Achieving wealth and happiness does not depend on luck: it depends on your effort, dedication, and willpower. At least, this is the conventional wisdom we hear and follow every day. And believing this gives us some relief, because it makes us feel like we are in control of our own destiny—in other words, we do not depend on chance to “make it.” And our future depends only on us.
But is this 100% true?
Well, “there is no absolute truth,” the purists would say. And in this case, they are right.
Yes, luck plays a role in our lives.
Unfortunately (or fortunately), luck can indeed influence many aspects of our lives, especially wealth. At first, this may seem like something very bad: after all, if I work like crazy, do I still run the risk of being unlucky and never becoming rich? The answer is yes.
Are we talking about the kind of luck that means “winning the lottery”?
No, we are not talking about that, because this type of luck occurs very rarely.
We are talking about the more common kind of luck, which could be seen more as an ordinary coincidence. For example, you are having a conversation with friends and someone mentions that they want to rent an apartment in exactly the area and of exactly the size you need … and at a very affordable price. How lucky!
So what should you do? Sit around and wait for Luck to arrive?
No, do not do that. Many people “count on luck” for something good to happen. This strategy is wrong.
What you should do is be prepared for when luck arrives. For example, I know people who do not make an effort to learn English. They say that when they have something more concrete, then they will dedicate themselves to it.
But you should not study English only when you have an opportunity. You should plan ahead and become fluent so that, when luck knocks on your door with an excellent job opportunity abroad, you do not miss this chance. This is being prepared for luck.
In this case, your friends and relatives will say: “How lucky, you got a job abroad.” But you know that it was not solely a matter of luck.
Another example: investment funds in ‘startup’ companies.
You have probably heard of people or companies that specialize in investing in ‘startup’ ventures.
Their strategy is to invest in several entrepreneurs with good growth and profitability potential. There is, of course, complex work involved in analyzing and choosing which ones will be part of this group of companies that will receive this investment.
But these investors also know that there is always an element of luck or unpredictability: no matter how much they analyze a startup, there is no way to be certain that it will succeed. That is why they create a portfolio of several startup companies: 1 or 2 of them will prosper and generate profit, while the others will probably close down.
In short.
In short, the main issue here is how to better deal with Luck or Bad Luck in order to minimize their effects. Accept it as inevitable and know how to use it to your advantage.
