In an inadvertently ominous fashion, the day before Steve Jobs died, I stumbled on Todd Sampson’s Twitter feed, which had a link to Jobs’ unveiling his iconic “1984″ advertisement for the Macintosh computer. In it he was eloquent and passionate about his work. The pride written on his face during the applause was stunning. I thought, now here is a guy who probably deserves to look so smug. But that was me thinking in retrospect. This wasn’t even Jobs at his peak of success, but rather at a prelude of even greater things to come. If he only knew just decades later that his face would be synonymous with the world’s leading innovators in design and technology, indeed all facets of everyday living and popular culture.

I considered his expression for a time that afternoon, lamenting that I may never have the creative innovation and genius to make such an impact on humanity. I am not strong enough to maintain and subjugate such influence and power. Something as intangible and ineffable as genius is innate, built-in, perhaps even pre-ordained, if we’re of the superstitious persuasion.

But the world doesn’t need to be filled with “geniuses” for it to drive positive change (though there’s got to be some irony in those blue-shirted folk in Apple stores). We all of us can only make the best of what we already have. Jobs championed the value of aesthetics, design and engineering in products, imbuing them with humanist values. Putting aside Apple’s increasingly dubious corporate culture, Jobs helped democratise¹ information and entertainment, placing them into the palms of our hands in an irresistible fashion. In essence, he handed us better tools to allow our own ingenuity to thrive. As a designer myself this especially has potency. What the future holds next is, well, basically in our hands.

So, thank you Mr Jobs for what you have contributed to our lives, though most of us never met you, we at least know a part of your ethos in your products. I don’t presume to know you, but you have left your mark on all of us, whether we liked it or not. I can only hope that I will have a slice of your resilience and intelligence to be a better creator and thinker in my own practice.