Do Some People Have All the Luck?
“Depend on the rabbit’s foot if you will, but remember it didn’t work for the rabbit.“
– R.E. Shay
Do you believe that some people seem to have all the luck or that others are just born lucky? All things being equal, do you ever wonder why success seems to come easier to some people as opposed to others – maybe even you?
I don’t believe in luck. I believe everyone has the opportunity to create their own luck simply by opening their minds to opportunities that come their way. Other times, we need to create those opportunities ourselves. After all, the energy we put out in the world has a way of shining back on us. Trust me. It may not happen instantly, but it will happen.
The greatest way to change our luck is to change the way we think. We’re all the product of our thoughts, both conscious and unconscious. What we say affects how we think. Whether or not we’re able to accomplish something is determined by whether or not we think we can do it.
I’m not saying that if we teach our minds to be more positive, miracles will happen. It doesn’t work that way. What does happen, and what has been proven, is that positive people are more open to seeing the possibilities all around them, so they’re better able to take charge of situations that may go awry and turn them around.
When you ask people how they succeeded and they humbly respond, ‘well, it was just luck,’ you can bet that it took a lot more than that. Making your own luck is something that takes practice and cultivation, and while it’s not a guarantee that you’re going to make a bundle because you’ve changed your attitude, it will increase your likelihood for success. Luck has nothing to do with chance. Winning the lottery is chance. It’s a random event, totally out of your control. You can though, control your luck; and by seeing your world in a different light, even make your own. Here are just 7 suggestions to get the process going:
- Be there. Don’t get lost in routines. Be open to new experiences and seize opportunities to grow your knowledge and your network.
- Open your mind to possibilities and you’ll expand your outlook and your outcome.
- Explore your options. Do set your goals, but don’t be so locked into one way of reaching them that you miss opportunities along the way that could facilitate the process.
- Risk is your friend. Learn how to assess it wisely. Have a Plan A, Plan B, maybe even a Plan C; then go for it.
- Trust your intuition. If your gut tells you something is wrong, it probably is.
- Take the good from the bad and move on.
- Luck, like trust, needs to be earned. Belief and positive thinking alone won’t guarantee luck. They’ll help, but you still need to do the work.
Richard Wiseman, author of “The Luck Factor: Changing Your Luck, Changing Your Life: The Four Essential Principles”, conducted a study several years ago where people who thought they were lucky and people who thought they were unlucky were asked to keep a diary of events that happened to them as well as their thoughts and actions. Little surprise that the ‘lucky’ people were those who were able to find the silver lining in everything, good and bad. They were better able to take control of their situations and make positive changes in their lives.
Remember, for the most part, people who think they’re lucky are, and are better able to find something to be thankful for, even in the most dire of circumstances. I’m confident that despite the ‘slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,’ at the end of each day we can still sit down and think of at least a few things we can be grateful for.
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“Luck? I don’t know anything about luck. I’ve never banked on it and I’m afraid of people who do. Luck to me is something else: Hard work – and realizing what is opportunity and what isn’t.”
– Lucille Ball