"It's when you are at the bottom that you have the greatest chance to get to the top." - Futurist Jim Carroll
Rock bottom is real for many people and for many companies. A fortunate few can summon the courage and the strength to find their way out - using the desperation seen in their bottom to finally reach for the top. One of the most fascinating things that can happen when someone voyages from the worst of times to the potential for the best of times is that their mind sees a creativity explosion; the endorphins of joy in reinvention provide for a new form of creativity superpowers; their every moment is defined by thinking about what could be rather than obsessing about what was.
I thought of this fact when someone pointed out that it was just about 25 years ago yesterday that Steve Jobs unveiled the iMac. That was the computer that would go on to rescue Apple and turn it into an innovation pathway that would see it become the world's most valuable company. Apple was only months away from the rock bottom that is bankruptcy - it had truly seen the worst side of its potential history. And look what happened - a turnaround for the ages!
For Steve Jobs, it was a return from the rock bottom that was his firing years before from Apple, the company that was founded byh he and Steve Wozniak in a garage in the early days of the micro-computer revolution.
Jobs would go on in the years to come to redefine entire industries with the launch of the iPhone, iPad, iTunes, and much more. Yes, he had hit rock bottom - but his drive, ambition, and belief in the power of design brought him the initiative that would lead him to the pinnacle of success.
The launch of the iMac was dramatic, with product flourishes not normally seen in the staid and boring industry - the elimination of the floppy disk, a see-through case, a bold new shape and form factor...
...and colors.
The reinvention of Apple will go on throughout history as one of the most compelling and motivational stories of corporate reinvention, and a return from the bottom to the top. For millions of others, the story of Steve Jobs has gone on to remind them of the power of the personal reinvention opportunity, and how to never let your bottom be a place that you must be condemned to live within - but a place to escape from.
Rock bottom? Don't ever let anyone tell you that when you're at your lowest point you can't get to your highest point. Never let anyone suggest that if things get really bad it will probably only get worse, not better. Refuse to listen to those who tell you that you should accept your fate and move on with things. Never accept the way things are - think about the way they could be.
Never stop chasing success and opportunity. Let your lows define your highs; let your bottom motivate you to aim for the top; never let your bad days define your potential for great ones; never allow negativity to redefine your optimism. The future is all about chasing the better days, not reliving the worst days.
Remember that, and you've got everything you need to know about chasing tomorrow.
Futurist Jim Carroll is a big believer in the idea that your lowest lows can define your highest highs.