Why do entrepreneurs exist?
A CEO whom I particularly admire, puts Entrepreneurship as a form of Jehad - blatant, irrational and dogged (religious) warfare. It’s not about being right/wrong, better/worse or rudimentary/outstanding. It’s an existential question.
The fatigue amongst readers with Steve Jobs quotes notwithstanding, this one hits the nail right on.
I think most creative people want to express appreciation for being able to take advantage of the work that’s been done before us. I didn’t invent the language of mathematics I use. I make little of my own food, none of my own clothes. Everything I do depends on the other members of our species and the shoulders that we stand on. And a lot of us want to contribute something back to the flow. It’s about trying to express something in the only way that most of us know how—because we cannot write Bob Dylan songs or Tom Stoppard plays. We try to use the talents we do have to express our deep feelings, to show our appreciation of all the contributions that came before us.
That’s what has driven me.
— Steve Jobs, in “Steve Jobs” by Walter Isaacson.
