Will Smith’s latest movie “The Pursuit Of Happyness” opened in theaters December 15th, 2006. This isn’t a movie review, but as all my other writings on this blog, it’s my editorial from a financial and a personal perspective.

The movie’s title really spoke to me at a time when I’m trying to decide how happy I currently am, and what is it that I want to pursue; what direction I want to take. The movie is based on a true story. But though most people feel that this story is about the American Dream, my empathy is with the sense of responsibility that the main character, Chris Gardner, had for his situation. Want to know why I feel this?

What Is The American Dream?

Kudos to Will Smith for seeing the duality within the pursuit. When it comes to the movie, many people may think that having money is the American Dream - a rags to riches story with the final destination being great wealth. But I beg to differ. As I’ve written before, it isn’t the abundance of wealth that creates happiness but the lack of it that produces hardship.

Before I go any further, I would like to share some video taken from 20/20 to give you more background information about the real Chris Gardner’s story and how it developed into a movie with the help of Will Smith. Take a look at the 2 videos and come back to read more of my thoughts.

Some Things I Want To Share With You
There’s a meme recently floating around the blogosphere about “5 things you don’t know about me“. Nobody’s tagged me yet, and I don’t care to follow that format. But I do want to confess some of my personal feelings that have been evoked by this movie and the above 20/20 segment.

1. Reading is absolutely fundamental. Ever since I was a kid, people have labeled me intelligent, able to pick up concepts and skills quickly, or at the very least not ignorant. I have to attribute it to reading. My mother and I would pick up used textbooks for school through a free textbook gifting program. I would be very excited at picking up textbooks, to be used during the entire school year, and finish reading it all before school even started. I would go to the library and borrow the 7 maximum books allowed, finish them within a week, and return to get more. Even at age 6, I borrowed 4 books from the children’s section and 3 books from the adult section. Maybe that’s why I love reading blogs!

2. All the money, stocks, investments, real estate in the world cannot compare to having loving relationships. I really relate to Chris Gardner’s passion for his child. I too have vowed many years ago to become the best father I can be to my children. Yes, I am a single guy with no child as yet. And yes, my friends teased me when I shared with them the names I had already picked for my future kids. But they didn’t know why I had such thoughts. They did not know about my motivations, or what I hold dear. Everyone has their own priorities and those were mine. Having kids is not the point, but the idea of having meaningful unconditional relationships is the issue. I learn to invest because I want to learn to build a better future for the people that now surround me and will surround me. My pursuit is not about exuberant abundance but to ensure I can build the environment that will allow me to build lasting, loving relationships. There can be no happiness for me even with all the money in the world if there are nobody whom I can cherish.

3. Appreciation for wealth isn’t the same when you have never experienced hardship. I don’t know about you, sometimes I look at the people I know, who have been born with a silver spoon and wonder how much they appreciate the value of a dollar? And it’s not about the monetary value, but the work that is put forth to make that dollar? And what that dollar would mean to someone who does not have it? One of the reasons I choose to be a value investor is because I do not want to put my capital at undue risk. I marvel at the greed that overtakes people who would approach stock investing like casino betting.

There are 2 roads that people who have experienced hardship can take. You could let greed run you, or you can learn to control and harness it’s power. Will Smith is a good example of a person who had to climb up from humble beginnings. He wasn’t poor, but he had to fight for everything he’s achieved. Imagine if Paris Hilton had saw the original 20/20 documentary? I would pay a dollar to find out what her thoughts would be! But only a dollar.

And Some Things You Can’t Be Happy With… Even If You Have Money!
Of course, the Chris Gardner story has a happy ending …. a VERY HAPPY ending with Chris now a multi-millionaire. But would you have thought of him as any less successful if he and his child lived happily with a manageable, affordable lifestyle? With all that weal