Do You Feel Lucky?

This morning as I flew home from Hartford, I read an article in the Southwest Airlines magazine about luck. The author, a former contestant on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire talked about his experiences and those of several other “lucky” people. In one example, he referenced a study done where two groups of people were told to count the number of photos inside of a newspaper. The groups were divided by those who felt they were lucky and those who didn’t. On page two, there was a full page article that stated in big letters “Stop counting. There are 43 photos. Take this paper up to the examiner and win $250.00.” Ironically, nobody in the self-proclaimed “unlucky” group saw that page. The ones who considered themselves lucky saw the page and it fit their paradigm. They were lucky and yes, here was another example.

The premise here is that all of us have equal access to luck. It begins by having the right mindset. My mother-in-law believes she is lucky because she always seems to find cash on the ground. Once she found $40.00 on the ground. On other occasions she’s found a few dollars. Last year I was shopping for groceries with her and she found a small wad of bills on the floor of the Kroger. It was $55.00. I don’t think she’s lucky, she simply knows she finds cash on the ground so she looks for it! If you look long enough, you’ll find it.

If you look long enough for luck you will find it. If you believe you’re unlucky, you’ll look for examples of how unlucky you are and you’ll simply confirm your belief.

I thought about the article and decided I was lucky. I tend to look for wins in business and usually get them. I’ve always felt as though I deserved to have a successful career because of the hell I experienced in the Navy and my first few years as an employee and sure enough, I’ve gotten it.

And shortly after I confirmed internally that I indeed was lucky, I found a Southwest Airlines envelope jammed into the magazine spine. When I opened it, I found a letter to a Mr. J. Elridge and it had two free drink coupons, expiring in September 2016!