This piece was written with the sole purpose of challenging your understanding of what “being lucky” means when it relates to your successes in life...
Too often we chalk up our accomplishments to luck. Why is that? Willingly robbing ourselves of the personal self-confidence boosting that’s pivotal to keeping you mentally fresh & positive. Take a second and reflect on the challenges you’ve faced in life & prevailed. Did you succeed based on the fact you got lucky or the fact YOU made it happen? Personally, I don’t believe in magic but I do believe in people having the power to create moves for themselves out of thin air.
We live in a society that preys on individuals who lack self-confidence & self-ownership...
Other people profit off the fact you aren’t happy with yourself...isn’t that crazy? If there’s anybody that should profit off you, it better be yourself! Currently as I write this article, I’m sitting first class on an international flight, sipping white wine while enjoying my beef tenderloin dinner & returning from a week long trip in India that I didn’t pay a dime for. I stayed in royal palaces through my stay, dined on the finest Indian cuisines & was exposed to sights that many people from my walk of life never see. The ink on my college diploma hasn’t even dried yet & here I am already making the moves that people work their whole lives to encounter. Wow right? So does that make me lucky to be fortunate enough to experience these types of moves? Too often I allowed people to tell me I was lucky to be where I am in life, and you may have too. Phrases of that nature setup shop in your subconscious, whether you’re aware or not! These folks typically don’t mean any harm with their comments but they inadvertently dilute your efforts that went into creating that “magic” for yourself. When you’ve put in the work to create opportunities for yourself, you deserve to bank those self-confidence coins as well!
Outsiders will always think your lucky when they aren’t on the inside every day to see how you operate, which is why their feedback always comes with an asterisk...
Learning how to navigate those waters with people is everything. From the outside looking in, I was lucky to be in India on a business trip. However, if you were shooting with me everyday in the gym, you’d know that there were days this reality was in jeopardy more times than not. Outsiders will form every thought about how you got somewhere but never think about the struggles that went into the process. Those same struggles that soon become feathers in your hat & the battle scars that prove you didn’t lay down and settle when faced with adversity. Letting individuals & even yourself to throw the word “luck” around deprives you of the fact you’ve indeed earned your successes!
Your energy is different when you feel like you belong, versus you somehow barely making it by chance alone...
Luck didn’t help me get my degree so I could earn the job I have today. Where was luck during the days I wanted to quit, drop out and live a life that lacked direction & purpose? Where was luck during the days I failed tests that I studied for that ultimately ended up never playing any role in my life after the fact? Where was luck when I had to wipe my entire checking account clean, just so I could register for classes to stay on track to graduate? Where was luck when I didn’t have the money to pay my bills and spent majority of my time trying to figure out how I was going to eat? Where was luck when I thought I really needed it the most? The answer is NOWHERE! Learn to drop luck out of your vocabulary unless you’re gambling...
Luck didn’t have a teaspoon of anything to do with me being where I am today, but being blessed & prepared did!
The challenges I faced on my journey helped prepare me for when the time would come for me to capitalize & take advantage of opportunities presented to me. Get out of the habit of thinking you’re lucky & instead think of how and why you belong! Mentality is everything and your accountable for how yours is shaped. When you digest & understand that concept, you’ll also second guess wtf luck is & how it could ever relate to you...
Luck = Preparation + Opportunity
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