death of an iCon

the other day my flatmate was showing off his new friend and assistant and problem solver. she answers his questions, reminds him of all that he needs to remember, makes calls on his behalf and even tells him how nice he is - siri on his iphone 4s. its technology taking the place of an assistant, a secretary, some might even say their ageing mothers. i believe technology makes skill redundant. check out around you - taxi drivers vs gps, photographers vs dslr camera, customer service vs IVR systems, airline staff vs. automated checkin. humans are being taken out the system so that things happen more smoothly, customers have better experience and minimum complaints...

sounds cynical doesn't it? technology does make systems more efficient and takes the human element out, but it also helps us focus human effort on developing better technologies, implementing them around the world and making lives easier for more people. technology helps us focus on brain-work and takes care of the mundane work. but we are like that. we are cynical and we look at the negatives more easily and more willingly in anything and everything. lets go back to siri for a bit and take the example of the founder of Apple - Steve Jobs.

he didnt live to see how the world reacted to siri. facebook was flooded with condolence messages. apple stores saw people setting up little memorials for Steve and laying out flowers, candles, even fruits in his memory. everyone hailed him as a hero, the changer of a generation and a inspiration. but then gradually other perspectives started spanning out, highlighting his other face. An article explained among other things, what a miserable boss he was..

his story mesmerises us. that's why some of us feel inspired and some of us resent his fame. we all want to be like him, to be talked about, to be successful, to be mourned by the world when we die. he didnt have any of it when he was born and given away, and then had it all when he died. didnt he lose it all then? doesnt he deserve to be commended for all that he achieved and brought to our lives? and yet some of us only want to point out his fallacies. his story is one of balancing extremes - abject poverty and blinding richness, science and art, success and failure, beating cancer and succumbing to it. and in the end the tragedy of it all, of a hero, ties us to him, to the personality, to the story and to the inspiration. we idolize him knowing well how real and how human and how full of mistakes he was. what matters in the end is the legacy he left behind and for which he will always be remembered. he succeeded, he changed the world, touched each of our lives in some way. he infused passion into something as mundane as a commodity, he demonstrated the power of taking chance, of being down and out and then experiencing meteoric success. no matter if he was a controlling, vicious tyrant, as can be seen from the way he controlled - his clothes, his style, his madness, his privacy - he created an unparalleled revolution.

i like this link which summarises the top ten lessons his life taught us all, and I would just like to pay a tribute to him by recounting what his life has and will continue to teach me. While some may not give him credit, but i will compare with some of the greatest inspiring personalities..

remember to be humble in the wake of failure as in resounding success, and to never lose sight of the clear certain end we all have in our lives. bring it all down to simple. follow your heart. your instinct. touch people's lives and you will create a brand in your worth. you have to trust that the dots will connect back into something. that will give you the confidence to believe in yourself and in what you really want to do (mandela like). love your work. if you havent found it yet, keep looking (edison like). if today were the last day of my life, would i do what i am going to do today (gandhi like). your time is limited, so dont waste it by trying to live someone else's life (krishna like!). and finally the speech he gave at Stanford commencement.

stay hungry, stay foolish