喬布斯給出的最佳建議

文/阿爾普·米馬爾奧盧 譯/毛思玉

全世界的創業者都崇拜史蒂夫·喬布斯，理由也相當充分——他果敢而富有遠見，徹底顛覆了科技行業。時至今日，即使史蒂夫·喬布斯已逝世多年，人們仍然認為他是值得效仿的榜樣。他提供的寶貴建議將有助于指導下一代革新者。

要想成功，就要找到自己熱愛的工作

2在2007 年的D5 大會上，一名聽眾問史蒂夫·喬布斯，對于創建有價值的公司，如果只給創業者提出一條建議，他會提哪一條。喬布斯直截了當地回答：要想成功，你就要對自己正在從事的工作充滿熱情。

3在給出答復時，喬布斯承認其實這條建議早已人盡皆知且獲得普遍認同。他的真知灼見在接下來的一番話里，他解釋了為何成功取決于熱愛你所做之事——因為這是堅持下去的唯一途徑。

4正如喬布斯所說的那樣，創業并非易事。要想成功，你必須勤奮努力，并且在很長一段時間內堅持不懈地克服一再出現的挑戰。面對持續不斷的挑戰，大多數人會放棄。但那些熱愛自己所做之事的人會堅持下去，因為他們的動力來自內在熱情而不是外部獎勵。

讓好奇心和直覺引導你

52005 年，史蒂夫·喬布斯在斯坦福大學畢業典禮上發表演講，他強調了相信自己的直覺以及追隨自己的好奇心的重要性。喬布斯鼓勵學生追求自身興趣，即便這些興趣在當時看來似乎不切實際。他認為自己的成功在很大程度上要歸功于這條人生哲理。

6為了說明這一點，喬布斯舉了他從里德學院退學的例子。退學后，喬布斯無須再擔心是否能達到特定的課程要求，于是他可以自由地旁聽任何他感興趣的課程。

7例如，喬布斯上了一門書法課。他覺得這門課很有趣，但在當時似乎沒有什么實際意義。直到后來回顧自己的人生時，喬布斯才意識到書法課的重要性——這門課讓他深入理解了精妙的排印學，后來他把課上所學都用在了設計麥金塔計算機上。

8喬布斯相信，好奇心和直覺都是值得信賴的向導。即使你看不到每一個決定通向何方，你也必須相信好奇心和直覺會引導你沿著正確的道路前進。

忽略他人的期望

9史蒂夫·喬布斯多次建議人們忽略別人強加的限制，專注創造自己的生活。1994 年，在接受圣克拉拉谷歷史協會的采訪時，喬布斯談到社會上條條框框的錯誤本質，并表示他認為人們應該質疑這些限制。他相信，如果人們愿意挑戰現狀，他們就有能力改變自己和他人的人生。

10在斯坦福大學的畢業典禮演講中，史蒂夫·喬布斯重申了這一點。他說：“時間有限，不要虛擲光陰過別人的生活。不要讓條條框框束縛自己，否則你只能依附于別人思考的結果。不要讓周遭的聒噪言論淹沒你內心的聲音。最重要的是，你要有勇氣追隨自己的內心和直覺，因為這二者在冥冥之中早已知曉你真正想成為什么樣的人，其他所有事都是次要的?！?/p>

克服對失敗的恐懼，做行動家

111994 年，在接受圣克拉拉谷歷史協會的采訪時，史蒂夫·喬布斯談到了失敗。采訪中，喬布斯描述了他在自己位于加州帕洛阿爾托的家中，給惠普公司聯合創始人比爾·休利特打電話的情景。當時只有12 歲的喬布斯想要制造一個計頻器，于是打電話給休利特問他是否有備件。休利特不僅給了喬布斯所需的器件，還在次年夏天雇他在惠普工廠的裝配線上組裝計頻器。

12喬布斯用這個例子來說明，只有當你愿意采取行動追求你想要的東西時，成功才會到來。喬布斯沒有害怕休利特的回應，也沒有找借口，而是試著碰碰運氣，結果就如愿以償了。在采訪中，喬布斯說：“這就是行動家與夢想家的區別：你必須行動起來，你必須愿意接受失敗?！?/p>

牢記期限

13史蒂夫·喬布斯明白不斷意識到自己死期將至是什么感覺。2003 年，他第一次被診斷出患有癌癥，但直到2011 年10 月才因病逝世。然而，早在確診患癌之前，喬布斯就明白，每一天都很重要，因為我們在這個星球上的時間是有限的。

14喬布斯在2005 年的畢業典禮演講中傳達了這一寶貴的人生智慧。在演講中，喬布斯稱他在17 歲時讀到了對他一生都具有指導意義的一句話。那句話是這樣說的：“把每一天都當成生命中的最后一天，總有一天你會如愿以償?！?/p>

