Steve Jobs Is Dead, But Value Didn't Die With Him - The Value of a Legendary Leader Like Steve Jobs Not Measured In Stocks, But In Inspiration (AAPL)

Not even the fatal error that took down my last laptop made me gasp as loudly as I did when I saw the announcement that Steve Jobs had died when I fired up my Apple (AAPL) computer tonight. Mac-o-philes the world over are mourning the loss, and undoubtedly experiencing great anxiety at the thought of a world without Steve Jobs in it.

I don't have an Apple i-Phone, I'm still using a 2001 Apple iPod, and my first Mac computer is less than a year old, so I'm definitely not a Mac-o-phile myself. But that doesn't mean I am any less in awe of Steve Jobs. He was a visionary who has obviously changed the quality of life in some very practical ways with his products and his company. Perhaps the greatest value that Steve Jobs had in the world, though, can only be measured in inspiration.

There's no way to calculate how many people have decided to be true to themselves and follow their own path outside of traditional higher education because of Steve Jobs. There is no instrument that can measure the amount of creativity that has been unleashed on planet Earth because unknown (and perhaps uneducated) developers with their own visions were given the ability to create and market Apple apps. There's no way to predict how far the generations of tomorrow will advance technologically because of their exposure to the Apple gadgets and devices of today.

Steve Jobs is not generally classified as a retail leader, and yet his influence has shifted the retailing paradigm around the world. When Apple started its chain of retail stores, it gave the U.S. retail industry a blueprint for a higher level of customer experience, and a deeper level of customer engagement.

When Google opened up its first pop-up retail store in London, the company proudly announced that their experimental retail endeavor was pattered after Apple stores. When the imagineers at a company renowned for its creativity needed inspiration for revitalizing their retail Disney Store chain, they visited Apple stores for inspiration. When consumers camp out for days in front of an Apple store for a new store opening or a new product launch, the global retail industry is given a goal to shoot for in building a fanatically loyal customer base. When the U.S. retail industry was sinking into the abyss of the Great Recession, the recessionary success of Apple gave us all hope that success could transcend the realities of any economy.

As is the case with all true visionaries, the biggest gift that Steve Jobs left behind cannot be touched, tapped, typed, or talked into. His gift was much more profound than the sum total of any of that.

By staying true to his own vision Steve Jobs gave us a glimpse at what could be possible if we would all tap into our own. That is the legacy of Steve Jobs that will enlighten and enliven mankind long after our Apple devices have found their rightful place in the consumer electronics graveyard of yesterday's technology.

Although in the days and weeks to come, many will attempt to quantify the value of Steve Jobs in terms of brand value, annual revenue, and future potential. But the value of any legendary leader - and particularly Steve Jobs - is truly immeasurable. Albert Einstein, Henry Ford, Walt Disney, Jim Henson, Steve Jobs... We enjoy what they did, but in a much more meaningful way, we are touched by who they were.

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