More than four decades after Apple's initial public offering, the company is now valued at $4 trillion. However, its journey was far from smooth, and co-founder Steve Jobs himself faced near-bankruptcy and was famously ousted from Apple in 1985. Yet, what kept Jobs going was his love for his work. According to a report by Fortune, Jobs shared a simple career lesson with Stanford students in a 2005 commencement speech: do the work you love.
Steve Jobs' Speech to Stanford Students
During the speech, Jobs recalled that after being fired from Apple, the only thing that helped him sustain was his passion for his craft. "I'm convinced that the only thing that kept me going was that I loved what I did. 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," he said. He urged graduates: "If you haven't found it yet, keep looking—and don't settle. As with all matters of the heart, you'll know when you find it."
A Lesson for Gen Z from Steve Jobs
The advice given by Jobs resonates today, as many Gen Z professionals face uncertainty in a labor market disrupted by artificial intelligence. His story is also a reminder that sustainable success comes from pursuing careers rooted in passion, not in short-term gains. Jobs' own journey exemplifies this: after leaving Apple, he entered one of the "most creative periods" of his life, founding NeXT and revamping Pixar. He eventually returned to Apple in 1997, leading the company through its renaissance with products like the iPod, iPhone, and MacBook.
Jobs on Money and Motivation
Despite amassing billions, Jobs insisted money was never his motivation. "I never did it for the money," he told PBS in 1996. His devotion to technology began as a teenager when he cold-called Hewlett-Packard co-founder Bill Hewlett for spare parts—a bold move that landed him his first job in tech.
When Apple Surpassed Microsoft in Market Cap
On May 26, 2010, Apple crossed a milestone that would have seemed far-fetched just a decade earlier: its market cap surpassed Microsoft's at the close of trading. Steve Jobs marked the moment with a brief, characteristically unsentimental email to the entire company. "As most of you already know, at the close of today's stock market, Apple's market cap surpassed Microsoft's market cap," Jobs wrote at 5:59 p.m. He acknowledged it was worth a pause, quoting himself from an older company email: stocks go up and down, things may be different tomorrow, but today deserved a moment of reflection. Then he moved on almost immediately. Jobs reached for a Walt Disney line to frame what the milestone actually meant—and what it didn't. Disney reportedly told his team: "We're only as good as our next picture." Jobs adapted it without much embellishment: "We're only as good as our next amazing new product." The email closed with three words: "Back to work."
