Make your own luck

A little snippet I spotted recently, which I thought might be of interest to some of you.  If not it’s still worth a glance.

Think of a time in your life when you got really lucky. Perhaps, for example, you were seated next to a stranger at a dinner party, and she wound up making the introductions that led to your landing your dream job?

What a stroke of luck!

Or was it?

After all, it may have been chance that you were seated right next to her, but, from there on in, it was up to you to present yourself as a capable and friendly person whom she’d remember as a promising candidate when the time came.

Maximize your own luck

Some things in life are down to chance, but much of what we consider luck can actually be influenced and increased through a few simple strategies:

First, be persistent. Take author John Grisham. He’s sold over 275 million books, but his first novel was rejected by 28 publishers. It was his persistence and passion that won him the “lucky break” he needed.

Second, be where the opportunities for luck are. Actors head to Hollywood because that’s where luck may occur, be it in the form of their meeting the right agent or spotting the right audition notice.

Similarly, entrepreneurs head to Silicon Valley because that’s where the opportunities are to make their dream company a reality.

So don’t wait for luck to arrive; make your own luck!