A Lesson In Luck

What is luck? Are some people truly lucky or do they seem to always benefit from being in the right place at the right time? Today is St. Patrick’s Day and with all that talk about the “luck of the Irish,” it’s worth considering. Is it luck or something else that brings people their good fortune?

Luck is when preparation meets opportunity. Have you ever heard that phrase? It goes back to well before our time (5 A.D.) and was originally spoken by the Roman philosopher Seneca, but it is a phrase that still rings true today. Think about the “luck” you or some of your friends have experienced. Was it luck that got your friends free tickets to a concert, or was it a combination of their being present (preparation) when the tickets were being given away (opportunity)? If they hadn’t shown up to win the tickets, they would have had no chance of winning them, if you get my point.

But all that talk of luck aside, let’s look more closely at its components: preparation and opportunity. If you aren’t prepared, you will miss out on numerous opportunities. Think about it. Scholarships, college acceptance, job opportunities and the like are not things students get because they’re lucky. They are a result of hard work and dedication (preparation) and availability in the program or area they applied for (opportunity). While some people may consider themselves or others lucky, if they looked closely, they might find there’s a lot more going on behind the scenes. Perhaps luck is simply the evidence of things unseen. Most people are humble and don’t want everyone to know how hard they’ve worked or what they’ve sacrificed to get where they are, so it appears that they “lucked up” when in fact they’ve been at it for years. Think about where you want to go in life and the best route to get you there. Chances are it will take skill, sacrifice and determination. In reaching your goals, which would you rather be, lucky or hardworking? The choice is yours.

-- Brandi Nichols

Brownstone Team