Lessons in Leadership: Henry Ford

Last week, we wrote about Noah Webster as part of our Lessons in Leadership series. This week, we fast forward half a century to Henry Ford.

Henry Ford (1863 – 1947) was the founder of the Ford Motor Company. He is perhaps best known for his invention of the Model T and his development of modern assembly lines used in mass production.

Some of Ford’s business practices garnered a great deal of criticism at the time—and a few still do today—but there’s no denying the legacy he’s left or that he had an innate ability to lead others, and for that reason we turn to him for some Lessons in Leadership.

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Lessons in Leadership: Noah Webster

Today, Noah Webster (1758 – 1843) may be among the least-known early Americans, but many of those familiar with him believe him to be one of the fathers of education in this country.

If you haven’t already guessed it, Noah Webster is the same man whose name is printed on the cover of the dictionary; he wrote it, and spent many long hours—and a great deal of his money—researching the etymology, uses, and definitions of each word in it. Webster’s work on the dictionary is extensive enough as it is, but he also worked a great deal toward improving childhood education in early America, and for that reason we look to him for this week’s Lessons in Leadership.

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