Live data from Hacker News

Steve Wozniak: When I die these are the moments I want to remember

cnbc.com

31–40 of 139 posts

Re: Steve Wozniak: When I die these are the moments I want to remember

#31
post #23
post #9

"Stay honest, keep smiling and pay your own successes forward" Love this mentality. I've not seen such a concise phrase to describe such a positive perspective that truly embraces the "gift" of life. Like, be real/legit, find the good in everything/everyone, and help people out or life people up. Woz seems like a pretty cool guy.

He does indeed seem like a laid back normal person. But I must admit that I find it pretty easy to have such sentiments if one has or had a net worth that's basically infinite money to 99% of people out there. Would this post have the same upvotes and discussion if it was from an unknown gas station attendant or school teacher? It's good to take note of his positive attitude, but I do also think it's healthy to take…

I know what you mean and I've definitely thought the same. Wealthy people often have views of life and the world quite distinct from, well, not-so-wealthy/struggling people. That said, from my limited knowledge of the history of Apple, it didn't seem like Woz was ever driven from seeking riches so much as the joy of electronics, engineering, hacking, creation and of course benefiting others as a result of these pursuits. Worded simply, it seems to me like he was kinda already that way before he became rich. Maybe not though, I don't know a ton about him.

Re: Steve Wozniak: When I die these are the moments I want to remember

#32

> I decided that that life, for me, was not about accomplishment. It was about happiness. He is in the unusual position to have achieved a great level of accomplishment.

If you suffer from the "arrival fallacy" (discussed in the article), then you will find out only after reaching the top that there's not much hapiness in there. Woz kinda saves you the trouble of many years working towards an illusory goal ("when I acommplish this, everything will be great").

That was an incredibly hard lesson for me to learn, but on the other hand, I'm happy I believed this fallacy because it motivated me to work hard, which brought me to the position I am currently in.

Re: Steve Wozniak: When I die these are the moments I want to remember

#34
It's interesting how Woz and Jobs represent polar opposites on this topic with Jobs being very "the end justifies the means" type of person.

> Finding things to be grateful for in the midst of hardship — like your loved ones or good health — can shift your brain into a more optimistic mindset and help you overcome those challenges, Wozniak added.

I guess this is what it all boils down to. The default human setting is to be always unhappy, wanting more, but it's a never ending cycle with little satisfaction. Step out of the hamster wheel, appreciate what you have and live in the moment.

Re: Steve Wozniak: When I die these are the moments I want to remember

#35
post #21

> At the end of his life, Steve Wozniak won't measure his happiness by the size of Apple's market cap or his personal net worth. This is a very popular stance to take for every millionare out there. Also, the absence of daily worries, the lack of problems induced by money, and the presence of an everlasting feeling of security can lead to a detachment from the concept of wealth. What I mean is, if you don’t experienc…

> This is a very popular stance to take for every millionare out there. Also, many non-millionaires who are older and have the perspective common to the old like Wozniak too probably. Their kids are grown if they had any, they’re probably retired and no one expects them to change the world and they’re unlikely to have any ambition to do so. They know more people in the cemetery now than those who are alive. Because o…

"Their kids are grown if they have any". This is one hell of an assumption. This assumes luck, or money if luck isn't there. Because if older people are unlucky and have no money, they are losing children. All of the people I know who have lost their offspring are either depressed or alcoholic.

With money, it depends on where your focus is. If it's still money, then it's sad. But if it's in other people WHILE having lots of money, then you're happy. If you get your priorities straight.

The phrase "money doesn't bring happiness" is one of the most silly things I've heard in my life. It's true that money shouldn't be the source of happiness, but it's enough to see all those fundraisers for children in need of medical assistance. In these cases, money can indeed bring a great deal of relief and happiness.

