
Chris Gardner and John Hope Bryant at Forbes 250: Started at the Bottom – How Resilience Creates Real Success
What does it really mean to start from the bottom—and how do you rise above it? In this powerful conversation,
John Hope Bryant serves on several boards and in various advisory roles and is often consulted by influential private sector leaders for his unique perspective as one who grew up on the streets but who now spends the majority of his time in the suites. A 2021 WSJ article featuring Nextdoor’s CEO Sarah Friar is but one example wherein she credits Bryant for always “pulling me back from feeling impotent”. As a newly recruited board member Bryant has encouraged Friar to reflect the diversity found in the neighborhoods her company services in both board leadership and senior management at Nextdoor.


What does it really mean to start from the bottom—and how do you rise above it? In this powerful conversation,

Your zip code is a bigger predictor of how long you’ll live than your DNA. That’s not me talking. That’s