [7:27] film Toy Story and is now the most [7:29] successful Animation Studio in the [7:33] world in a remarkable turn of events [7:36] Apple bought next and I returned to [7:38] Apple and the technology we developed at [7:41] next is at the heart of Apple's current [7:43] Renaissance and Loren and I have a [7:45] wonderful family [7:47] together I'm pretty sure none of this [7:50] would have happened if I hadn't been [7:51] fired from Apple it was awful tasting [7:53] medicine but I guess the patient needed [7:55] it sometime life sometimes life's going [7:58] to hit you in the head with a brick [8:00] don't lose faith I'm convinced that the [8:03] only thing that kept me going was that I [8:05] loved what I did you've got to find what [8:08] you love and that is as true for work as [8:10] it is for your lovers your work is going [8:13] to fill a large part of your life and [8:15] the only way to be truly satisfied is to [8:17] do what you believe is great work and [8:19] the only way to do great work is to love [8:22] what you do if you haven't found it yet [8:25] keep looking and don't settle as with [8:28] all matters of the heart [8:29] you'll know when you find it and like [8:32] any great relationship it just gets [8:34] better and better as the years roll on [8:36] so keep looking don't [8:42] [Applause] [8:48] settle my third story is about [8:52] death when I was 17 I read a quote that [8:55] went something like if you live each day [8:58] as if it was your last someday you'll [9:00] most certainly be [9:04] right it made an impression on me and [9:07] since then for the past 33 years I have [9:10] looked in the mirror every morning and [9:11] asked myself if today were the last day [9:14] of my life would I want to do what I am [9:16] about to do today and whenever the [9:19] answer has been no for too many days in [9:21] a row I know I need to change [9:24] something remembering that I'll be dead [9:26] soon is the most important tool I've [9:28] ever encountered to help me make the big [9:30] choices in life because almost [9:33] everything all external expectations all [9:36] Pride all fear of embarrassment or [9:38] failure these things just fall away in [9:41] the face of death leaving only what is [9:43] truly important remembering that you are [9:46] going to die is the best way I know to [9:49] avoid the Trap of thinking you have [9:50] something to lose you are already naked [9:54] there is no reason not to follow your [9:57] heart about a year ago [9:59] I was diagnosed with cancer I had a scan [10:03] at 7:30 in the morning and it clearly [10:05] showed a tumor on my pancreas I didn't [10:08] even know what a pancreas was the [10:10] doctors told me this was almost [10:12] certainly a type of cancer that is [10:14] incurable and that I should expect to [10:16] live no longer than 3 to 6 months my [10:20] doctor advised me to go home and get my [10:23] Affairs in order which is doctor's code [10:26] for prepare to die it means to try and [10:29] tell your kids [10:30] everything you thought you'd have the [10:32] next 10 years to tell them in just a few [10:35] months it means to make sure everything [10:37] is buttoned up so that it will be as [10:39] easy as possible for your family it [10:42] means to say your [10:44] goodbyes I live with that diagnosis all [10:47] day later that evening I had a biopsy [10:50] where they stuck an endoscope down my [10:52] throat through my stomach and into my [10:54] intestines put a needle into my pancreas [10:57] and got a few cells from the tumor [10:59] I was sedated but my wife who was there [11:02] told me that when they viewed the cells [11:04] under a microscope the doctor started [11:06] crying because it turned out to be a [11:08] very rare form of pancreatic cancer that [11:11] is curable with surgery I had the [11:13] surgery and thankfully I'm fine [11:24] now this was the closest I've been to [11:26] facing death and I hope it's the closest [11:28] I get for a few more decades having [11:31] lived through it I can now say this to [11:33] you with a bit more certainty than when [11:35] death was a useful but purely [11:37] intellectual [11:39] concept no one wants to die even people [11:43] who want to go to heaven don't want to [11:44] die to get there and yet death is the [11:48] destination we all share no one has ever [11:51] escaped it and that is as it should be [11:54] because death is very likely the single [11:57] best invention of life it's life's [11:59] change agent it clears out the old to [12:02] make way for the new right now the new [12:05] is you but someday not too long from now [12:08] you will gradually become the old and be [12:10] cleared away sorry to be so dramatic but [12:14] it's quite [12:15] true your time is limited so don't waste [12:19] it living someone else's life don't be [12:22] trapped by Dogma which is living with [12:24] the results of other people's thinking [12:27] don't let the noise of others opinion [12:29] drowned out your own inner voice and [12:31] most important have the courage to [12:33] follow your heart and intuition they [12:36] somehow already know what you truly want [12:38] to become everything else is [12:45] [Applause] [12:52] secondary when I was young there was an [12:55] amazing publication called the whole [12:58] earth catalog which was one of the [13:00] Bibles of my generation it was created [13:03] by a fellow named Stuart brand not far [13:05] from here in Meno Park and he brought it [13:07] to life with his poetic touch this was [13:10] in the late 60s before personal [13:12] computers and desktop publishing so it [13:14] was all made with typewriters scissors [13:17] and Polaroid cameras it was sort of like [13:19] Google in paperback form 35 years before [13:22] Google came along it was idealistic [13:25] overflowing with neat tools and great [13:27] Notions [13:29] Stuart and his team put out several [13:31] issues of the whole earth catalog and [13:33] then when it had run its course they put [13:35] out a final issue it was the mid1 1970s [13:39] and I was your [13:41] age on the back cover of their final [13:44] issue was a photograph of an early [13:46] morning Country Road the kind you might [13:49] find yourself hitchhiking on if you were [13:51] so [13:52] adventurous beneath it were the words [13:55] stay hungry stay foolish it was their [13:58] farewell message as they signed off stay [14:01] hungry stay foolish and I have always [14:05] wished that for [14:06] myself and now as you graduate to begin [14:10] a new I wish that for you stay hungry [14:14] stay foolish thank you all very much