Re: Steve Wozniak: When I die these are the moments I want to remember

#36
post #30

> At the end of his life, Steve Wozniak won't measure his happiness by the size of Apple's market cap or his personal net worth. This is a very popular stance to take for every millionare out there. Also, the absence of daily worries, the lack of problems induced by money, and the presence of an everlasting feeling of security can lead to a detachment from the concept of wealth. What I mean is, if you don’t experienc…

Relevant quote from the comic genius of Spike Milligan. “Money can't buy you happiness but it does bring you a more pleasant form of misery.” If you've never heard of him, it's well worth reading some of his books (see Memoirs), especially of his time serving during the Second World War. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spike_Milligan

As "Amigo the Devil" says and sings: --- Everyone says money can't buy happiness And so far in my life, I'll agree But it seems a lot more comfortable to cry in a Lamborghini ---

Re: Steve Wozniak: When I die these are the moments I want to remember

#37
post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

thanks but 'Video is not rated. Log in to watch.'

As a Hacker you need to learn to solve these problems yourself. While in the EU/UK you need to learn to get around censorship, you have to work past your cyber-agoraphobia, leave your region. Use a VPN or Tor or Proxy Or it tells you what to do, get a login. yt-dlp or https://cobalt.tools might even work. On Topic: Why they wanted to have accessibility for the blind is they were good people, also the famous blind phr…

Lovely bit of history. Thanks for sharing. There is an interesting undercurrent of the blind and the history of hacking. Iirc Cap'n Crunch learned about phreaking from a house of blind people who could also hear and whistle the control tones.

Re: Steve Wozniak: When I die these are the moments I want to remember

#38

He had a driven business partner who helped turn his passion for computers into a multi-billion corporation. He always struck me as immature. Not a great businessman, not a great engineer, more of a hobbyist who got lucky and quickly reached the limits of his knowledge and ability with the original Apple. His myth has greatly outgrown his accomplishments and I have a feeling even he is not comfortable with it, he'd r…

Knowing when you're at the limit of what you're able/willing to do and ducking out to go have a happy life strikes me as more mature, not less. Certainly he was a hobbyist and certainly he got lucky but what he did was still impressive for the time and choosing to step away is admirable imo

Re: Steve Wozniak: When I die these are the moments I want to remember

#39

He had a driven business partner who helped turn his passion for computers into a multi-billion corporation. He always struck me as immature. Not a great businessman, not a great engineer, more of a hobbyist who got lucky and quickly reached the limits of his knowledge and ability with the original Apple. His myth has greatly outgrown his accomplishments and I have a feeling even he is not comfortable with it, he'd r…

Woz was a great engineer. He was years ahead of any other engineer on the planet in terms of building awesome PC designs. Millions of the computers he designed and programmed were sold, for billions of dollars. The computer he created was the "Model T" of the personal computer industry. It's hard to be more technically accomplished as an engineer.

He could not have done it without Steve Jobs. But Steve Jobs could not have done it without him, either.

Steve Jobs was a major believer in the idea of the 100x engineer. During his entire career, he always tried to hire them.

And why did Steve Jobs believe in hiring 100x engineers? Because he knew and worked with Steve Wozniak.

Re: Steve Wozniak: When I die these are the moments I want to remember

#40
post #21

> At the end of his life, Steve Wozniak won't measure his happiness by the size of Apple's market cap or his personal net worth. This is a very popular stance to take for every millionare out there. Also, the absence of daily worries, the lack of problems induced by money, and the presence of an everlasting feeling of security can lead to a detachment from the concept of wealth. What I mean is, if you don’t experienc…

> This is a very popular stance to take for every millionare out there. Also, many non-millionaires who are older and have the perspective common to the old like Wozniak too probably. Their kids are grown if they had any, they’re probably retired and no one expects them to change the world and they’re unlikely to have any ambition to do so. They know more people in the cemetery now than those who are alive. Because o…

I mostly agree with you but we should also be realistic about people's lives and modern day challenges.

It's easier to enjoy life when you're not worrying about providing for one self and their family, though.

Some people work two jobs to provide for themselves or their family. Even here, some people work crazy hours.

You need to have enough left over lucidity, energy, and will power in you to enjoy life after dealing with life's challenges.

I'm ignoring the health aspects too, and it's becoming increasingly more expensive to stay healthy in urban settings too.

Post reply on HN