I’ve noticed time and time again that the “luckiest” people create their own luck.
“How” you might say?
First, you have to understand that there are opportunities all around us…
but they might not necessarily apply to you. For example, someone aspiring to be an actor might find it in their best interest to surround themselves with people in their industry. You might just so happen to be someone who lives in the heart of Hollywood but you aspire to be a doctor and are going to university. The opportunities that surround you would not help you in becoming a doctor but would likely jump start the actor’s career.
So what you must do is put yourself in the right environment. Try to see where the “hotspots” are around you that are filled with the type of people that can provide value but that you can also provide value to them. Start spending time there and actively try to connect with as many people as you can. Statistically speaking, you should be able to find at least one influencer who can help you out big time.
Second of all, you might not be prepared should the opportunity arise.
Let’s go back to the actor example. The actor could move to Hollywood and meet the next Steven Spieldberg but if the actor hasn’t put in the hours needed to handle a big role, the opportunity is of no use to him. Will Smith talks about how he would spend hours and hours memorizing not only his parts of the script but the other cast members’ parts of the script for “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.” Now that’s preparation!
To have the preparation, you have to figure out what specific skills you will need and work relentlessly at becoming the very best at that particular skill. The very best. This way, you’ll be working effectively at the 20% that will bring you 80% of your results. Just when you think you’ve done enough to where you believe you are prepared, do a just little bit more. Trust me.
But the most important part is to SEIZE the opportunity the second it is presented to you.
I find that this the most important step, and it is also the hardest. It’s happened to me time and time again where I have prepared for something and visualized it so vividly that I am sure I will be ready should the opportunity arrive and when it does, I don’t take it for fear of failure. I’m sure you can relate to this. It happens to everybody. The best thing you can do is take the agonizing pain of regret and careful reflection to prepare you towards your next opportunity. Realize that great life changing opportunities that you hear about in movies come very seldom throughout your lifetime. So it won’t matter if you spent years practicing and are in the right place at the right time with the right people, if you don’t step up and take what is yours!