During a court hearing, a group of lawyers placed Ford on the witness stand in an attempt to prove that he was an “ignorant” man. Thus they began asking him a series of questions on various topics other than automobiles- questions like “how many soldiers did the British send over to America to put down the rebellion of 1776?”

With a dry grin on his face, Ford nonchalantly replied, “I do not know how just many, but I have heard that it was a lot more than ever went back.”

Of course this brought laughter in the whole room. Nobody had expected Ford to give such an answer.

As the line of interrogation continued for another hour or so, Ford finally ran out of patience and rebuked, “If I really want to answer that foolish question you’ve just asked, or any of the other questions you’ve been asking me, , let me remind you that I have a row of electronic push buttons on my desk, and by posting the right button, I can summon to my aid men who can answer any question I desire to ask concerning the business to which I am devoting most of my efforts. Now, will you kindly tell me, why should I clutter up my mind with general knowledge, for the purpose of being able to answer questions, when I have men around me who can supply any knowledge I require?”.

At that point, everyone in the courtroom realized it was the answer of an educated man. Though Ford was someone whose “formal education” didn’t even reach 6th grade, he was definitely the wisest among them.

(Excerpt from “Think and Grow Rich”)