In 2005, Steve Jobs delivered the commencement address to Stanford’s outgoing class.  If you haven’t read what he had to say, take a moment and read it, I’ll wait….

Ordinarily I don’t care for inspirational speeches, but I read this one because I heard a quote pulled from it on NPR last week and wanted to know where it came from.  The quote was:

Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose.  You are already naked.  There is no reason not to follow your heart.  Stay hungry.  Stay foolish.

It’s a fascinating quote about committing yourself to chasing your dreams.  It’s about not being complacent.  It’s about laying it all out there in pursuit of what is truly important to you.  These are great words to live by.  What may be the most remarkable thing about this quote, however, is that it’s only one of many from what might be the best inspirational speeches I’ve ever read.  Whatever you might think of Steve Jobs—love him or hate him or neither—the man was very, very wise.