crossposted from Generation X-Y Democrat Blog
Today, Chris Gardner made an appearance on MSNBC’s Morning Joe. For those of you who are unfamiliar with Mr. Gardner, he is a self-made millionaire who was once homeless. He was also the subject of the movie "The Pursuit of Happyness", starring Will Smith, which was based on his autobiography.
The Morning Joe crew asked what is different in this book from the last one, and Mr. Gardner pointed to practical applications, saying, "I had a plan...We’re in a position in our country (where) there is too much hoping going on ...My position is you have to have a plan; you don’t have to have a whole lot of hope."
Wha?
Okay, I do agree with the planning part. Most people who are truly successful had a plan. But to abandon Hope?
Hope is not crossing your fingers. Hope is not buying lotto tickets. Hope, by definition, is "to cherish a desire with anticipation" and "to desire with expectation of obtainment".
To Hope is to Want.
Your best chance of getting is wanting.
So, correct me if I’m wrong, but doesn’t that mean you have to have Hope before you have a plan?
I find this an interesting choice of words by Mr. Gardner, especially when most of this nation voted for Hope.
Gardner’s example for success is a unique one, but don’t you think he was holding on to Hopethat he would be successful? That's because he was! He even said around a quarter of the way through the interview, "I was homeless, but I was not hopeless".
Mr. Gardner took risks. Yes, he was successful, but those risks could have been disastrous.
If I was in Mr. Gardner’s shoes during his difficult times, and I had to choose between 1) an internship that might get me rich but would leave me and my toddler homeless, and 2) a low wage job that would not get me rich right now, but would pay the bills and allow me to raise my child in a safe environment, I would be jumping up and down for choice #2.
Mr. Gardner took choice #1 and it paid off. He got lucky. If he would have failed, choice #1 could be considered selfish and irresponsible. I think most people would agree, so for now, people just want a decent job, and they will hope for when times get better and other responsibly opportunities will present themselves.
Telling people to abandon hope is not a good message. Hope is what we need.