Luck - How It Impacts Success in the Business World

By Osric Baugham

To make it in the business world right now you need three things: money, knowledge and luck. Money and knowledge are self explanatory because you need money to invest in the business. You also need knowledge of the product you are selling or the service you are providing. Alas, how do you acquire luck? Let's explore what luck is and you will find that luck may really be within your control. Let's first define Luck. In Webster's dictionary, Luck is an unknown and unpredictable phenomenon that causes an event to result one way rather than another; "bad luck caused his downfall"; "we ran into each other by pure chance". Based on that definition, luck is out of your control; but it really is not. We will break Luck down into two parts: Preparation and Opportunity.

Before we explain preparation, let's go down memory lane. Take a minute and think of a time when you felt unlucky (got passed over a promotion, did not make the basketball team, etc). Now think of a time when you were lucky. Hold those thoughts; we will come back to them. Preparation is the component of luck that you control completely. Regardless of what you do in your life, there has to be some level of preparation. Whether it is laying out your clothes for the next day to studying for an exam to preparing a presentation at work, preparation is a key factor. Now, let's go back to a time when you felt lucky and unlucky: the situation that you felt unlucky, were you prepared? Had you done everything in your power to be ready for that situation? If you were indeed not ready nor prepared, then you can easily fix that component of luck. Remember, always be prepared for whatever!

Opportunity is the other component of luck that to the naked eye you can't control. However, let's explore opportunity. Opportunity is basically the vehicle of the event, situation or circumstance that you would like to benefit from in a positive manner. Opportunities are around us everyday. It all depends on what your interests are. Haven't you seen a situation or event and said to yourself, "if I was...., I could use that"? Opportunities are always available, but it depends on you. Opportunities can also be created, in a sense. You can put yourself in a situation, event or circumstance that you have prepared to take advantage of when the opportunity presents itself. Instead of being at the right place at the right time by chance, you can place [yourself] at the right place and wait for the right time to present itself. Therefore you can create your own luck after preparing adequately.

The bottom line is simple: In today's business world of entrepreneurs, you have to be savvy, creative, knowledgeable and lucky. Of the four characteristics, luck is one that you would think you could not control but as I have shown you, you can! Preparation and Opportunity is all Luck is. To be successful, you always have to have a plan (be prepared). Successful people are typically viewed as being lucky but all they do is take advantage of opportunities by being prepared. So do you want to be lucky? Start by being ready!

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