When you walk into an Apple store, you may get the feeling that Steve Jobs has the perfect life. People stand in line waiting for the store to open each day. When a new gadget is about to be released, Apple lovers go wild. It didn’t start out that way for Steve Jobs. In fact, Apple’s longterm CEO faced rejection more than one time in life. Despite several potential road blocks along the way, Steve Jobs continues to come out on top, and Apple was recently announced as the most valuable company in America. What is Steve Jobs’ secret to success? This video How to Live Before you Die offers some excellent clues for any human who wants to live an authentic life.
Before showing the video, ask your students what they know about Steve Jobs. Why is Steve Jobs in the news this week?
“I’d been rejected, but I was still in love.” Steve Jobs on being a beginner again, after being fired from his own company.
Here are some ideas to get the conversation started after showing the video:
- “Sometimes life is going to hit you on the head with a brick.” Do you agree with Steve Jobs’ statement? Has it happened to you.
- What does Steve Jobs mean by “don’t settle”?
- What do the words “curiosity” and “intuition” mean?
- What does “stay hungry, stay foolish” mean?
- What is the most important tool Steve Jobs has?
- If today were the last day of your life, would you want to live it?
- Will Apple be okay without Steve Jobs as CEO?
If your students enjoy talking about Steve Jobs, why not try our Famous People lesson plan on this topic? It includes a reading, comprehension questions, vocabulary review and discussion topics. Go to this lesson.
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While our Something to Talk About suggestions are useful for getting your students involved in a group or pair discussion or debate, the topics, articles, and videos can also be used if you are looking for something for your students to blog/Skype/or write an opinion essay about.
Related Lessons in the ESL-Library
Famous People: Bill Gates
Health: Cancer
Mini Debates: Personal Technology in the Classroom
Tara Benwell
Tara Benwell is a freelance writer and editor who specializes in materials and articles for the ELT industry. Website: http://www.tarabenwell.com Twitter: @tarabenwell
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Steve jobs is an incredible man. very inspiring story.
Also, I am a subscriber to ESL-library. I’m an ESL teacher here in Japan and online. Great resources. ThankS!
Hi, I’m an ELT teacher down here ,in Turkey and so much into “thinking different !”,,,
thanks , great resources here!
surprised to see (because so rare thing that most of Turkish students,with their very limited circumstances/conditions for learning English thus ending up with limited language skills, entirely out of their personal interest having no obliged homework etc.,get to know so much about and understand and appreciate a foreign personality ,Steve Jobs has become a role-model to most of my best students,though already for me too in times of despair when all doors get closed on my face…
So this topic is welcomed with uproar in my classes ! looking forward to the next ones , greetings.
Great to hear! You’ll find lots of interesting topics in our library. Check out the Discussion Starters section. I think your students will appreciate some of the topics.
Cheers,
Tara