How to Make Your Own Luck

If you're looking for a guaranteed way to win the lottery (other than purchasing every ticket available), you won't find it here or anywhere else. But there's another kind of luck, and it's not the "luck of the Irish." You have it within your power to create your own luck. Real luck is about taking control of your life and being receptive to opportunities that come your way. And it's about recognizing that there's far more in life that is for you than against you. By being receptive to things that are for you and allowing them to enter your life, you'll be able to achieve more of your aspirations and dreams. "Lucky" people look outside the box of their daily routine; they believe that good luck is predictable if they take more chances and adopt a receptive/optimistic point of view. They understand that the more focused they are on accomplishing things that excite them, the more luck comes their way. Some would call it Providence moving in their favor. It doesn't matter what you label it; what matters is that you embrace the concept that if it is to be, it is up to me. Here are five tips for making your life a lucky one: 1. Be unreasonable in your thinking. What, be unreasonable? Yes. Toss away your old "book of reasons" about why life isn't working out as you hoped. This means seeing yourself differently, rather than looking at life in your usual way. Orville and Wilbur Wright were unreasonable when they decided to invent a heavier-than-air flying machine. Everyone laughed at their attempts to fly, but you have your frequent-flyer miles today because of these two lucky brothers. History is filled with great ideas that we initially scoffed at because they were unreasonable. Don't buy into that thinking! 2. Look for the opportunity in adversity. You make your own luck when you look at adversity as a source of opportunity. In this world of polarity -- of complementary opposites -- life cannot hand you a negative moment without a positive lesson hidden deep inside. This isn't to say that you should be in denial when negative moments happen. Denial isn't bliss! But when you can look beyond the negative and see the positive, that's the beginning of a lucky moment. 3. Turn whining into winning. When you catch yourself whining, it's time to make a U-turn. Whining about an aspect of your life moves you to the world of "WOE" ("What on Earth"), where you see the world as largely working against you. The opposite of WOE is "WOW" ("Wonderfully Obsessed with Winning"), a world in which whining is out of the range of human hearing. When you're Wonderfully Obsessed with Winning, luck happens because you're motivated to take the necessary steps to succeed. Think about the old maxim, "A winner never quits, and a quitter never wins." How about this paraphrased version: "A winner never whines and a whiner never wins!" 4. Become a luck magnet. When you think and act in optimistic and receptive ways, you attract lady luck into your life. You're looking at your future with an attitude of WOW, which alerts you to the many opportunities that are always right there in front of you. If you think of yourself as a winner, you become a winner. Again, it's not about waving a magic a wand and becoming the CEO of a global enterprise or the virtuoso you've always wanted to be. Both entail hard work and talent. But they also entail adopting the mindset of a winner. People who succeed think of themselves as winners long before they achieve their goals. That mindset is a critical element of luck! 5. Pay attention to your intuition. When you have a hunch, pause and listen to your inner voice. Intuition is keyed into aspects of the world that are off-limits to your rational mind. Often, intuition tells the rational mind where to look next for answers. You have to leave the security of your comfort zone and feel safe in the wilde ess of your intuitive self. The odds are that it will guide you to a lucky circumstance. If you follow these tips, you will find yourself loving life. When you love life, you boldly step forward with an attitude and mood that makes you feel energetic and ambitious. Things then begin to pan out as you hoped. Is that luck or what? For more by Rob White, click here. For more on success and motivation, click here.