15喬布斯接著解釋了這句話如何影響了他的人生。他說：“從那時起，在過去的33 年里，我每天早上都會對著鏡子問自己：‘如果今天是此生最后一日，我愿意做我今天要做的事嗎？’每當連續很多天我都回答‘不愿意’，我就知道我必須有所改變了?！?/p>

16喬布斯進一步解釋了這種做法的重要性?！疤嵝炎约嚎焖懒?，這是我用過的最重要的、能幫我做出重大人生決策的方法。因為幾乎所有事——所有外界期望、所有驕傲之心、所有對困窘或失敗的恐懼，都會在死亡面前消失，只有真正重要的東西才會留下。提醒自己快死了，這是我所知道的、避免掉入畏懼失去的陷阱里最好的方法。你已然了無牽掛，沒理由不順心而為?！?□

Entrepreneurs all over the globe admire Steve Jobs, and for good reason; he was a bold visionary who completely revolutionized the tech industry.Even today, many years after his death,people still consider Steve Jobs a role model worth emulating. The valuable advice he provided will help guide the next generation of innovators.

To be successful, find work you’re passionate about

2During the D5 Conference in 2007,an audience member asked Steve Jobs what single piece of advice he would give entrepreneurs on building valuable companies. Jobs answered the question plainly: in order to be successful,you must be passionate about the work you’re doing.

3In giving his answer, Jobs acknowledged the fact that this piece of advice is widely circulated and generally regarded as true. The real insight came when Jobs explained the reason success is dependent upon loving what you do—because that’s the only way you’ll persevere.

4As Jobs explained, building a business is not an easy task. To be successful, you must work hard and overcome repeated challenges over a long period of time without giving up. When faced with these ongoing challenges, most people will quit. But those who love what they’re doing will persevere because they’re driven by their passion,not by external rewards.

Let your curiosity and intuition lead you

5In his commencement address at Stanford University in 2005, Steve Jobs emphasized the importance of trusting your gut and following your curiosity.Jobs encouraged students to pursue their interests, even if they seem impractical at the time. He believed that much of his success could be attributed to this philosophy.

6To illustrate this point, Jobs described what happened after he dropped out of Reed College. Since he no longer had to worry about meeting specific course requirements, Jobs was free to audit whatever class piqued his interest.

7For example, Jobs took a class on calligraphy. He found the class fascinating but at the time it seemed to serve no practical purpose. It was only later,in looking back on his life, that Jobs recognized the importance of that calligraphy class; it gave him an understanding of great typography which he later applied when designing the Macintosh computer.

8Jobs believed that curiosity and intuition are trustworthy guides. Even if you can’t see where each decision is leading, you must have faith that your curiosity and intuition are guiding you along the right path.

Ignore the expectations of others

9Steve Jobs repeatedly advised people to ignore the limitations imposed by others and create their own lives. In a 1994 interview with The Santa Clara Valley Historical Association, Jobs discussed the false nature of society’s boundaries and stated his belief that people should question those limitations. He believed that people have the power to changes lives—their own and those of others—if they’re willing to challenge the status quo.

10Steve Jobs reiterated this point in his Stanford commencement address.In it, he said, “Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma—which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.”

Overcome the fear of failure and take action

11Steve Jobs discussed failure in his 1994 interview with The Santa Clara Valley Historical Association. In the interview, Jobs describes calling Bill Hewlett,the co-founder of Hewlett-Packard, at his home in Palo Alto, California. Jobs—who was only 12 years old at the time—called to ask if Hewlett had any spare parts he could use to build a frequency counter. Hewlett not only gave Jobs the parts he requested, he also hired him to work on the assembly line building frequency counters the following summer.12Jobs used this example to demonstrate that success only comes when you’re willing to take action and go after what you want. Instead of fearing Hewlett’s response and making excuses,Jobs took a chance—one that paid off.In the interview, Jobs states, “That’s what separates the people that do things from the people that just dream about them: you’ve got to act and you’ve got to be willing to fail.”

Remember there’s a deadline

13Steve Jobs knew what it was like to be constantly aware of your own mortality. He was first diagnosed with cancer in 2003 but didn’t succumb to the disease until October of 2011. But even before his diagnosis, Jobs understood that every day is important because our time on this planet is limited.

14Jobs relayed this valuable piece of wisdom during his 2005 commencement address. In it, Jobs describes how at the age of 17, he read a quote that would provide guidance throughout his life. The quote was, “If you live each day as if it was your last, someday you’ll most certainly be right.”

15Jobs then illustrated how this quote helped shape his life by saying, “Since then, for the past 33 years, I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: ‘If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?’ And whenever the answer has been ‘No’ for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something.”

16Jobs further explained the significance of this practice. “Remembering that I’ll be dead soon is the most important tool I’ve ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life.Because almost everything—all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure—these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. 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.” ■