By Honoring our Heroes, We Make Our Values Known

“By honoring the lives of those we admire, we make our own values known. Perhaps more clearly than words ever could.” -Steve Jobs

This is hardly the most well-known Steve Jobs quote, but it’s possibly the most fitting as we look back and remember him. 

It appeared as part of a forward, written by Jobs, for a book released by Apple as marketing material in 1998 called “1998: The Year of thinking different.”  (source: Brad Gessler)

Reading this letter made me miss Jobs even more.

Here’s the forward:

The most admired companies in the world have one thing in common: They stand for something.

The world can change, the market can change, their products can change – but their core beliefs remain the same.

Like Disney, Sony, and Nike, Apple is a brand that is loved and respected around the world.

We like to think its because we have a soul.

Apple has never just been about making boxes to help people get their jobs done (though we’re proud to do that well). We’re about something more.

We believe that people with passion can change the world for the better. And we believe that creativity is the force that pushes the human race forward.

About a year ago, we took a long, hard look at the challenges facing Apple. We realized that to fight our way back, we’d have to do two things better than we’ve ever done before:

Make computers that are strikingly innovative. And make it clear to the world (and to ourselves) what Apple stands for.

To do the latter, we created the “Think different” series.

It’s nothing more than a tribute to our heroes – the people who changed the world with their spirit and idealism, their courage and perseverance.

By honoring the lives of those we admire, we make our own values known. Perhaps more clearly than words ever could.

The photographs on these pages have been a source of pride and energy for all of us in the Apple family. For when we remember our heroes, we rekindle our own idealism, and renew our determination to make the best computers in the world.

This has been an invigorating and positive year for Apple. The “Think different” series has resonated with the world beyond our wildest hopes, and, in the process, has become an undeniable part of Apple’s spirit.

We hope this book helps carry that spirit forward.