The Chilling Hidden Message in Steve Jobs’ Final Email You Totally Missed
Ever wonder what happens when the merciless tech titan behind one of the world’s most valuable companies decides to get all Shakespeare on us? Steve Jobs—the legendary co-founder of Apple—might have been infamous for his steely negotiation chops and “not the nicest guy” persona, but deep down, he had a soft spot that’s as surprising as finding a poet at a bar mitzvah. While Apple’s value skyrocketed past $3 trillion and Ronald Wayne kicked himself for selling his shares for a mere $800 back in ’76 (ouch, right?), Jobs penned a soulful email in 2010, laying bare the interconnectedness of human achievement with a touch of poetic flair. So, was this a genius CEO’s humble nod to the giants whose shoulders he stood on, or a tech mogul’s way of penning a love letter to humanity—typed out on the very device he created? Spoiler alert: It’s a bit of both, and it might just make you think twice about that iPad in your hands… or at least give you a new appreciation for Jobs’ multifaceted genius. LEARN MORE
Steve Jobs will always be a huge name in history having founded Apple, one of the biggest tech companies in the world.
The company, which is now valued at well over $3 trillion, was thought up by Jobs, Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne. Wayne sold his stake in the company for just $800 back in 1976. Ouch.
Despite his reputation as being a tough negotiator, with one former colleague describing him as ‘not a nice man‘, Jobs clearly had a sensitive side as well.
When he wasn’t using his beer test to interview prospective candidates or asking tough questions of his Apple employees, it seems he had a fondness for poetry, going off one of the last emails he ever sent himself.
Jobs was a tech whiz but also not a bad poet (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
He wrote the email back in September 2010, just over a year before his death in October 2011 following a pancreatic cancer diagnosis.
It said: “I grow little of the food I eat, and of the little I do grow
“I did not breed or perfect the seeds.
“I do not make any of my own clothing.
“I speak a language I did not invent or refine.
“I did not discover the mathematics I use.
“I am protected by freedoms and laws I did not conceive
of or legislate, and do not enforce or adjudicate.
“I am moved by music I did not create myself.
“When I needed medical attention, I was helpless
to help myself survive.
“I did not invent the transistor, the microprocessor,
object oriented programming, or most of the technology I work with.
“I love and admire my species, living and dead, and am
totally dependent on them for my life and well being.”
Now, if you can think back to your English literature classes at school, you can probably find a potential hidden meaning within the poem, and it’s nothing to do with pathetic fallacy.
It seems to me at least that while Jobs is reflecting upon the many things he did in his life, he is suggesting that greater minds than himself helped to establish fundamental aspects of life such as health treatment, mathematics and languages.
However, the little note, sent from my iPad, which no doubt will have been one of the first off the shelves given it was sold for the first time that year, perhaps reminds the reader (which was of course Jobs himself), that he did have a rather big say in creating the thing which he sent the poem from.
Steve Jobs’ poem (Reddit)
We all need some words of affirmation and self love sometimes and Jobs perhaps used these words to remind himself of everything he achieved with Apple, having also lived with cancer for several years at that point.
Users on Reddit certainly seem to agree with that point, with several suggesting similar arguments which would hopefully get you full marks in an English literature essay question.
One user wrote: “Sharing the above sentiments regarding appreciation of human race accomplishments via a piece of technology that culminates so much human effort from such a wide range of fields.”
Another posted: “It’s his small commentary on his contribution to the world.”
A third said: “It’s him giving back. Honouring what others have done for him by doing something himself.”
There’s no doubt that there’s plenty of people who think their lives would be worse off without an Apple device, as I write this from one of my own, so I’m glad that Jobs’ genius helped to create the technology many of us use on a daily basis, even if it also means kids screaming for their iPads in restaurants these days.
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