Is there such a thing as being lucky? Is there a reason that some things happen to some people and not to others? I tend not to believe in luck but rather in things like opportunity, timing and choices. I even think that sometimes the term luck can downplay things like hard work, the right decisions or being able to dare to do something at the right time that are surely also part of the big picture.
In most of the interviews I have been doing so far, the term luck has come up. Most of these women who chose to make a change has been, at some point, told a variation of “you are so lucky that you could quit your job and pursue your dream”. They all make it quite clear that there were many aspects in those decisions and moves, but luck was never one of them.
I have gotten the “you are so lucky that you can…” quite a few times. Lately it has been: “You are so lucky that you get to stay at home, be more with the kids, do what you like, etc.” I feel very appreciative, but I don’t feel lucky.
I am not a person who feels comfortable sharing my problems and hardships with others and are often finding it hard to ask for help. On one hand that might make my life look easy from the outside. On the other hand, I think it sometimes make things more complicated. I think that maybe by sharing more I could gain from experiences of others as they could from mine.
I like to believe that the place we have gotten to today has a lot to do with hard work and difficult choices. Yes, there has been the right opportunities at the right time a lot of which we had the courage to take but also others that we missed (and are sometimes still annoyed about) and have taught us that we still have so much to learn.
I believe that life and what we make of it has to do mostly with choices, the things we choose to do and the things we don’t. It has to do seeing the opportunities as they appear and not being afraid to take them. It has to do with responsibility and how we deal with that, when things go right but also when they go wrong. In the end I think that we have much more say in our lives than what we think and that is why I don’t think there is such a thing as luck.
What do you think?
Gitte says
I’m not 100% sure that I agree… I happen to know people who are extremely “lucky”… They them selves think so too ?
And I suspect that this strong “believe” in them selves is a big part of it…. They seem to be gifted with a strong self worth from very young age… And this I happen to think comes from the “luck” of genetics and upbringing… I do think that “unlucky” people have a tendency to question them selves more and therefore lack the courage to take chances etc. so what I’m getting at is the chance of being born and raised either way is that not luck?
But I’m a big “fan” of the the option of changing our own luck ? And I do feel lucky that I have the time and freedom to do what I love… Just sad that not everyone seems to have the same…. But maybe we can encourage them by example ❤️
veronica says
It is a complex issue really and maybe a bit like the egg and the chicken? What comes before what, the strong self believe and confidence or the “luck” and vice versa? I agree that maybe the way that we start out has something to do with luck but still it is still very much up to us what we do with all that in the long run. I wrote this because I feel that many use the term “luck” as an excuse not to change the reality they live in, especially if they are not happy with it.
I am happy you didn’t agree and shared you thoughts – you gave me plenty more to think about <3 🙂