Time is more than an object that is detected by the hands on a clock. While it’s used to help schedule events in our lives, time can mean so much more. Valuable events have occurred, ideas actualized and revelations discovered that have impacted all of our lives. With this blog series, I would like to take a look at historical events, the timing of these events and the impact they have had on the world. Take a moment and revert back to a time and place ten years ago: How did you communicate with people that lived and worked far away from you? You might have called family, friends and colleagues with a cell phone, which was really just starting to take off at that time. Ten years ago, a majority of calls were made with a landline phone.

That all changed this day, 6 years ago. While cell phones have been around for awhile, there was one device that changed technology and the world as we know it. On January 9, 2007, Apple Computers CEO Steve Jobs announced their newest creation: the ‘iPhone.’ I’m sure Apple wanted to predict a bright and prosperous future for its latest technology, but few could have forecasted the immense impact this product had on society. At the time, Jobs called it a “revolutionary mobile phone” that will also feature an iPod and an “Internet communicator.”

The timing of the announcement, in hindsight, was impeccable. With the arrival of more communication outlets, the iPhone became the must have object. Its unique design and full touch screen capabilities were distinctive features and having a mobile device that was able to connect to the Internet became an invaluable asset.

Over the years, the iPhone has had several imitators and now you may be hard pressed to come across someone who does not personally own, or at least does not know how to operate, a smart phone. Few creations have impacted such a wide variety of aspects of life as did the birth and growth of the iPhone. No matter what walk of life, industries are now finding it necessary to incorporate some functions of the iPhone technology into the improvement of their daily operations. Communication, email and social media outlets are now all in the palm of one’s hand. The world has quickly shrunk due to the efforts of the ingenious workers at Apple.

Whether you own an iPhone, a smart phone, or not, you cannot deny that our society was changed six years ago today. The greater impact on society, the learning opportunities fostered the operation practices of business and the way we communicate with each other will forever be altered for the better due to the iPhone. And isn’t the betterment of society something we can all spend our time working on?