We’ve all said it and thought it. That person is SO LUCKY!
However, the reality is… There is no luck. Perhaps the author Robert Heinlein said it best in his book Time Enough for Love
There is no such thing as luck. There is only adequate or inadequate preparation to cope with a statistical universe.
Success in business and in life does not involve a series of tricks. It does not require a special set of mirrors or any special smoke. What success does require can be summed up in two words… hard work.
Yes, there is an aspect of timing that might be attributed to luck. But really… It just takes a LOT of hard work. Those that are committed to putting in the work will often find the success they are seeking… eventually. That success will come from putting in the hard work.
Of course, everyone defines success differently. Some consider it to be money. Others consider it to be influence. And others consider it to be how much they can give back. You will have to decide what success means to you. Then go out and do the work to make it real.
While there are a lot of people that seem to “Get Lucky” a lot… and I don’t mean in the sense of the Daft Punk song. I mean in the sense that they often find themselves (or do they put themselves?) in the right place to take advantage of an opportunity.
That parenthetical question above is one of the most common attributes of those that are considered “lucky” — the fact that they are often at the right place and at the right time. To which, a quote from the famous scientist Louis Pasteur rings quite true.
Luck Favors the Prepared Mind ~Louis Pasteur
What can you do?
Whether you are just starting out your career or whether you are well established in your chosen profession, put in the work. Then put in a little more for good measure.
- If you are looking for a job: Put in the extra time to research the company, the industry and if possible the people you will be interviewing with or otherwise might want to reference. Your career may depend upon it.
- If you are working on a project: Take it upon yourself to look at the big picture to make sure the project aligns with company goals and objectives. Doing so allows you to show your leadership skills.
- As a general rule of thumb: Assign yourself a task to do a post-mortem write up on an event, a project or even a company meeting. Your personal brand may just get a nice bump up as you become known for your communication skills.
In the end… if you are in the right place at the right time… perhaps this “good luck” will rain down upon you too. However, I predict you too will find that when you put in the time and you make the effort you’ll realize that there is no such thing as luck.
Author:
Jeff is a veteran in the Enterprise Content Management industry. Over the past 20 years he has worked with customers and partners to design, develop and deploy solutions around the world. Jeff is currently the Director of Strategic Alliances at Winshuttle. He has worked for Microsoft, FileNet (IBM), K2, Captaris, Open Text, Kofax and Kodak. He speaks and blogs about ECM and the Intersection between Social, Mobile and Cloud Computing.
