Are you a lucky person?

Luck is not a mysterious and unexplainable phenomenon. I find it a probability game that plays out in two stages.

I believe that the world around us is filled with new ideas, thoughts, and opportunities, floating around us, everywhere, and at all times, nudging us to interact with them. The success of the interaction ultimately boils down to how open we are and how and if we take notice. The next stage of luck or probability plays out in how we respond to and handle received ideas or inspiration and what we make out of these. Most of these efforts are likely to fail even though we apply them with determination and hard work. Yet at a few times, it may work out just fine. You never know beforehand which ones. With time and repeated efforts, this ultimately leads to developing a gut feeling that improves your probability of spotting the right ideas, people, and situations. You are then well on your way to becoming lucky.

The opposite happens when after a failure you become bitter and close all your receptors and stop trying out on mysteries of the world. The bad luck to start with gets only worse.

Good luck, in other words, can be acquired most of all by practicing to be open, present, and conscious.

I consider myself lucky, not despite but rather because of my unprivileged upbringing. I did not have many material goods growing up, but rather lots of love, support, and an innate drive and belief that has carried me throughout my life. I was told that nothing would come easy and yet I would be responsible for the quality of my life. This indeed has led to a habit of keeping my mind open to new situations and opportunities and developed a gut feeling on when to take risks.

My luck has further developed through conscious and unconscious decisions and ups and downs throughout my life. I feel proud that I have not let my life be cluttered with unnecessary stuff, things, people, and obligations. I have made sure to have enough time and energy to be able to reflect on my life and be conscious of the major and minor decisions I have had to make. Whether I am happy and content? Is my job developing my talents and me as a person? Am I getting to know new people of diverse ages and backgrounds? Am I relevant to them? Which value am I bringing to my surroundings? What do I do now that will keep me relevant for my own good in ten years?

Having good luck requires lots of effort, but most of all, an open and conscious mind. So, do you count yourself lucky?