Stay Hungry Stay Foolish

Steve Jobs, CEO of Apple Computer, ended his commencement speech to the graduates of Stanford University in 2005 with the following words, "Stay hungry. Stay Foolish." It would be fair to say that most of the hundred of thousands who have heard or read the speech probably have forgot everything about that allocution except these memorable words, "Stay hungry. Stay foolish."

These four words represent an entire philosophy for a successful life. They mean that, if we want a successful, rewarding and interesting life, we should be in the parade and not watching the parade go by.

The only constant in life is change. Nothing stands still. Life is dynamic and not static. Yet there are those of us who, through an exercise in futility, will seek to find security in an inexistent status quo. 

The, don't make waves, don't try anything and keep a low profile attitude is a recipe for boredom in the best-case scenario and for disaster in the worst cases. Trying to stand still in life is an impossibility and can only result in frustration, regression and ultimate failure.

It is a proven fact that a ship that remains in port will rust and wear out faster than one who travels the high sea. The expression of life is action and action is the generator of life. That's a lesson that was not lost by the happiest and most successful among us.

If we read the biographies of great men and women, we soon find out that they were creature of action. They were involved, they were engaged, they had causes, objectives, projects and goals. They were determined. They found meaningfulness, satisfaction and validation in their work and accomplishments. 

Successful living, in its true sense of the word, means implication and dedication to a cause, an ideal or an objective. In order to accomplish that, uncharted roads must be traveled, dragons have to be slain and calculated chances must be taken. 

As someone so wisely said, "Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, chocolate in one hand, wine in the other, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out and screaming... Dang, What a ride."  

Now, that could be exaggerating a little but it does express the essence of the concept. Successful living is not about watching the parade go by. It's not even about joining the parade. Successful living is about leading the parade.

That's what Steve Jobs was taking about in front of those newly graduates. He wanted to give these young minds the best possible advice that he could so that they would, not only commence their adult life on the right foot, but also stay on the right path for the rest of their life. 

To do that, he left those students with four unforgettable words, "Stay hungry. Stay foolish." Nothing else was needed. The message was concise, clear and unforgettable. A giant had spoken. Who could forget, Stay hungry. Stay foolish?