“And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.”  ~ Steve Jobs

Back in 2001, I visited a tech writer friend in San Francisco. He had a clunky gizmo about the size of a small hardcover book which he called an electronic jukebox; it allowed him to carry around and play his entire record collection on demand.  I was blown away.  Who knew that just a few years later I would own one myself,  only mine was sleeker, smaller and held even more songs?

I’m a PC, but one of my most essential possessions is my iPod, and Steve Jobs’ 2005 commencement speech brilliantly articulates my understanding of life and how I try to express that through my own work and existence. Heeding his heart and intuition from an early age, combined with his intelligence and curiosity, allowed Steve Jobs to become the incredible innovator and visionary that he was. And because of it I’m sure there were many people along the way that thought he was a little coo-coo for Cocoa Puffs.

Last week the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize  went to three women, one of which was Leymah Gbowee.  Featured in the film Pray the Devil Back to Hell, Leymah was the main force behind the courageous movement that brought Liberia back to civilization and sanity in the midst of a barbaric civil war. She listened to her heart and intuition and then strategically called upon the united and unique position of women within the culture, the power of prayer and sheer will to transform a nation engulfed by darkness. Throughout the non-violent campaign she used innovative tactics that appeared crazy to many.  When I watched the film, I knew I was witnessing a modern day miracle; I was blown away. 

Yesterday’s holiday was named for an Italian fellow named Christopher Columbus who in 1492 not only had the guts to assert his belief the world was round and new lands were yet to be explored, but to actually go out and prove it.  Many thought he was insane to set sail into the unknown; even his native country would not fund his so-called folly.  But because he had the courage of his conviction supported by faith and reason to guide him, he literally opened up the world for humanity to discover each other; for better or for worse, things have never been the same. When I think about what it took to make that journey, I am blown away.

We never would have survived or evolved beyond the caveman era without the brave men and women like these who have stayed hungry and foolish throughout history. Because when you allow your passion and talent to be guided by a mind which receives direction from your heart, you can create something, be someone or do something extraordinary.   

Feeling a little too satiated and serious these days?  Give me a buzz, and I will help whet your appetite for life and discern whether the direction you’re going in and the ideas that you have are more of a wild goose chase or the kind that will one day blow me away!

P.S. For related thoughts on this topic, check out these posts: Just Go With It,  Leap of Faith, and One Day at a Time.