Much of our American progress has been the product of the individual who had an idea; pursued it; fashioned it; tenaciously clung to it against all odds; and then produced it, sold it, and profited from it.
Interpretation
The quote emphasizes the importance of individual initiative and perseverance in achieving progress.
Hubert H. Humphrey highlights that the advancement of American society is largely due to the relentless efforts of individuals who have the vision to create something new and the determination to see it through, regardless of the challenges they face. This underscores the value of creativity, hard work, and resilience in the pursuit of success.
In practice
In a motivational speech about entrepreneurship, this quote can inspire aspiring business owners.
It was once said that the moral test of government is how that government treats those who are in the dawn of life, the children; those who are in the twilight of life, the elderly; and those who are in the shadows of life, the sick, the needy and the handicapped.
We need an America with the wisdom of experience. But we must not let America grow old in spirit.
You cannot go around and keep score. If you keep score on the good things and the bad things, you'll find out that you're a very miserable person. God gave man the ability to forget, which is one of the greatest attributes you have. Because if you remember everything that's happened to you, you generally remember that which is the most unfortunate.
Here we are the way politics ought to be in America; the politics of happiness, the politics of purpose and the politics of joy.
The pursuit of peace resembles the building of a great cathedral. It is the work of a generation. In concept it requires a mater-architect; in execution, the labors of many.
The President is the peoples lobbyist.
It's the law of averages: put in more, come out with more.
He who by an exertion of mind or body, adds to the aggregate of enjoyable wealth, increases the sum of human knowledge, or gives to human life higher elevation or greater fullness - he is, in the larger meaning of the words, a " producer," a " working man," a " laborer," and is honestly earning honest wages.
We think, mistakenly, that success is the result of the amount of time we put in at work, instead of the quality of time we put in.
The only worthwhile achievements of man are those which are socially useful.
Talent is a process, not a thing. Failure is not proof of an innate limit but rather is an indication of a skill we haven’t yet developed.
Such is the prestige of the Nobel Award and of this place where I stand that I am impelled, not to speak like a grateful and apologetic mouse, but to roar like a lion out of pride in my profession and in the great and good men who have practised it through the ages.
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