Luck Has Nothing to Do With IT!

She was just plain lucky! What a sad statement that is.

For anyone that looks at another and points their success as luck is probably just crushed by another’s wins so much that they have to use luck to avoid responsibility in their own life.

I was thinking about this quote today, “ Luck is where preparation meets opportunity”.  What are your thoughts?

We all encounter opportunities everyday some more than others but I believe that many of us overlook and miss out on these opportunities. The ones that take action, to be considered as luck, often end up with better fortunes. Not monetary fortunes but life fortunes.

I read in a book by Richard Branson recently and he told the story about setting up the Australian Airlines business, then known as Virgin Blue, and he said soon after opening their doors, they struck out lucky.

You see not long after they entered the market another major airline company collapsed meaning the could soak up all the business left behind. That company was Ansett Australia.

Know I am not one to disagree with the man Sir Richard Branson but I have a different take on this good fortune his business encountered as mere luck.

I believe that they took action, action to open the business in Australia. They took risk also, as I am sure an aeroplane is not the most inexpensive piece of equipment nor would be the staff required to operate and service such a business.

I do realise that the risk would have been minimised with Branson involved considered the master at risk aversion.

But the key is that they made preparation and planned. They forecast to reach a certain level of sales and growth and took serious action.

Then Ansett collapsed. Lucky Virgin?

Preparation meets opportunity.

When Air New Zealand won the bid to buy Ansett at a small savings of $680 million dollars they began their spiral downhill, due to a lack of foresight, ill planning and poor management.

Ansett was meet with a few unfavourable circumstances also. The government changed the rules to allow foreign airlines to fly domestic routes, the increases completion of Qantas and new discount airlines including Virgin Blue made the competitive landscape difficult. And Ansett’s ageing fleet that was grounded due to serious maintenance issues.

In order to compete they reduced costs while trying to maintain revenue. This did not help; they were losing supposedly 1.3 million dollars a day.

The other businessman sitting on the sidelines says, “well, Virgin just got lucky”. Yet at the time of planning, calculating risk and taking action they weren’t the ones sitting on the sidelines.

You see luck knocks when opportunity arises and the more opportunity that you are exposed to the more likely it is you will become fortunate from it. I also know that the more action you take the more opportunity you will come across.

Hard work, perseverance and patience are also certainly key factors of luck.

Take a look at some of the world’s most outstanding athletes. Did they just get lucky?

Michael Jordan arguably one of the best basketball players of all time didn’t reach success due to luck. He worked at it everyday. In high school he tried out for the varsity basketball team but deemed to short at 5’11”.

His willingness to overcome obstacles, endure hard work combined with his determination and competitive ego pushed him to achieving his luck.

Here is one of his greater quotes.

“I’ve missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300 games. 26 times, I’ve been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.”

Most of us would give up after so many failings but not Jordan he kept going. He hired world-class coaches and adopting numerous mentors to help improve both his physical and metal state.

He didn’t have super hero genetics or a high-class upbringing that he was just born into.

Jordan like so many other athletes worked hard at their game and when preparation meets opportunity they are the ones who become fortunate from it, not lucky.

So I looked luck up in the dictionary and here is what I found.
“Success or failure apparently bought by chance rather than through ones own actions.”

But what is chance?

Chance is the probability of something desirable happening.

So who do you think would have a better probability in facing many opportunities in their life?

Do you think it is the one that sits on their couch all day or the other that takes the courage to chase what the believe, in what the desire, to overcome the obstacles that are thrown in their way, to really follow their passions. I think it’s the later.

Those that put themselves in the forefront of life everyday have higher probability of achieving greater luck than those that do not.

To put yourself in the forefront everyday is difficult. It takes courage, hard work, determination, discipline, perseverance, patience and love.

Love for what you are doing. That desire that burns inside you that sparks your passion that makes you leap out of bed everyday.

Work hard at finding your passion and your sure will discover your luck.

I found five cents yesterday on the ground. The shinning glitter in the sun got my attention to see the opportunity, and with a little preparation and hard work to pick it up, I got lucky, or did I?

I will leave your with one final quote from Michael Jordan to finalise my rant and slam dunk this puppy.

“If you’re trying to achieve, there will be roadblocks. I’ve had them; everybody has had them. But obstacles don’t have to stop you. If you run into a wall, don’t turn around and give up. Figure out how to climb it, go through it, or work around it.”