Legacies Last Forever, Even If People Don’t

Lovers of Apple products, Pixar Films and American innovation mourned on Wednesday when it was announced that Steve Jobs had passed away. While his death wasn’t a surprise as he had battled health issues for years, the way the world responded was downright moving. His name dominated Twitter and everybody from former rivals to the President of the United States had something to say about him. Even with our widespread corporate distrust and increasingly low tolerance for big business CEOs, Jobs did something as a human being and as a brand that endured him to consumers hearts. He never stopped trying to make his brand better.

Jobs’ never-ending mission to expand his line of products and to put technology in the hands of everyday people couldn’t have helped his health very much. Famous for his workaholic demeanor and endless energy, Jobs only permanently stepped down from Apple in August. Jobs often took hits for his company’s high product price point but in a defining moment he responded, “There’s some stuff in our industry that we wouldn’t be proud to ship — that we wouldn’t be proud to recommend to our family and friends — and we can’t do it,” Jobs said. “We just can’t ship junk.” The push from Jobs to come out with better and easier to use products and software is something he was committed to even up until a few months ago.

But cancer, as it usually is, was stronger than Jobs’ will to persevere in the face of adversity. What Steve Jobs leaves behind is an inspiration for marketers and everymen alike. While tweeting for business or cooking up the latest online marketing plan for a client, we’d be wise to remember that Steve Jobs schlepped and got rejected and worked his ass off once upon a time too. It also wouldn’t hurt to consider that if we try really hard maybe we’ll be remembered for changing the way people think or for making someone’s life a little bit easier or better. All we have to do is keep moving and never give up. Perhaps the man himself expressed this sentiment best when he said: “I think if you do something and it turns out pretty good, then you should go do something else wonderful, not dwell on it for too long. Just figure out what’s next.”