18 Aug Lucky
Lucky.
What does it mean to be lucky? Would you consider yourself to be lucky?
Image courtesy of tshirtbordello.com
I’ve been thinking a lot about this concept lately, because I have been a little bit aggravated. You see, I have about 1 year 8 months and 12 days until I retire from police work (but who’s counting?). Police work has been good to me. No matter what kind of day I have had, I always feel like I have helped at least one person at the end of every shift. “So why the countdown?”, you ask. Because, my friend, I am running to something instead of running from something.
About 6 years ago, I started a little speaking company. It was supposed to be kind of a little hobby business that I hoped to grow into a “real” business when I retired. God had different plans. In 2015, alone, I did 69 presentations to almost 30,000 people. And, I will surpass the 100,000 people mark by the end of 2016.
When I think about those numbers, it boggles my mind.
What does all this have to do with luck? Well, one of the things I hear the most is how “lucky” I am. When I tell people that my “retirement” plans include taking my speaking business full-time, I often hear the same thing. People tell me how “lucky” I am to have a retirement plan.
I know what they are trying to say, but as one who speaks for a living, I geek out on words. When you look up “luck” in the dictionary, you will find the following: “success or failure apparently brought by chance rather than through one’s own actions”.
In my experience, “luck” is a myth we believe. I spent a lot of years waiting on Lady Luck to pay me a visit. Then, I decided she had stood me up. So, I got to work!
It’s not “luck” that makes me set a 4:00am alarm every day to work on my business. It’s not “luck” that 90% of the books I read are non-fiction. It’s not “luck” that I buy coffee for successful people so I can pick their brains. And, I don’t believe it’s “luck” that has me working on most of my “vacation” days.
I’m afraid that too many people in our world today are waiting on “luck” to visit them. Ray Kroc, who can take a lot of credit for the success of McDonald’s, said, “Luck is a dividend of sweat. The more you sweat, the luckier you get”. Want it put more poetically? Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote, “Shallow men believe in luck. Strong men believe in cause and effect.”
So, would I consider myself to be lucky? Nope. Mainly because I know the work that I put in.
Want to know the cool part? You can do it to! What is it you want? What is your dream? It’s not going to fall into your lap, but you can go out and get it! Set an alarm. Do the work. Sweat a little. Sweat a LOT! I promise you it’s worth it…because YOU are worth it!
I can’t wait to hear about what happens when YOU end your one sided relationship with Lady Luck! I promise you, she’s not all she’s cracked up to be. Godspeed, my friend!
