Accidental Gallantry

People often remark that I'm pretty lucky. Luck is only important in so far as getting the chance to sell yourself at the right moment. After that, you've got to have talent and know how to use it.

Frank Sinatra

Many times, we will see people exposing themselves unnecessarily to risks, usually due to their own stupidity. They will drive unsafe cars or walk down dangerous neighborhoods knowingly, or simply place themselves in harm’s way because they don’t consider the consequences. Worse yet, is how these people will later complain about how unlucky they were when they get hurt.

In many of these cases, where lady luck decided to spit into someone’s face, it is a direct result of the person being in the wrong place at the wrong time doing the wrong thing. Maybe they did the same thing a thousand times before and nothing bad happened. But you just need it to go wrong once to cause a disaster to blame luck. But what if it’s not completely up to luck?

We hear about how someone so lucky, opportunity doesn’t seem to knock on their door, but actually has a key and an open invitation. What is the difference between good luck and bad luck? I can almost hear you chanting in unison “Hard Work.”

Not really.

There are plenty of hard working people who life just doesn’t cut them a break. There are also a lot of lazy people who just have everything go right. So the answer is not necessarily “Hard Work.” Is it really a random draw? Are we really victims of chance, of a dice cast?

Not entirely. We keep hearing about being in the wrong place at the wrong time? What if we focused on being in the Right Place at the Right Time? Wouldn’t that load the dice in our favor? Work has a lot to do with success, but so does opportunity. It’s not about working hard, but working smart. You have to expose yourself to having those opportunities.

Consider your environment and the places you frequent. Consider the company you keep. What kind of opportunities do these things provide? Go out to the world and risk it.  Surround yourself with the opportunities you want to attract and how you want to be viewed.

Too often I hear of people locking themselves up in their own little world, be it in video games or netflicking, or even curled up with a book. Do you think that opportunity will go find you if you are locked up in your house? It’s not like you have to stay near the phone or wait by the computer for an email.

You want to read? Take the book to a coffee shop or a park. You want to catch up on a series? Turn it into a viewing party and invite as many friends as you can. You want to play video games…. Unless it’s a social game, I can’t help you there. The point is, go out! Nobody is discovered if they lock themselves out from the world. Explore, expose yourself to luck.

“Fortune favors the Bold!”