Savanna Meadows

            Henry Ford was the most influential American innovator of the 20th century. He created the the most successful car in history, the Model T. Henry was born in Michigan on a farm during the Civil War in 1863. One of his most memorable quotes was, “Whether you think you think you can or you think you can’t, either way you’re right.” My personal interpretation of this quote is that you need to have the right mindset to be successful. If you think you can do something, you can. If you keep thinking you can’t, it is more than likely you won’t achieve your goals. Henry believed that he could make cars affordable for the average working-class person. After many years of hard work and motivation he was able to make his dreams a reality. I think if he never believed in himself, he would’ve given up. While doing some further research, another quote I stumbled upon by Henry that I really liked was, “Failure is the opportunity to began again-this time more intelligently.” I found this quote quite similar to the prior one I mentioned. This meaning that failure isn’t really a failure if you learn from the experience. For example, Henry went bankrupt five times. I actually find that very admirable that he never gave up. That shows a lot about someone’s perseverance. Which by the way, I am a firm believer of these quotes. I know for a fact once I start thinking that I cannot do something or that I will never be good at something, chances are I wont be or I’ll never know. Once I start thinking that way,

right then and there I have lost all my motivation and I will get into that mindset, “What is even the point?” There have been so many situations in my life where I let my fear dictate all my decisions. I do regret not doing lots of things in my high school career due to fear of being judged. I never wanted to be noticed. It wasn’t until my senior year I actually knowingly tried to get past this problem by playing the piano in front of the whole class. For some people that seems silly and not even a big deal, but to me it was unbelievably petrifying. Once I sat down, my heart was pounding, my body was shaking, and all I could feel was everyone’s eyes on me. I felt tension and attempting to get rid of that, I started playing immediately. I tried looking down at the keyboard most of the time, but when I looked around, my classmates were actually smiling at me. Which that lead me to a feeling of serenity. Once I finished, everyone clapped and at that moment I felt the biggest sense of accomplishment and relief.