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Steve Jobs

by Chris Siaweleski from San Diego

Steve Jobs ( (http://betanews.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/AppleSteveJobsLogo.jpg))
Steve Jobs ( (http://betanews.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/AppleSteveJobsLogo.jpg))

"Sometimes when you innovate, you make mistakes. It is best to admit them quickly, and get on with improving your other innovations. (Qtd. Jobs)." These words were spoken by a great man, Steve Jobs. Steve Jobs was born on February 24th, 1955 in San Francisco, California. Steve Jobs was adopted before his biological parents could name him.  Steve Jobs was adopted by a California family, Paul and Carla Jobs. He did not take school seriously. He liked to play pranks on his class mates.  He was always interested in technology. He loved taking apart the family TV and re-assembling it. Soon it became a hobby to dismantle electronics and put them back together again. Steve didn't find any interest in his college work and thought he could be better off without it. In 1972 Jobs entered Reed College in Portland, Oregon, but his college career was short-lived. He only attended college for 18 months.  In 1974 he went to work at Atari as a video designer. Soon after he decided to travel to India.  At the age of twenty-one, Steve along with a friend, Steve Wozniak, built a personnel computer called the Apple I. Steve Jobs invested into a small company called Apple in 1976. Shortly after in 1986 Steve brought a company after the title of Pixar Animations. In the year of 1986 Jobs Bought Pixar Animation Studios. In 1995 Pixar released the animated feature, Toy Story.. Steve Rejoined Apple as consultant to CEO in 1996. Shortly after coming back Jobs became CEO of Apple Computer Company in 2000. Steve Jobs was a great man of his time. He was a brave man that always made sure him and his industries made money. Jobs was a perfectionist, he never took no for an answer. He made sure he was always on top. Steve was a great manager he would always make sure his employees where up to date with his newsiest inventions until his very last days.  In 2003 Steve Jobs was diagnosed with Pancreatic Cancer. He decided to explore alternative medications instead of opting for regular surgery. He lost his battle to cancer on October 5, 2011.

Steve Jobs was not afraid to spend his money and invest in an industry or a product to help make him money. He was adventurous and willing to take a risk. Steve Jobs invested in a computer company called Apple. Apple started off as a small business. Soon inventing the first ever non-business computer, meaning everyone can utilize it for everything. "Jobs and Wozniak put together their first computer, called the Apple I. They marketed it in 1976 at a price of $666. Jobs was marketing the Apple I to hobbyists like members of the Homebrew Computer Club who could now perform their own operations on their personal computers. Jobs and Wozniak managed to earn $774,000 from the sales of the Apple I." (Lee, Angelelli.) Just off of the first ever Apple computer, Jobs and Wozniak managed to make thousands while accomplishing to make a name for themselves in the industry.  Steve jobs never took anything for granted.  He was constantly looking for ways to make his industry better and also kept his customers pleased. Jobs constantly took risks on everything he did. He invested thousands upon thousands of dollars to try and make every piece of his inventions more and more unique. "In 1986 he purchased Pixar Animation Studios for $10 million. Jobs over the years invested another $40 to $50 million of his own funds in the project and by 1995, releasing the move Toy Story, the first-ever full-length computer-animated film. The movie was a blockbuster and drove Pixar stock up, making Jobs' share worth $1 billion." "(Steve Jobs." Newsmakers.) Steve Jobs not knowing what he got himself into when investing $10 million dollars into Pixar took a gamble and paid off when his one of his big movies came out and made him up to $1 billion dollars. Soon after Steve Jobs invested in Pixar Animation in 1986, he left Apple to focus on the movie industry.  Steve Jobs together with Pixar released the well-known movies we watch today such as Toy Story, Star Wars, A Bugs Life, and many more. Steve Jobs was a courageous man in everything he did. Steve always had people right beside him helping him and supporting him throughout his journeys, but when it came down to the final decision he took pride in his work and made all final decisions on his own.  His brave approach to business allowed him to explore opportunities freely.  

