There is no Luck- Make Your Own Opportunity and My Journey
As a young man, I believed in luck and that those more fortunate than me had a streak of luck that led to their prosperity. I saw the wealthy, famous and the connected as being born under a “lucky sign” that made their path of prosperity effortless. I was wrong on so many levels, and falling into this belief system was bad for my development.
Luck is generally defined as a fortuitous situation that falls into an individual’s lap and leads them forward into prosperity. A key component of luck is being prepared for opportunity. Every day, there is opportunity in the world, and it’s our job to be prepared to grab the reins of enterprise. We make our own luck, and our mindstate and preparation make the difference. If we consider “luck” and “fortune” to be the same thing, we can focus our efforts on what needs to be done to be successful.
Luck is an opportunity you are prepared for. Making your own luck means educating yourself, honing your skills and making sure you are an active participant in life. Staying at home and stewing that others are more fortunate than you will only strain your mental health. Being jealous and envious and decrying other’s successes as “luck” will turn people off and thus will reduce your chance of success in business. I realized that my envy was translating into a dearth of opportunity, as I was focused on being a victim. I considered myself a poor and victimized individual who was lost, and that was not how I wanted to live my life. Instead I decided to take a path towards making my own luck.
How to Improve Your Opportunity (or “Luck”)- My Journey
As a younger man, I believed that luck happened to people who were not myself. I had never been so “lucky” and as that I was older than many lucky people, I was doomed to a life of mediocrity. The first step was sharing praise and joy with those who were fortuitous. When I blamed my lack of success on a lack of luck, I saw those whom I deemed “lucky” as taking my blessing in a way. Instead of continuing to be envious and resentful, I congratulated those whom I saw as lucky. This led to a lightening of my heart and a conversation with those who had what I wanted. I wasn’t being deceitful, I changed my mind and actions that led to a change in behavior. I got closer to the “lucky” and learned of their work, struggles and skills that had led to their fortune. I found that it wasn’t “luck” that had made them rich, rather it was skills, opportunity, mentorship, business acumen and other things. These were multifaceted individuals and not eternally blessed lucky souls I had built up in my mind. This was a key finding.
The next step in improving my opportunity was honing my skills. I was a college graduate with a job, but I was lacking in certification and I was an entry-level employee. I saw most “lucky” people had worked hard to improve their station. Mentorship was also key. Close to 100% of the “lucky” souls had found a mentor in business and life who had shared secrets, contacts and business skills with them. I needed a mentor, certifications, a narrow and niche skillset and to be open to new businesses. This was a key step of action. At this point, I had abandoned my flawed belief that “luck” made these people a fortune- rather it was hard work and direction. I felt more relaxed at this point, devoid of envy and now I knew what I needed to do to reach my goals.
The next step I took to improve my luck was to be more present in the world around myself. Business is a people industry and a relationship-based endeavor primarily. I needed to join organizations both inside of my place of work and outside it in the community to realize opportunities. From this piece of wisdom, I joined a community group and a professional organization. I volunteered and learned from all these opportunities and met mentors who taught me soft skills and technical ones as well. This was a key component to my success.
Eventually, I found the luck I was seeking. I called it success, and I am always building towards further success. Luck doesn’t just find you, and my envy was replaced with both gratitude and respect for the “lucky”. I love learning about how a person has made their own luck, and I encourage you to take action to find luck in your daily life.
God is love. Stay blessed and remember to pray for strength, wisdom and clarity.
