Steve Jobs’ legacy is hard to capture but he was undeniably one of the most influential leaders and creators this world has ever seen. From such humble beginnings, this college drop-out transformed the way we live our lives and proved to the tech world that consumers don’t have to settle. His story is inspirational, his creations were revolutionary and his death comes too soon.

At age 19 Jobs was a college-drop out experimenting with special diets and engaging in self-discovery travels in India. By age 25 Jobs had $200 million to his name. His road to success wasn’t, however, a straight line up the chart as he experienced negative outcomes from various business ventures.

In 1985, Jobs was kicked out of Apple Computers, the company he co-founded, about the time the computer Lisa was brought to the market. In retaliation Jobs later created NeXT, another computer that ended with disappointing sales and little hope of a future. Simultaneously, Apple sales were diminishing and without the innovation from Jobs, there was a long period of stagnant growth in the company. During this time, Jobs purchased Pixar which was also struggling to generate a profit.

Just a year after the incredible success of Pixar’s Toy Story in 1995, Apple decided to bring back Jobs in order to utilize his NeXT technology and within a year Jobs was in charge as interim CEO of Apple and had begun to generate profits with the colorful translucent iMac. Apple continued to evolve over the next 10 years with the inculcation of exclusive software programs like iMovie, iTunes, iCal, etc in addition to innovative hardware such as the iPod, iPhone and iPad.

Jobs was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2003 and was believed to have been cured for about five years until 2009 when his presence in the company declined as his weight also withered. He came back with vigor in 2010 to present the iPad before stepping down as CEO of Apple in August of 2011. Only months later on October 5 did the disease take his life.

From the alarm that wakes you up in the morning on your cell phone, to the morning meeting, to the phone interview, to the mp3s you can play whenever, to the way you get your news, to the power you have at your fingertips all the time – we have Steve Jobs to thank.

We will all miss his imagination and creativity and I still can’t believe I don’t have another Jobs Apple stage announcement to look forward to. The question now remains how will Apple maintain the competitive edge and utilize the incredible iSpaceship campus Jobs designed.

Can Apple continue to revolutionize without Steve Jobs?