The American Dream
By: Charlie Hutton
Growing up, Will was the class clown in school. He could make anyone laugh but did not take anything too seriously. Playing that role was easy for him to do. However, beneath the humor things were unstable at home. Home felt unpredictable. It was a place that lacked consistency and stability. Joking around became his way of dealing with what he couldn’t control at home. His family always said he’d end up in sales someday, and while it wasn't his dream, they knew he would be good at it. He enjoyed talking and connecting with people to get to know them better. It felt natural to him even if he didn’t realize how important those skills would become.
College didn’t work out for Will. After two years, he walked away. He was unsure of what to do next, but he was sure that sitting in a classroom wasn’t for him. He took a job washing and detailing cars, just trying to figure things out. Then one ordinary day changed everything. Will was pulling a burgundy Volkswagen Jetta out of the car wash when a couple approached him. They started asking questions about the mileage, the number of owners, and if they could see the inside. He answered their questions and put plates on the car. They took the car on a test drive. When he went inside, he told his boss what he’d done.
“WHAT?” his boss responded sharply. Will thought he had just gotten himself fired. But when the couple returned they bought the car. After they left, his boss called him into the office. Will was prepared for the worst. He then heard something he never expected: “You will not be washing cars on Monday, Will. You’re going to be our newest salesman.” He seized that opportunity and ran with it.
Over time, Will worked his way up to Operations Manager, eventually running Kightlinger Auto Sales basically by himself. In that role, he became the top dealer in Northwest Pennsylvania for Credit Acceptance, closing more loans than anyone else in the area. To Will, this was more than just numbers, it showed that he had built something real from the ground up. Will is a great example of how you can succeed even if life doesn’t deal you a great hand of cards.
William Gigogne
The Pursuit of Happyness relates to Will's story very well. The main character starts out being unstable just like Will when they were younger. In the end they both manage to beat the odds and be very successful. They both do not follow a traditional path and use a lot of perseverance to succeed. Like Chris Gardner, Will grabs a golden opportunity, which ultimately turns out to be huge for him which both examples could have gone poorly. Will’s story reflects the American Dream as narrated here in The Pursuit of Happyness and shows success can come to anyone despite whatever their starting point is.