Chris wants a better life for him and his son. What do you think he sees as happiness for his son? Do you think he makes the right decision to achieve this?

Chris Gardner met his father when he was 28 years old. He does not want his son growing up not knowing his own father the way he was unable to know his. In his image of a better life for him and his son, Christopher, Gardner sees happiness as simply having a safe and secure home, a source of steady income, and for his son to have the ability to pursue his dreams and accomplish his goals. Spending quality time together is also a factor in his son's happiness and Chris knows this. So he does things like take a trip to the beach, and pretend that they went back in time to the time of the dinosaurs using the bone density machine he lugs around to sell. I believe Chris makes the right decisions for his son, although they saw some hard times together and he acted pretty harsh in regards to his son when he was going through some desperate times. Yet all his efforts were for the best, and they were earnest. Chris is an honest, hardworking man and he went about pursuing "happyness" in what I see as the best way. There should be no lying or cheating in order to accomplish something. Indeed, goals should be pursued with determination and heart, not with connivance and treachery. One should always try and be the best they can be, and considering that one does not have control of outside factors nor other people, one should be able to control themselves and their own emotions and strive to achieve their full potential in that manner. Admittedly, not everyone even wants to be a good person, but they can't go wrong if they act like one. Chris Gardner was a good man, and he deserved his happy-ending.

In terms of addressing ALL of Chris's decisions in regards to his son, I further believe that his best decision was deciding to keep Christopher with him, and not his mother. Linda appeared to be a very self-centered, embittered woman, and that sort of influence would not have been good on any young child. Gardner was definitely portrayed as the more emotionally stable and supportive parent throughout the movie, although you could tell Linda did love Christopher.