克里斯·伽德納（Chris Gardner）曾是一名無家可歸的父親，帶著未滿兩歲的兒子在舊金山流浪，甚至被迫住在地鐵站的公廁。然而，他憑藉堅韌不拔的精神，不僅在華爾街闖出一片天地，更成為第一位打入證券界的黑人富豪。他的真實經歷後來被寫成《當幸福來敲門》（The Pursuit of Happyness），並被翻譯成二十六種語言發行，曾榮登《紐約時報》暢銷排行榜第一名。這部感人至深的勵志故事於2006年被改編成電影，由威爾·史密斯（Will Smith）主演，不僅票房大賣，還入圍奧斯卡獎。全世界超過十億人被他的故事所激勵。
很多人看完電影，深受感動之餘，都想追問葛德納：「你到底是怎麼做到的？」而他想要講的故事——你可以突破自己，贏得機會改變生活——其實可以發生在這個世上任何角落。接下來，讓我來分享他的人生智慧整理 :
1.「我相信，只要全心貫注地勇敢向前走，各種挫敗都是成功的養分。」
"I believe that as long as you move forward with focus and courage, every failure becomes the nourishment for success."2.「等等，我們是無家可歸，但並非毫無希望。」
"Wait a minute, we are homeless, but we are not hopeless."
3.「當人們做不到某些事情時，他們總會告訴你，你也無法辦到。」
"When people can't do something themselves, they're going to tell you that you can't do it either."
4.「不要讓人家說你成不了大器，即使是你的父母或家人也不行；只要有夢想，你就有責任去捍衛它、守護它。」
"Don't let anyone tell you that you can't be great—not even your parents or family. If you have a dream, you have a responsibility to protect and pursue it."
5.「就從此時、此地開始。」
"Start right here, right now."
6.「不管你最後會變成什麼樣的人，全看你的態度。」
"Who you become in the end depends entirely on your attitude."
7.「我是這樣的人，如果你問的問題，我不知道答案，我會直接告訴你『我不知道』；但我向你保證：我知道如何尋找答案，而且我一定會找出答案。」
"I'm the kind of person who, if you ask me a question and I don't know the answer, I'll tell you ‘ I don't know. ’But I promise you this : I know how to find the answer, and I will find it."
8.「幸福是讓我認清自己所處位置的能力。不管我人在何處，都會記得自己從哪裡來，也知道自己走了多遠。」
"Happiness is the ability to recognize where you are. No matter where I am, I always remember where I came from and how far I've come."
9.「你總是可以重新安排銷售案，但你無法重新安排你兒子的棒球比賽，或你女兒的舞蹈表演。」
"You can always reschedule a sales meeting, but you can't reschedule your son's baseball game or your daughter's dance recital."
10.「生命中只有一件事情比做父親更重要，那就是做爺爺。」
"There is only one thing in life more important than being a father, and that is being a grandfather."
資料參考 : BBC、《當幸福來敲門》、wiki
