I’m not sure where it’s attributed, but “Luck is the result of preparation and opportunity.” When you break that statement down, it’s more interesting to me as I get older.
A lot of people will define their lives by the choices they make-and how seriously they take those choices. Someone can whine and cry about their luck being bad and therefore their life turning out unwell. (Personally, I believe that there HAS to be an unseen hand somewhere, controlling things. Life is simply too coincidental to not be influenced in weird ways.)
But in respects to the statement, most people seem to think that regardless of the full control of life, they have control over SOME things in their life. Despite my statement, I still believe I have control over most of the aspects in my life, just not all of them. And despite the fact that some doors will remain permanently closed to me due to a number of factors, there’s still plenty of other doors I can open and still attempt to enter. So therefore, the betterment of your life is still, in most ways, up to you. And within that comes the ability to prepare for those opportunities when they arise.
The better prepared you are, the more opportunities you’ll get to expand on, and therefore, the more “lucky” you’ll be. Sometimes the opportunities come late. Sometimes you need to force the opportunities more than you think you should. But the preparation is still the most important part. When Metallica finally finds you among the crowd, and points to you for a wicked guitar solo, but you gave up guitar 3 years ago, it will haunt you forever. That’s not being prepared. And you won’t get that opportunity again, either. When you find that weird moment that makes the difference in your job, then being prepared for it means you do finally get that raise and career path you want.
Some people recognize this right away. Some take a while to recognize it. It reminds me of the Japanese concept-Ikigai. A concept to improve upon yourself, your talent/work, and within that-the pursuit of the principle. The work comes after that, and when it meshes, you find a “flow” within your life that creates those “lucky” opportunities. Oftentimes it’s hard-it’s not easy to continually deal with defeat and things going wrong. Sometimes things can go catastrophically wrong. But often times, people refuse to see these changes and give up on the pursuit anymore, therefore becoming “unlucky” in their life and their pursuits.
It might actually be the combination-the ability to continue to “carry on” combined with the opportunities that really truly makes the most sense, but again, finding that one opportunity makes all the difference in a lifetime.
I feel lucky and blessed at the things I’ve been able to do and accomplish, while at the same time recognizing the amount of doors that have been closed on me, and all the things that have had to have been overcome simultaneously. The work makes you who you are, and most people who know this realize that they wouldn’t be where they are without and deeply appreciate the amount of work they have put in. It’s a lot, but when you’re standing on top of the mountain, you realize what it’s all been for-regardless of how it was. Personally, I’ve been working at my craft for a long time, and while I hated a lot of times where I failed, things when bad due to no fault of mine, etc, it’s all worth it when you look back and smile at the opportunities you’ve had. I’m not at the top, of course. I still have a long way to go. But I can look back once and a while and realize that if I had stopped, it definitely would look different than where I am now. I’ve found a path that I’m supposed to be on, and I’ll keep at this one until I find a closed door, and then try a different path.