HR

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Life Lessons

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 INTRODUCTION

• The Pursuit of Happyness is a 2006 American biographical Drama

directed by Gabriele Muccino and starring Will Smith as Chris
Gardner, a homeless salesman.

• Based on the best-selling 2006 memoir of the same name written

by Gardner.

• The Pursuit of Happyness is based on the true story of Chris

Gardner's struggle to achieve his share of the American dream. It is
based on Gardner's nearly one-year struggle being homeless. The
movie is set in San Francisco in 1981.

• The unusual spelling of the film's title means that the “Y” in
Happyness represents “You”, and what makes you happy.

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 Theme of the Movie

Film based on the life of the Business Tycoon

Christopher Gardner, demonstrating the battles
that Chris Gardner faces while attempting to make
a good life for himself and his child.

• The major theme of this film is survival,

determination, and never giving up on your
dreams.

• One of the fundamental themes in the film is

Determination – that you can accomplish anything
you need if you invest sufficient effort and do not
surrender even when times are hard.

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 Plot of the Movie

• A rags to riches story about family, love and seeking the

American Dream.

• The movie starts with Chris Gardner shown as a loving,

caring, and supportive husband and father to his wife
and their son. He does have financial problems but he’s
shown optimist and courageous that the problems will
resolve and they will come out of it.

• Will Smith depicts Christopher Gardner, a sales

representative attempting to make a decent living for his
wife and child. However, as the family's monetary issues
mount, his wife deserts him and their child due to
pressure.

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 The Happy Ending

At the end of his training period his firm, Dean Witter

Reynolds (DWR), made him a full employee. Finally able
to rent a home for himself and his son, Through
everything, Chris tries to be positive about his future. He
remains determined to do everything he can to achieve
his objectives. His vitality and drive guided him to attain
some of hardest things in life.

In 1987, he opened his own investment firm, Gardner

Rich&Co

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 HR LESSONS

1. Do not judge candidates on the basis of face value, give them a

fair chance to express themselves : Despite his shabby appearance,
Chris (Will Smith) was allowed to sit for the interview for Dean
Witter Reynolds' coveted internship program and although the
interviewers could not help but express shock at his untidy
appearance, they selected him because he was able to express his
passion and abilities to perform.

2. Promote a culture of Meritocracy : Chris bags the Broker position

at the company strictly because of his KSA (knowledge, skills and
attitude) and laudable performance.

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 HR LESSONS

3. Hire with an open mind: Chris, despite

being older than others applying for the
internship program, got selected for the
internship. He also got selected for the
broker position later. The hiring managers
could have simply rejected his
candidature on account of his age or past
experience in a different field, yet they
were receptive to him

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 HR LESSONS
• Employee Engagement:
HR has to ensure employees have the right skills, tools
and environment to perform their jobs to the best of
their ability.
HR needs to keep developing employees so that
engagement is maintained.

• Motivation Theory: Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs

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 HR LESSONS

Company Policies:
A. Non Discrimination Policy
B. Communication Policy
C. Dress Code Policy

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 LIFE LESSONS

1. Strengthen your skills

You need to be skilful at what you do and you
should also know how to use that skill. In this
movie, while struggling in life Chris Gardner asks a
well-off stockbroker what he does and most
importantly how he does it. He gets a response
that eventually gives him a ray of hope.
2. Stop Feeling Underrated and
Unappreciated
After pulling off so many tasks altogether at the
office, Chris felt underrated as well as
unappreciated by his office manager. Sending
Chris to fetch coffee or doughnuts or even asking
to park the car at crucial moments testify to this
claim. But Chris didn’t wince.

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 LIFE LESSONS

3. Be enthusiastic
There can be so many things in the world that are unknown to us.
Hence, we should try to fill this knowledge gap. Accepting this
knowledge gap is better than faking out. Remember the scene where
Chris arrives at the interview in shabby clothes? Despite this outfit, he
manages to impress the interview board by being honest. He strongly
avers that he is a man who would dauntlessly accept his knowledge gap.
But he affirms that he knows how to find that answer and he will surely
find that answer.
4.Cast Aside Regrets
Let’s recollect some good old school or high school memories! After
pulling off a first-class score in any subject we would often imagine
becoming so many great things! This is relevant for almost all of us. But
in reality how many of us have become the ones that we have imagined?

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 LIFE LESSONS

5. Protect your dream, chase success relentlessly

“Don't ever let someone tell you, you can't do
something. You got a dream, you got to protect it.
People can’t do something themselves; they want to
tell you, you can’t do it. You want something, go get it.”

6. Recognise your opportunities (even if sometimes

that means taking a step back)
Recognizing an opportunity and grabbing it at the
right time is easier said than done. In Gardner’s case,
the opportunity came in the form of an internship at
Dean Witter. Being an unpaid position, it was an
extremely risky choice to make, particularly because he
is struggling financially and had a family to fend for. In
one scene, his wife is seen scoffing at him. “Salesman
to intern is backward,” she says. But Gardner knew that
he needed to take a step back to make a leap forward.

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 LIFE LESSONS
7. Give things a positive spin
When life gives you lemons, make lemonade. Even if you are going
through the worst crisis, try to see the brighter side. See how you
can give things a positive spin and show that side of yours to people.
8. Pursue happiness
At the end of the day, what’s most important is to pursue things that
make you happy.
In Gardner’s case, his happiness was to offer a better life to his son.
He never stopped visualizing his successes, and his persistence and
smart work paid off in the end.
At every turn of your journey, it’s important to assess if you are
making decisions that make you happy. A happy state of mind is the
base for achieving success and glory. So make your happiness your
priority and spread joy.

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THANK
YOU! `