<p>dallas, that post reminds me of Steve Jobs' 2005 commencement speech at Stanford:</p>
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<p>I'm pretty sure none of this would have happened if I hadn't been fired from Apple. It was awful tasting medicine, but I guess the patient needed it. Sometimes life hits you in the head with a brick. Don't lose faith. I'm convinced that the only thing that kept me going was that I loved what I did. You've got to find what you love. And that is as true for your work as it is for your lovers. Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking. Don't settle. As with all matters of the heart, you'll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking until you find it. Don't settle.
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<p>It's a good read if you like those kinds of stories. It's also interesting how the class that had one of the biggest impacts on him - or that he enjoyed the most - was a calligraphy class he attended after dropping out (not any math/science/engineering class). </p>
<p>And having his high school teachers rave about him certainly does foretell talent - but so does going to Columbia! I think (if you ever asked) you'd find most kids at Columbia had high school teachers who wrote flattering recommendations for them in whatever subject it is they were pursuing (but that still shouldn't take away from compliments your son received himself).</p>