Luck = Preparation Meets Opportunity

Over the years when I accomplished something or had a unique experience, people would often tell me how “lucky” I was to be able to do so and it always irked me. As a young person, I worked extremely hard at the things I wanted to achieve, not so much because I was driven, but because things did not come easy to me. It wasn’t until I was an adult that I learned that I had ADHD, so the challenges that presented themselves went unacknowledged and I learned that diligence and hard work were going to be a requirement for me to do most things. I had the drive to seek as many ways as possible to get help and support to level the playing field and make sure that I could do the things that I either desired or determined were important.

So when someone said I was lucky, it felt like a dismissal. A reduction. Made me feel small. Until one day in high school, my favorite English teacher said, ”I noticed that when people say you’re lucky you get irritated. Don’t you know that luck is merely preparation meeting opportunity?” And I realized then that no matter how things unfolded in the future, I was going to be driven to be “lucky” because I was determined to take every opportunity to get prepared for the things I felt were important.

As an adult, preparation has changed, but it has also stayed the same. I am still taking courses, studying, working hard at building tools and gathering information to make sure that I am ready to do the work that needs to be done. Even though I am a coach and training facilitator, I take courses all the time and I have my own coach and mentors. I appreciate the accumulation of knowledge that others have and are willing to bestow. And I seek out opportunities to use that training so that I can be “lucky.”

If you are reading this newsletter, I am sure that you are often “lucky.’ And I am also sure that you continue to strive to leverage your networks and opportunities so that you are positioned to do the things that you need to do to be successful, and more importantly, that help make our community stronger. Whether preparation comes easy or poses challenges, you are one to step up and meet the challenges presented for the goals you have set for yourself, your family, and/or your community. You are “lucky!”

(Partial reprint from AABLI Newsletter, December 2025.)