The Pursuit of Happiness

Just the other day, a colleague started the conversation asking if I have watched the movie "The Pursuit of Happiness" and I suddenly nodded excitedly. The question brought my memories back several months ago when I first saw the movie on a plane back from Taiwan. In the show, a man by the name of Chris Gardner (actor Will Smith - my favorite sci-fi actor of MIB, MIIB and iRobot fame), started his career as a pharmaceutical salesman carrying a portable x-ray device everywhere hospitals to see potential doctors willing to buy from him. Due to poor luck, he was unable to sell many of his device, at the same time choked up with mortgage loans and hefty parking fines. He was unable to bring home enough money to feed his family that his wife, a nurse, left him. He loved his wife and his son. He decided to take care of his only 3 yr old son and forbade his wife to take him away. Once his wife actually secretly brought him out of the childcare centre and did not return home for a few days. These caused a lot of panic and anguish in poor Mr Gardner.

Things became so bad that he was chased out of his home, and was homeless for a long time, his little kid in tow. They slept in buses, trains, and station toilets. Sometimes he was quick enough to reach the church that provides free lodging and simply meals for homeless people in San Francisco and stay overnight. Everyday was a struggle for him and his child.

But one day, he saw a gentleman carrying a briefcase and wearing an expensive suit in the streets. Apparently, the man looked wealthy. So he approached the man and asked him how to make it rich. The man looked at him and replied that he is in the stock-brokering business and if he is interested, there is a job interview down at his company and he can go have a try.

To cut the story short, he worked hard attending a no pay programme organised by the company where only one out of fifty is selected to join the company. He endured agonising days and night trying to study and taking care of his son. He still tried selling his medical device in the hope to get some income. At one point, he sold his blood at the bloodbank for cash to feed his son and pay for rent.

The day before his final interview after completing his training programme, he was locked up in jail for 24 hrs for failing to pay his parking fines. He went to the interview in smelly clothes which had paint all over because he was trying to paint his old rented room when he was arrested by the police.

I cried at the last part when he was being interviewed by the stock-brokering firm directors. He was honest and told them everything that had happened to his miserable life. Well, he got the job. Now, he is a 53 yr old multi-millionaire who owns a stock-brokering firm called "Gardner Rich" in New York.

I was kinda able to relate to his life because I was also once a biomedical sales engineer doing the same stuff he did trying to sell to doctors. It was tough. I was also married with one kid, my eldest dear also around three at that time. I was able to feel his struggle.

You can read more about him here: (Sony) http://www.sonypictures.com/homevideo/thepursuitofhappyness/ and here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chris_gardner. This is a REAL story.
God Bless you.


Reference: http://www.sonypictures.com.