Steve Jobs is not only the co-founder of Apple, which is, without a doubt, one of the most important and life-changing technology companies in human history, but he is also an entrepreneurial icon who has significantly influenced modern society with his success, innovation, and skills. 

Jobs cofounded Apple in his parent’s garage in 1976, was fired from his own company in 1985, and came back to rescue it from bankruptcy in 1997. He built it into one of the world’s most valuable companies, transforming several industries, including computing, music, phones, stores, and many more. Aside from that, he overcame many obstacles and used those experiences to create a philosophy about work, life, and creativity.

Steve Jobs famous quotes

His qualities and unique approach to business played a key role in his success. In his famous 2005 commencement speech at Stanford University, Jobs said, “The only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle.”

He was known for his approach to cutting out projects or ideas that didn’t align with his vision. “It’s only by saying ‘no’ that you can focus on what really matters,” he said.

Steve also was eager to overcome any challenge through innovation. To him, failure wasn’t the end of the road, but rather an opportunity to learn and improve. “Let’s go invent tomorrow rather than worrying about what happened yesterday”, he famously said.

This highlights a core principle that shaped his journey and that of countless other entrepreneurs. Success often isn’t just about having the right ideas, connections, or even the initial funding; it’s about resilience—the ability to keep pushing forward despite setbacks, challenges, and failures.

Perseverance, in Jobs’ view, was a distinguishing factor because it meant not giving up when things got tough. The road to success for an entrepreneur is rarely smooth, and the ability to persevere is often what separates those who eventually succeed from those who don’t.

“I’m convinced that about half of what separates the successful entrepreneurs from the non-successful ones is pure perseverance”, Steve Jobs said, who belongs to the list of America’s great innovators, along with Thomas Edison, Henry Ford, and Walt Disney.