“Things just fell into place”
“I guess I was due a turn”
“I’ve been lucky”
Rubbish. You make your own luck. Preparation and hard work is what will put you in the right place to experience ‘luck’ and bring new opportunities.
We often hear of ‘overnight success stories’ in the music industry or for an actor or athlete.
While this may be true of their prominence, if you ask how long overnight success took, it’s likely to be years. Years of preparation, honing skills, gaining experience and relying on mental fortitude to stick at it.
It’s a shame that people – unfortunately, more often than not women – don’t have the self-confidence to say their promotion, new career or significant achievement was the result of their sustained efforts, good judgment and solid planning.
We don’t hear CEOs say their double-digit growth, streamlined operational efficiency or avoidance of significant losses was the result of luck.
They may acknowledge market conditions or a change in consumer behaviour, but it will also be due to their strategic planning, close assessment of their strengths and their strong performance over the lead-in period.
Articulating strengths is not egotistical; shake off the feeling that it’s self-centred.
While it needs to be said in the right way with the right words, it’s much more about backing yourself and acknowledging yourself as a good practitioner or thought leader.
To say your achievements are the result of luck takes something away from you.
Don’t be insular. Be open. Be confident. Share your successes. Take credit where credit is due.
Paula Ward is the Founding Director of Know The Game, which educates people about Australian sports so they can participate in conversations. She can be reached via email to [email protected].
