乔布斯传之节选35

Cinderella

from Chapter 35

Alex Haley once said that the best way to begin a speech is “Let me tell you a story.” Nobody is eager for a lecture, but everybody loves a story. And that was the approach Jobs chose. “Today, I want to tell you three stories from my life,” he began. “That’s it. No big deal. Just three stories.”

The first was about dropping out of Reed College. “I could stop taking the required classes that didn’t interest me, and begin dropping in on the ones that looked far more interesting.” The second was about how getting fired from Apple turned out to be good for him. “The heaviness of being successful was replaced by the lightness of being a beginner again, less sure about everything.” The students were unusually attentive, despite a plane circling overhead with a banner that exhorted “recycle all e-waste,” and it was his third tale that enthralled them. It was about being diagnosed with cancer and the awareness it brought:

        Remembering that I’ll be dead soon is the most important tool I’ve ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything—all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure—these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. 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.
 
The artful minimalism of the speech gave it simplicity, purity, and charm. Search where you will, from anthologies to YouTube, and you won’t find a better commencement address. Others may have been more important, such as George Marshall’s at Harvard in 1947 announcing a plan to rebuild Europe, but none has had more grace.

lin

Alex Haley 曾经说过，故事是演说开始的最好形式。因为没有人喜欢长篇大论，但人人都爱听故事。乔布斯就是采取了说故事的方法--今天，我想和大家分享自己的三段人生经历，他开始说道，就这么简单，就只是三个小故事。
第一个事关于他在瑞德学院学习时逃课的经历。我逃掉了那些不感兴趣的必修课，而选择了更为有趣的课程。
第二个是他被苹果公司开除，却从此因祸得福的经历。作为新人，全然没有了追求成功的巨大压力，虽然未来还很迷茫，但心情却是轻松愉快。在场的学生都听得津津有味，只有一架飞机在头顶上空盘旋，挂着“回收一切电子废弃品”的横幅。
第三个，也是最吸引人的，是关于他被确诊为患了癌症的经历，以及癌症给他带来的启发。
时刻铭记自己即将死去，是我这一生所遇见的最催人奋进的工具。它帮助我做出人生中重要的选择。外界的期望，骄傲，以及对窘境和失败的恐惧--所有的这一切，在死亡面前都一文不值，而那些真正有意义的除去这字些所剩下的。当你一无所有的时候，没有理由不去听从你内心的呼唤。
这次巧妙的小演说充满了简单，纯真和魅力。从纸质文稿到视频网站，在你所知道的地方搜索，再也找不出更好的毕业典礼演说。其他的演讲，如马歇尔在哈佛1947年代宣布的重建欧洲的计划，虽然更为重要，但他们都缺少魅力。

pengwenato

Alex Haley曾经说过演讲最好的开场白是“让我说个故事给你听吧”。没有人会迫不及待地想听一场演讲，但是所有的人都喜欢听故事。这就是乔布斯运用得技巧，他说：“今天，我想讲发生我在人生中的三个故事。就此而已，没什么大不了的，就三个简单的故事。”
第一个是在瑞德学校辍学的故事：“我不上我不感兴趣的课，而跑去旁听让我感兴趣的课。”第二个是被苹果公司炒了鱿鱼，结果对我更有利：“不再有要成功的压力，对未来的不确定，我成了一个轻松的创业者。”第三是尽管人们都在呼吁循环利用电子垃圾，学生仍然坚守阵地。被确诊患有癌症，他意识到：

不久便要死亡这一事实，使我做出了人生中很多重要的决定。因为所有的东西——别人的期待，骄傲，失败所带来的尴尬——在我面对死亡的时候，都变得不重要了，让我意识到人生中真正重要的东西。意识到即将离开人世，是我所知道的摆脱畏惧失去某些东西的想法的最好途径。你已经是赤裸裸的了，没理由不随心而行。
简短的演讲的艺术性在于简洁，纯净和魅力。检索一切资料，从诗集到优酷网，你找不到一个更好的演讲开场白。其它的也许更重要，如乔治•马歇尔1947年在哈佛大学宣告重建欧洲的计划所用的开场白，但是没有一个能比乔布斯的更优雅。