Rags to Riches
从街头流浪汉到百万富翁
Chris Gardner tells 20/20 how he worked to move himself from a life of homelessness to a successful life as a businessman.
Chris Gardner在《美国广播公司新闻》20/20点节目讲述了他如何从街头流浪到成为百万富翁的经历。
Gardner is the head of his own brokerage firm and lives in a Chicago Townhouse--one of his three homes with a collection of tailored suits, designer shoes, and Miles Davis albums.
Gardner自己开了一家经纪人公司并任总管,住在芝加哥别墅区--他三处住宅中的其中一处,里面收藏有西装,时装鞋和Miles Davis的唱片集。 His path to this extraordinary success took a series of extraordinary turns. Just 20 years ago, Gardner was homeless and living, on occasion, in a bathroom at a Bay Area Rapid Transit station in Oakland, Calif.
在成功的道路上,他历经了一系列坎坷挫折。20年前,Gardner无家可归,有时就住在加州奥克兰市湖湾区快速运输站上的洗手间里过夜。
Gardner was raised by his mother, a schoolteacher. He says he never knew his father while he was growing up. But his mother had a way of keeping him grounded when he dreamed of things like being a jazz trumpeter.
Gardner从小由当教师的母亲抚养长大。他说自己从未见过父亲。但是,当他梦想作一名爵士乐小号手时,他母亲有一套方法指导他。
"Mothers have a way of saying things," Gardner said, "She explained to me, 'Son, there's only one Miles Davis and he got that job. So you have to do something else. But what that something else was, I did not know.'"
"母亲有自己的表述方法。"Gardner说:"她对我说,'儿子,只有一个Miles Davis,他从事这个行业。因此,你就得做其他的事情,至于那是什么事情,我就不知道了。'"
Gardner credits his uncles with providing the male influence he needed. Many of them were military veterans. So, straight out of high school, he enlisted in the Navy for four years. He says it gave him a sense of what was possible.
Gardner认为是他的叔叔给他提供了影响他的人生道路的男人。他们中许多人是部队里的老兵。因此,高中一毕业,他就报名参军当了四年的海军。他称这给他带来一种成就感。
A Red Ferrari and a Turning Point
一辆红色法拉利,一次人生转折点
退役以后,Gardner作起了医药销售员。他说,那时,他经历了人生又一个转折点。在一处停车场,他遇见一名男子驾着一辆红色法拉利。"他正在找一个停车摊位。我说,'你可以停我这里。但我要问你两个问题。"这两个问题是:你做什么工作?你怎样去做?这个人原来是股票经纪人,月薪8万美元。liuxuepaper.com