Friday 7 September 2012

Luck vs Success

"I find that the harder I work, the more luck I seem to have."
~ Thomas Jefferson

 When I first read this I thought it made sense, however as I contemplated some more I began to realize it's just a motivational phrase. I have had some luck, but much more success. As far as hard working people go, I am not an all-day -  all-nighter. I do enjoy both physical and mental challenges and it seems that I also like to take on more work/play than I have time for. 
When I think back a bit, it wasn't luck that the Barn foundation happened to be finished the day before we brought 1000 bales of hay into it. It wasn't luck that I finished my Microsoft Server certification and landed a job with an IT firm in Markham. It wasn't luck that LivingRoom Experience asked me to be a member of their band. 
It was luck when it didn't rain on my hay after baling it, but it wasn't luck that we frantically loaded it all onto trucks and trailers and drove it under cover - avoiding the rain.
Hard work brings success, luck is just part of life.
I have heard some say  'I was lucky to be in the right place at the right time'. There are elements of truth there. But if you didn't get off your ass to be at the right place at the right time and have the 'right stuff' (which takes work) - you would have been 'Out Of Luck' !
Luck can smack you in the soft cheeks sometimes without you realizing it. In that case, it takes work to realize when a lucky opportunity presents itself (and therefore is no longer luck).
After that philosophical hogwash - its time for a glass of wine and a nap.

"Luck is a tag given by the mediocre to account for the accomplishments of genius."
~ Robert Heinlein


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