fer . He ’ s quick to highlight the role she ’ s played in his success .
“ My mom was telling me the other day that if an opportunity comes , you should always take advantage of it whether you ’ re interested in it or not ,” Howell says . “ The opportunity that you don ’ t take advantage of could be the same one to change your life .”
When Howell was in seventh grade , he was presented with the opportunity to join 4-H , an organization dedicated to mentorship and positive youth development . But he felt hesitant at the time because they ’ d pick him up in a short little van he thought was embarrassing .
“ I would be so embarrassed to get in that van , but it just changed my life so much ,” Howell says . “ Yeah , I had to ride on that van , but look what it allowed me to do . I do this stuff because I don ’ t want to miss out on the opportunities .”
Fast forward four years and he ’ s spent time on the 4-H state junior board where he represented 40 counties . Now , he ’ s the local club ’ s president .
Howell exudes confidence . He speaks in a matter-of-fact tone about future plans the same way most people discuss the weekend errands they need to run .
Walking the line between confidence and cockiness can be difficult , but Howell is quick to credit those who have helped him along the way .
He acknowledges that while teetering the line between confidence and cockiness , he can sometimes drift too far in the wrong direction .
“ Being too confident probably kills me sometimes ,” Howell says . “ Being too confident , when you take an ‘ L ’ ( loss ), you take it 10 times harder than as if you were expecting that ‘ L ’ because you weren ’ t as confident . When you take L ’ s , you gotta bounce back and just keep it moving .” Howell ’ s work ethic has blossomed into a multitude of leadership positions and academic success , and , while there ’ s no telling where he might go from here , he isn ’ t scared to aim high .
His mother told him from a young age it was pointless to tell small-minded people about big dreams .
“ It ’ s outlandish for a 16-year-old to say they ’ re going to take over Wall Street , but if I wanted to do that and I was really interested in that , what could stop me ?” online photo galleries
PHOTOS BY GIL POUND
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20 Under 40 2022 | Milledgeville Scene 23