Apple store (http://www.investorplace.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/apple-building-looking-up.jpg)
Apple store (http://www.investorplace.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/apple-building-looking-up.jpg)

Jobs was a man that would never take no for or an answer. He was a fast learner and easily found a career with technology. He took pride in being a perfectionist by always paying attention to detail.  An example of this can be seen early on when he would dismantle electronic devices and reassemble them. He had a dream to visit India and study eastern spiritualism, but lacking necessary funds, went to work for Atari Computers part-time". (Steven Jobs." Contemporary). At this time in Steve's life he didn't know what to do, but he did know his family had financial issues and someone had to try and help them out. When Steve got to India to try to calm down on life and get himself on the right track he soon became very ill and had to be flown back to the United States. Steve always kept a close eye on the industries that he worked for hoping he could make a name for himself and help others.  "Jobs saw a huge gap in the existing computer market, as no product was targeted for home use. Marketing manager A.C. Markkula eventually invested $250,000 and became an equal partner in the Apple Computer Company." (Watson).Steve Jobs invested into Apple with very little money, but shortly after taking charge made the company millions in just over a year. He always knew what to do and always knew how to keep his customers happy. Steve Jobs was a very smart man that noticed things very easily. He would only point things out if it would make him money or help him introduce a new product. Jobs always made certain that he was number one with everything he did. He never asked other people for money even if something went bad. He always knew exactly what to do to make sure he was never at the bottom of the food chain. 

Steve Jobs never gave up and always gave 100 percent in everything that he was involved with. He always made sure that he and his staff were always on the same page and knew exactly what to do. Steve knew all his employees would have to know everything about the iPhones in order to sell it to people all around the world. Jobs noticed that Apple was doing a great job; as a result he decided to break away from Apple and invest in "NextStep". NextStep was part of Steve's inventions with his own computers but now can transfer to non-Apple computers. "In September of 1985 Jobs resigned as chairman of Apple. In 1989 he formed a new computer company called NextStep, he believed would compete with Apple in the personal-computer market." (Watson) NextStep was a brilliant idea even though it competed with his own company he didn't have to worry as much since they both belonged to him. Steve knew that resigning from Apple was a big risk and something he might have regretted, but with his mind set he was able to come out with a whole new product that would attract everyone's interest. Jobs had a dream of a phone that "would change history" this phone could do everything plus more than what a computer could every do. No other company could come out with a better phone then Steve Jobs himself. "The scandal eventually passed and Jobs' belief in the iPhones was confirmed when they sold an estimated 500,000 to 700,000 in the first weekend alone. A move meant to help reach Job's goal of selling 10 million iPhones by the end of 2008." (Steven Jobs." Contemporary) Steve knew exactly what he was getting himself into and was fully prepared for what awaited him when the phone hit the market. He knew he had to manage all of the steps very closely. 

Steve did everything for a reason, if Steve didn't like what he saw he would always make sure to always ask questions and find out what could improve. He always knew what he was doing and gave it one hundred percent. Steve Jobs was a great man of his time. He was a brave man that always made sure him and his industries made money. Jobs was a perfectionist, he never took no for an answer and made sure he was always on top. Steve was a great manager he would always make sure his employees where up to date with his newsiest inventions. Without him we wouldn't be blessed with the technology we have today. Jobs was determined to find success in everything he did. He never gave up if there was a bad invention that didn't work, he would make sure to go back to phase one just like any good manager to fix it. 


Page created on 5/23/2012 12:00:00 AM

Last edited 5/23/2012 12:00:00 AM

The beliefs, viewpoints and opinions expressed in this hero submission on the website are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the beliefs, viewpoints and opinions of The MY HERO Project and its staff.

Extra Info

Works Consulted

Lee, Angelelli. "Steve Paul Jobs." STEVE JOBS. 12 July 1994. Web. 09 May 2012.

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"Steven Jobs." Contemporary Heroes and Heroines. Vol. 1. Gale, 1990. Gale Biography In Context. Web. 2 May 2012.

"Steve Jobs." Newsmakers. Detroit: Gale, 2000. Gale Student Resources In Context. Web. 9 May 2012

Watson, Stephanie. "Stephen Paul Jobs." Science and Its Times. Ed. Neil Schlager and Josh Lauer. Vol. 7: 1950 to Present. Detroit: Gale, 2001. 561-562. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 8 May 2012.