Don't ignore the power of luck in business and career success

Pretending that luck doesn’t matter doesn’t help us. Recognizing that it does, and being prepared for its unexpected arrival, makes us alert and watchful.

I have long harboured a suspicion about success. Listen to successful people discuss the reasons behind their triumphs, and you will get a long list of laudable attributes: Hard work, determination, judgement, resilience — and many more.

But there’s one force almost never discussed. And that is luck, pure and simple.

This is understandable. No one wants to say: “I made it because I happened to be in the right place at the right time doing the right thing.” We all want to point to things we did to cause success. It is almost an admission of failure, or at least a dilution of success to concede: “I was just bloody lucky.” Read more