Last semester, I took a seminar class for my CET (Center for Entrepreneurship and Technology) certification, which I highly recommend to anyone interested in learning more about entrepreneurship or business. The class was structured as a speaker series, with different entrepreneurs coming in every week to share their experiences and insights.
I learned a lot of useful advice, and one which stood out to me then I’ll share with you now. I don’t recall exactly who shared this advice, but after thinking through it, I’ve definitely found it to be quite true.
The advice goes something like this: a lot of successful people have seen their share of good luck. But these people had to set themselves up in that position first before running into that investor, discovering a technological breakthrough, or coming up with a relevant product or service.
That’s why it bothers me when some ascribe other people’s success to pure luck. True, those people may have gotten lucky. But don’t forget the extra effort and perseverance they put in order to finally hit that “lucky” turning point.
So anytime I catch myself dismissing someone’s accomplishment as luck, I have to remind myself that more likely than not, the work that went into getting that person to the turning point shows that he or she definitely deserved the end results.
Lady luck at randomtidbitsofthought.wordpress.com.
