“You have to be willing to make mistakes. The worst thing that can happen is you become memorable.”
— Hillary Clinton
Hillary Clinton said this during a 2017 commencement address at Wellesley College, her alma mater. She was reflecting on her career of setbacks and comebacks, urging graduates to take risks despite the possibility of public failure.
I grew up in Park Ridge, Illinois. My mother survived an abusive childhood and taught me that giving up was never an option. I went from Wellesley to Yale Law School, where I met Bill. I chose Arkansas over Washington because I believed in what we could build together. I lost healthcare reform in 1993 when the entire establishment turned against me. I ran for Senate in New York as a carpetbagger, they said. Won twice. Ran for president in 2008 and lost to a first-term senator. Served as Secretary of State. Ran again in 2016 and won the popular vote by three million but lost the Electoral College.