Chris Gardner Success Story
Chris Gardner has come a long way from being homeless. He is a huge success in the stock brokerage business and has a whopping net worth of $165 million.
Photo Credit: wikimedia commons
Chris had an extremely rough childhood and grew up with an abusive stepfather. In his early adult life he met a young woman and married, but it wasn’t all roses. Chris notes in his book that there was a lot of cocaine usage and partying going on between the two of them, which isn’t a recipe for a long term, successful marriage. However, his life took a small turn for the better when one day he was leaving San Francisco General hospital after making sales rounds in an attempt to sell medical equipment. He saw a red 308 Ferrari pulling into the parking lot, took one look at the well dressed driver and knew that he could be in that position too if only he knew what the man did for a living. So, Chris approached the man in the Ferrari, which turned out to be stock broker Bob Bridges, who at the time was earning $80,000 per month. Bob agreed to have lunch with Chris where they discussed exactly what Bob did for a living. Chris was enthused and decided that being a stock broker was the career that he wanted to pursue and decided to make the leap into a broker training program. In a harsh twist of fate, his marriage fell apart near the same time and he was left homeless and barely scraping by on a trainee’s salary, and had his two year old son to care for. Chris is quoted in several interviews as stating that he didn’t have enough money to have both shelter and food, so he always chose food so that his son would be nourished. They slept in airport waiting areas, half way houses and even the floor of the subway bathroom.
Chris continued, through sheer perseverance to learn the stock trade as a trainee in the Dean Witter offices. He was such a hustler that he was noticed by the head of Bear Stern’s San Francisco office, where he received a bigger draw and more payout, which allowed him to finally get off the streets and rent an apartment and provide daycare for his son. Chris eventually transferred to the New York office of Bearn Stearns because of his tenacious work ethic, but he didn’t stop there. In 1987, with the help of some friends and customers, he opened Gardner Rich & Co., which has since been very prosperous. The rest is success history!
Here is Chris’ advice for people contemplating a mid-life reinvention, which gives us a glimpse into the character of this self-made man:
1. “Ain’t nobody gotta dig it but you.” Forget what other people think or say. Do something that makes you happy. “We’re afraid that because everybody might not like it” we shouldn’t do it, Gardner says. “But you gotta push that button.”
2. Go with what you love, but stay grounded. “Probably the hardest question I get asked is ‘How do I choose between passion and practicality?'” Gardner says. “I can’t answer that. I had to do both. I was passionate about pursuing a career in financial services. But I was also passionate about feeding my child.”
3. Start a business. Gardner added his voice to the chorus of experts who see a wave of small-business startups run by baby boomers pushed out of Corporate America due to ageism or the bad economy. That’s OK, he says, because entrepreneurs over 50 are in a better position than younger workers to capitalize on their “reputations and Rolodexes.” It’s the start of a creator economy, he says, “with a whole lot of folks being entrepreneurial.”
4. Have a plan. If you’re starting a business, hope isn’t enough. You need a plan that’s clear, concise, compelling and consistent. On top of that, you need to be committed to what you’re doing, he says.
5. Play to your strengths. “Your skills, talents and expertise are transferable” to other types of jobs and industries, he says.
6. Look out for yourself. “The cavalry is not coming….and things might be getting worse.”
7. Remember what’s important. For a long time, Americans worked to get things, Gardner says. It’s time to focus on what really matters — family and friends.
8. Any progress is progress. “Baby steps count, too, as long as you’re moving forward,” he says.
Source: http://www.secondact.com
sources: wikipedia, businesspundit
