Have you found what you love?

Today I went into my kitchen to celebrate the morning coffee. I switched on the news. Steve Jobs died this night. October 5th, 2011.

Wolfram Alpha computes the average world wide death rate to be 154,995 per day. The frequency of deaths is 1.8 Hz. Why does his death touch me so much?!

Apple changed my life.

I wrote my first computer programs on an Apple ][ in 1983. Programming became my only passion. My parents could not afford to buy one, so I had to use the school computers. Every free minute I went into the computer room. In the late afternoon, the cleaning staff would send me home and there I continued my programs with a pen and paper. My listings were composed of snippets of code print-outs and hand-written code, stuck together with tape.

From 1987 to 1990 I had the privilege of working as a student at the Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar Research. I had my own desk with my "own" Apple Macintosh which gave me access to a large array of DEC/VAX and Unix systems to write programs for the scientists. It was amazing how much more advanced the Mac was at that time compared to PCs. And still it is.

You could always feel the passion and love in the Apple products that bear the signature of Steve Jobs. You can see and feel the attention to detail. You can see the beauty.

We all know that truly great things can only be achieved by hard work. No short-cuts. Never be satisfied with just 'good enough'. All details are important. Go the last mile. Never quit.

So maybe this is the day to step back and asked yourself: Are you doing what you love? Are you always giving your very best? When was the last time you were exceptionally proud of what you did? Are you helping your friends, co-workers and family to bring out the best in themselves?

You can make a difference everywhere. So why not start today?!

Passion can change the world. RIP Steve Jobs.