Daring to Dream

Steve Jobs: that's my hero. I've wondered on more than one occasion what it would take to be like him one day. Being an asshole isn't in my nature but the man couldn't have been full asshole all the time, right? It's a caricature of Mr. Jobs that I can't validate was an accurate one. Regardless of what you thought of him, you can't deny the fact that the man was a game-changer. Had I had the chance to meet the man, I would want to ask him two things: are you a dreamer and, if so, how did you start turning your dreams into reality?
I regularly find myself wondering what I could accomplish by being just a dreamer. I don't have an engineering degree though, given the right opportunity, I would probably go after one. I haven't made one piece of technology myself but I have an affinity for putting things together and, equally pleasurable, tearing things apart to see how they work. I read voraciously about technology to see what the future holds in a connected society.
The new "Steve Jobs" movie is coming out this week and, to noone's surprise, I'm going to see it asap. In the previews, there is a shot of Jobs (Michael Fassbender) in his later years looking down at a display, deeply examining the creation in front of him with a sense of both scrutiny and elation. It's that look of "why hello there" that I want to have when looking at some idea I have that has come to fruition.
And therein lies my problem: I have no product to drive to, no resources to create it, and no work environment to foster it. Looking at "opportunities" at employers other than my own has left me with a sense that I will need to do this myself on my terms. Creating anything while at my current employer will a) be the property of them and b) will get lost in the enormity of the company. I need that garage, that Wozniak, that Apple II to get me off of the ground. But all that is Apple didn't come to be just out of thin air - Jobs made a decision to go after what he loved, what he dreamed to bring into this world, and he did so not giving a shit whether the establishment thought it was a good idea. Maybe it's time for me to stop giving a shit about everyone else's agenda and get to work creating what they don't know they need yet but will need it when I show it to them.

Update: I had no idea when I wrote this that today, October 5 2015, is the 4th anniversary of the day Steve Jobs passed away. This was not intentional but a happy coincidence. :)