I’m a lucky guy.
I’m truly grateful for the many moments, coincidences and random events that lead me to where I am today.
So, if I’m so lucky, why do I say there’s no such thing?
Events are neither lucky nor unlucky. Luck is what you do with those events. It’s how you react and the decisions you make. What we call “luck” is really nothing more than “what happens next” when an opportunity presents itself.
Lucky people simply have a better track record of taking advantage of the random situations thrown at them by life. Usually, that means they’re better prepared in some way so as to make the right decision when so-called “luck” presents itself.
Was I “lucky” to be hired by Microsoft when I was? I suppose I was. Was I prepared when the opportunity arose? You bet! My education, my experience, my previous job, … all these things served to prepare me to be ready when the opportunity presented itself in the form of a newspaper “help wanted” ad. Had I not put in the work to be ready, I would not have been so lucky.
Am I “lucky” to be married to my wife for 36+ years and counting? Absolutely. Was I prepared? Probably not, and yet… I grew up with values and ethic that prepared me to make the right decisions as the opportunities arose. Together we did the work, and continue to do the work, to make a marriage last. Is it luck? Maybe. But without the work, without whatever it is that makes us who we are, we would not be so lucky.
What we call luck isn’t really random chance at all. It’s being prepared in a myriad of sometimes intangible ways, it’s making decisions, it’s doing the work.
Luck is being ready and willing when life comes calling.