are you lucky?

About a month ago I wrote a post about living effectively and how things do not "just happen." I had gotten to a point in my life where I decided that the fastest way out of guilt or responsibility was to shrug my shoulders and say "eh, things happen." But oh sweet contraire, that was not the case and it never has it been. My life is my responsibility, not the responsibility of some superstitious notion of luck. If I want something (at the time I was speaking of righteousness) I have to actually go out and get it. It won't just happen to me.

Anyhoo, the reason I bring this up again is because on friday night ABC's "20/20" ran a broadcast about luck and how some people just seem to have more of it than others. Very interesting stuff. The conclusion at the end of the broadcast: we all create our own luck.

They did numerous studies and observations and realized that the "lucky" people are the most persistent for and the most open to new opportunities. By lucky people, they mean financially and relationally successful. In short: those who are envied most often.

An example of one of their observations involved six people (three of which you'd consider lucky people, and the other three not-so-lucky). They placed money on the ground in each of their paths. The money was put in the same spot every time and therefore equally visible to the lucky and not-so-lucky individuals. All three of the lucky people saw the money and picked it up. The other three, the not so lucky ones...walked right on by, oblivious to what lay on the ground.

In another observation, they studied a few lucky people and a few not-so-lucky people in a small, cramped donut shop (or something similar, I can't remember). When a separate individual would come into the restaurant, they were more likely to sit near one of the lucky people as opposed to one of the not-so-lucky people. Why? Because the not-so-lucky person looked uninviting and detached. They were either frowning, had their arms crossed, or were so engrossed in their newspaper the outside world meant absolutely nothing to them. Who wants to sit by that? Nobody, including other not-so-lucky people (they just find their own corner to individualize and wallow in.) Who wants to invest their time (or money) into someone who appears apathetic to outside encounters? Nobody. So instead, the new customers gravitate towards the lucky guy. The guy with the smile (or at least not a frown), uncrossed arms, and an over all optimistic demeanor, both in dress and attitude.

This opens a huge door for this lucky guy. So what does his do? He starts talking to the person who sat next to him. Is he actually thinking "I wonder what this guy can do for me"? Probably not. It only comes natural for lucky people to see an opportunity and take it. This opportunity: a conversation with another human being. This instigation of converse could lead to something more than a simple ten minutes of stress relieving conversation. It could lead to a business deal, another person (even more possibilities there), or even a life long relationship.

You never know.

So you can see that the lucky people weren't lucky in the superstitious sense, but were given more chances of being lucky because they were always in search of a new opportunity. Even the small amount of opportunity of a few dollars on the ground or a short exchange of words with a stranger can change some of your decisions for that day, the week, or your life. In other words, the lucky people increase their chances of being lucky by taking more of the opportunities that might create that luck for them. They go and get the luck, it doesn't come to them. They go and get the success, it doesn't come to them. They go and they get what they want because they know it isn't going to come to them. They go. And they get.

Meanwhile, the not-so-lucky people are so busying watching and complaining about others getting lucky that they (dis)miss their own opportunities to be lucky. Instead of being proactive, they are reactive.

The only reason I bring this up is because it has been on my mind alot lately and the 20/20 show only sparked more thoughts for me to chew on. I don't think I would be where I am now if I had taken a more proactive role in my own life. Don't get me wrong, I am not in a terrible position. But I am still living at home when I would much rather be out on my own. It is only one of the annoying problems at the moment that would not otherwise have arisen if I had taken a more proactive role a long time ago.

Anyway, if you are reading this and find yourself often blaming other people, objects, and ideas (luck) for your own shortcomings...stop it. Eventually you'll run out of ideas, you'll run out of objects, and worst of all, you'll run out of people.

Your financial, physical, intellectual, emotional, and spiritual success all depend on your willingness to depend on others and the "luck" that they may be willing to offer you. Open your eyes, see an opportunity, and go after it. Don't listen to the naysayers...they are just bitterly unlucky. Ask them, they'll tell you.