Most people think of luck as something beyond their control. But there’s a surprising amount you can do to increase the number of lucky breaks that come your way.
First up is to think of yourself as a lucky person.
Research shows that people who describe themselves as “lucky” do tend to experience better outcomes. But not simply because good things happen to them and not others. Instead, this view of themselves automatically and unconsciously causes them to be more observant (so they spot opportunities that people who call themselves “unlucky” miss) and more optimistic (so they pursue opportunities that others pass up).
Don’t underestimate the power of a simple shift in your thoughts like this.
An equally effective (and much more controllable) tactic is to understand how luck works… And then take appropriate actions to skew the chances in your favour.
This is more straightforward than you might imagine.
You see, to get a lucky break, there are generally four conditions that all have to be present – I call them the ‘4 A’s of Luck’. You have a significant amount of control over three of them. And there are often things you can do to influence the other one too.
Let’s go through the conditions one by one:
1. Arrival
This is when the initial basic requirement for a stroke of luck appears. You can’t control this directly. But once you think through what it might look like you’ll usually find some things you can do to increase the odds.
Also, remember that there will be lots of different specific situations that could trigger your lucky event. You only need one of them to happen…
2. Awareness
The average person experiences heaps of potential lucky situations… The trouble is that most of these opportunities slip right by without the prospective recipient ever noticing them. And so they complain that luck never comes their way.
Don’t let that be you.
Keep an eye out as you go through your day. And make sure you’re clear on what you’re keeping an eye out for…
3. Ability
It’s not enough to notice the opportunity. You’ve got to have the ability to grasp it.
Usually this means you need to have prepared in advance.
It’s about having whatever the ‘next step’ is ready and waiting to go before the lucky opportunity occurs. That way you won’t miss out because it took you too long to react. Or because you didn’t know how to respond.
4. Action
Finally, you’ve actually got to grasp the opportunity. Everything else can be perfectly aligned, but if you fail to act then there’s no lucky outcome.
Let’s see how these different conditions might look in a practical example…
Imagine you’re in your early 20s. Wanting to find work in the fashion industry. But you don’t have any experience, connections or opportunities yet…
Arrival occurs if you happen to bump into someone who could give you work experience. Or introduce you to someone. Or whatever.
This is the part you have least control over. But you could still work to tip the odds more in your favour. Where do the right sort of people live, work, or hang out? Maybe you move cities. Maybe you frequent the right sort of places. There’s lots more you can do than simply cross your fingers and hope.
But for any lucky break in this first stage to matter, you’ve got to be aware. You could be chatting to the perfect person – but if you don’t realise who they are then you have no ability to capitalise on what could be your lucky break.
So you need to do your homework. Who are the specific people you want to meet? How will you recognise them?
Assuming you’ve now made contact and you’re aware of it you still need the ability to exploit the situation. How will you describe your abilities, and your goals to this person? What specific proposal will you make about how you could get involved? Have you already collected a portfolio of your work that demonstrates your skill (and that you’re serious)?
And all this counts for nothing if you fail to take action when everything else is lined up. Start a conversation with them. Or steer it to where it needs to go.
One final word about the last step — taking action.
In a way, this is the easiest of the four conditions. You either do it or you don’t.
But it’s where a lot of people trip up. So it’s worth understanding the reasons why. Then you’re prepared to combat the temptation not to act.
First is simply fear. To beat this, tell yourself that it’s normal to feel nervous — and do it anyway.
Second is that we question whether it’s really worth the time, effort, etc. Especially since there’s still no guarantee that things will work out how you want. To beat this, ask yourself how big a difference it would make if you get this stroke of luck; and how likely it is that another opportunity like this will come along. You’ll usually find that the potential pay-off is well worth risking time, effort and embarrassment for. Many times over.
You should apply this same insight to the overall concept of ‘controlling’ your luck.
Yes, it takes a significant amount of effort. And, right now, it’s much easier to forget about all this and carry on as you did before.
But the potential benefits are huge. If you choose to do the work now, then a few lucky breaks that you seize in the coming months and years could make life as a whole much easier and/or more enjoyable in the future.
As Jerzy Gregorek put it: “Hard choices, easy life. Easy choices, hard life.”
What are you going to choose?