Steve Jobs: Find your Passion

Steve Jobs, the man who influenced modern technology and founder of the billion dollar company Apple, empowers the graduating class of Stanford during his commencement speech. He urges them to be bold in pursuing and finding what they love while warning them to be conscious of how limited time is. It is through his use of cause and effect reasoning, casual diction, and simple syntax that Steve Jobs conveys his message beautifully and thoughtfully.

Throughout his speech, Steve Jobs shares personal stories that begin difficultly but end inspirationally.

He traces back to the time where he made the bold decision of dropping out of college and the fear and hardships he experienced because of it. Steve Jobs describes sleeping on the floor and collecting Coke bottles to get by. He eventually emphasizes that even though he experienced those struggles, the brave decision of dropping out and pursuing his own personal interests resulted in the creation of magnificent typography found in computers today. Steve Jobs even goes on to say that “it’s likely that no personal computer would have them” (Jobs 1). He ultimately encourages his audience to make intuitive and brave decisions by illustrating the effect of his own decisions in his life.

Since his audience is generally young, his word choice makes an impact as well. In making the decision of incorporating the words or phrases “gotten”, “pretty scary”, and “went something like,” he seems realistic and down to earth. Although he is known for his major accomplishments in creating the Apple Company and his influence on modern technology, he is brought down to the audience’s level by using casual words to express his experiences. As a result, he is able to make a personal connection with the college graduates and make his own achievements seem possible for them. In addition, the audience is more inclined to listen since he avoids complicated jargon that would cause them to be inattentive.

Along with his use of casual diction, Steve Jobs uses simple syntax as a way of supporting his message. He applies simple and short sentences such as “So keep looking -- don’t settle” (Jobs 2) and “My third story is about death” (Jobs 2). Since his ideas are sharply expressed and straight to the point, he serves his purpose in making his points persuasive as well as powerful.

Steve Jobs emphasizes the importance of doing what one loves. He goes on to say that life is temporary, so be bold and persistent in finding one’s passion. Through cause and effect reasoning, casual diction, and simple syntax, Steve Jobs is able to inspire the Stanford graduates to take action.

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