Chris Gardner’s life story is featured in Reader’s Digest, January 2007 edition. His turning point was in 1982 when he gave his parking spot to a man driving a Ferrari. He asked, “how much do you earn in a month?” The guy answered, “USD80,000 a month.” At that time, the top salesmen in Gardner’s firm earned USD80,000 A YEAR. Next question: “What do you do?” Answer: “Stockbroking.” With that, Gardner found his vocation. The two men hit it off, and 5 years later, Gardner had his own Ferrari.

In the early 1980s, when he was approaching 30, he struggled with homelessness in San Francisco while raising his toddler son.

Born in 1954, his personal struggle of establishing himself as a stockbroker while managing fatherhood and homelessness is portrayed in the 2006 major motion picture The Pursuit of Happyness, starring actor Will Smith. His book of memoirs with the same title was published in May 2006.

What is remarkable about his story is how he rose from a deprived background. He endured abuse in his childhood at the hands of his violent stepfather, Freddie Triplett. This inspired him to become a loving and dedicated father to his own children. He had few positive male role models, since his own father was living separately. Despite her unhappy marriage, Gardner’s mother, Bettye Jean Triplett, was a source of inspiration and strength. She encouraged Gardner to believe in himself and sowed the seeds of self-reliance in him. Gardner quotes her as saying “you can only depend on yourself. The cavalry ain’t coming.”

Freddie Triplett’s violent outbursts often left Bettye Jean beaten and near fatally injured. Those rages left Gardner and his three sisters constantly afraid. Bettye Jean was imprisoned when Triplett reported her to the authorities for working while collecting welfare. As a result, her children were raised in foster care during her incarceration.

They were put into foster homes for the second time when Gardner’s mother re-entered incarceration for attempting to burn down the house with Triplett inside. Gardner was then 8 years old. During this period he became acquainted with his uncle Henry who had the most profound influence, entering Gardner’s world at a time when he most needed a father figure. Tragically, he died shortly before his mother was released from prison.

From those experiences, Gardner determined that alcoholism, domestic abuse, child abuse, illiteracy, fear and powerlessness were all things he wanted to avoid in the future.

He was barely making ends meet as a salesman when he decided that his future lay as a stockbroker. Within the next several years, he passed his licensing exam, gained employment, established custody of his son, struggled with homelessness, and successfully rented an apartment.

Today, he is CEO of his own stockbrokerage firm, Gardner Rich, based in Chicago.He credits his tenacity and success to his “spiritual genetics” handed down to him by his mother, Bettye Jean Triplett and to the high expectations placed on him by his children, Chris Jr. and his daughter, Jacintha (born 1985).

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