People often tell me I’m lucky to have the life I have. For instance, the other day in the elevator a guy offered me a voucher for a free drink after we had ridden together for 30 seconds. Some would say it is luck. I say it’s attitude. I had chosen to engage the man as soon as I got on. I asked him about his trip, I shared with him that I was doing there. Thirty seconds later, I had a voucher for a free drink at the Top of the Mark.
It wasn’t luck. I reached out to another person to be welcoming, offering kindness and interest in his trip. It was this that caused him to offer kindness in return. To be lucky in life you have to take the initiative.
When I was growing up, one of the expressions I hated most was “everything will work out in the end”. In my childhood experience, it never did. Life has no plan for you. It has its own course, and unless you grab the wheel, you will forever be a passenger in the back seat.
My experiences taught me to be the director of my life. The more control I took, the more I realized I could create my world instead of being subject to it. It is this attitude that differentiates me from those who appear to be unlucky.
My biggest challenge is actually being paralyzed by indecision because I know that I will make the best of any decision. As a result, all my decisions are the right decision. This is what will help you to define a successful life.
A couple weeks ago, I offered a homeless friend of mine a place to sleep for a couple of nights and told her I’d pay her $50 to clean the windows of my place. She said she didn’t do windows. I was shocked. She was homeless, and she “didn’t do windows”. It became clear to me that her situation wasn’t a result of bad luck, but a result of a bad attitude.
You need to make the best of your circumstances no matter what they are. I’ve often said, even if I’m a dishwasher in Hawaii, at the end of my shift, I walk out into Hawaii. There should be no job that you won’t do if you want to be the director of your own life.
Fortune favors the bold. If you want a wonderful life, believe first that you can have it. Then set out to attain it. People are attracted to positive energy. If you exude passion in what you want, others will get caught up in it. They will support you, give you ideas, help you make connections. Happiness is infectious, and by investing in you, others will be touched by your happiness.
This is the reason for my good fortune. I am not lucky. I am happy, and that is why people want to be around me. They listen to my stories, they become part of my stories. Together we shape our world.