The Apple Attitude

Stay hungry. Stay foolish. — Steve Jobs

Action Item:
Embrace the “Apple Attitude” and reject the status quo. “Think different” and enjoy a life of fulfillment and joy!

by Neissa Springmann

I feel confident to suggest that Steve Jobs will go down as one of the greatest innovators and creative minds of our time. His ability to “think different” single-handedly influenced our culture. He revolutionized technology and created gadgets that are enjoyed by every gender and generation–something that cannot be said about most things. Thanks to him, at the click of a button, we can enjoy our favorite music and can easily communicate with our friends and family around the entire world. He made it cool to own Apple products and for consumers like myself, whose family now owns a Mac computer, iPhones and iPad, we love Apple and will never use anything else. Steve Jobs is a genius, however I’m certain that if he were alive he’d claim the opposite. In fact, he’s a college drop out who slept on his friends floors, was dirt poor and captivated by calligraphy. By today’s standards, he’d be considered an underachiever.

As you will see in this week’s video, what made Steve Jobs a genius was his fearless spirit to “think different”. He even remained

iGniters at Molly’s 6 PM Cross Training class sprinting Pease Park hill after a long workout.

passionate to pursue his dreams when he was fired from his own company! Honestly, I’m not sure I would be motivated to persevere if I was fired from iGnite. Chances are I’d have a bad attitude and give up, but not Steve Jobs. He persevered, continued to think outside of the box, and believed in his visions.

So, how do we channel Steve Jobs’ spirit and carry out his legacy? I can’t speak for you, but I’m almost certain I will not invent life changing technology, but I am going to enthusiastically adopt the “Apple Attitude” and “think different.” For example, last Friday morning I walked my son Durant in the jog stroller and as we turned down the street to head home, I decided to run. About twenty yards from my house I felt myself wanting to stop. It was also at that time I heard my “think different” conscience tell my status quo conscience, “Why in the world would you stop when you are so close to finishing? You have two legs and you aren’t sick, so FINISH!” So I did.

All of us have different status quo moments and the true challenge will be for each of us to pause and ask ourselves:

Am I really tired?
Have I given it my best effort?
Am I pursuing my best life?

After watching videos and reading about Steve Jobs I now understand why he was so incredibly successful. Of course he was a brilliant mind, but most important was his brilliant “Apple Attitude,” which has already helped me and I hope it’ll do the same for you. Enjoy his inspirational words and here’s to living an enthusiastic “Apple Attitude” life! Look at this week’s Weekly Intention Guide to help with your goal-setting this week.