We all know people who we consider to be lucky. Consequently, there is no shortage of opinions on luck and how it works.
What is luck?
Opinions range from general non-believers who give absolutely no credence to luck, to those of you who are horseshoe tattooed.
There are a surprising number of reasons why many people believe in it, per se, doesn’t exist, and doesn’t matter. And it’s more complicated than you might think.
How you subscribe to fate can range from outright fatalism; to fatalism vs. predestination; to free will; indeterminism or chance, to name a few. You may not think much about it, but you likely fall in there somewhere. And where you land only gets more complicated when you throw in the inevitable religious considerations.
For many people, fate is the roller coaster that luck rides. Sometimes it hurls on you as it goes by, and sometimes it doesn’t.
I count myself lucky on many levels. And I’m more than just a little inclined to prescribe to the philosophy that you make your own luck. (Think life in general, not lottery tickets.) What I do know is that we shouldn’t wait for it to hurl itself upon us if it so sees fit, we need to put ourselves in its path.
There is a special part of this overall discussion. I’m talking about business, of course. Here is where the discussion takes a new turn and lengths.
I try not to roll my eyes when I hear someone say something like: “Man, he gets all of the promotions. He’s lucky.” Um, no. He either earned it, or he’s sleeping with someone at the company. There’s no middle ground here, and for the sake of this blog’s ratings, let’s say he earned it. Similar misfires on fortune are: “She’s so lucky to get such a large sales bonus.” and “Can you believe how lucky she is to not be one of those laid off?”
Think about it. Luck? Really?
Successful people understand and pursue what some people might call luck, even if that’s not what they themselves call it — they usually don’t.
There is a formula of sorts, and here is part of it:
I’d like to call this list “Making Your Own Luck in Business,” but I think I will go with “Seeking Opportunities and Using Situations to Your Professional Advantage.”
1) Don’t wait for it. Think of it like that girl or guy in high school who thought you were a stalker because you hung out by their locker and couldn’t get it through your head that they weren’t interested.
2) Give luck time. No, that is not a contradiction of the previous statement. I mean for you to contribute some extra time to your professional efforts. Take on an extra project, stay a little later, arrive a little earlier, learn more about your company, products or services, and competitors. An hour a weekend won’t kill you, and you’ll be surprised at how confident you will be on Monday more fully armed with intelligence than your colleagues (and professional competitors themselves?) may not have.
3) Go to where the action is. You don’t necessarily even have to have a solid agenda: just network. Outstanding companies like Eventsy draw the motivated and positive together — exactly the type of people you need to be near.
Think about this: It has very little leverage in the business. And achievement, killer sales, promotions, and rising in leadership aren’t about it. They are the rewards for people who don’t wait for it.
Frank Bastone can be reached at 718 662 8581, or schedule time for a chat here.
