Sometimes to have a little good luck is the most brilliant plan.
-Sam Waterston as Ben in Crimes and Misdemeanors
Today I’m joining Kim (Kooky Runner) and Zenaida for their Tuesday Topics: “This week, Tuesday Topics falls on the 12th day of September. The 12th letter of the alphabet is “L” – write anything that comes to mind that begins with the letter ‘L’.”
When my husband and I were dating, we lived in New York City. One night we went to a jazz club, and outside the club we ran into the pianist who was performing. My husband said, “Good luck tonight.”
Afterwards, I admonished him. He’s a HIGHLY SKILLED performer! He doesn’t need luck! My husband responded “Everyone needs luck. There could be a problem with the sound system, or it could be too hot or too cold in there. There are all sorts of things that could go wrong that aren’t his fault.”
Ever since then, I’ve understood that no matter how much you prepare, no matter how much knowledge and skill you have, a little bit of luck is the magic ingredient to success.
Think of a race- you could have a perfect training cycle for a marathon, and then on race day it could be 100 degrees. Or you could get a stomach virus, or trip and break your foot. OR, you could have a cool, clear day with the wind at your back, and have the race of your life.
My daughter is hard at work right now preparing for all-state auditions. She’s auditioning on flute for the concert band, and also on guitar for the jazz band. She told me she feels she has a shot at the jazz band, and I had to remind her, gently, that they only take ONE guitar player from the whole state and she’ll be competing with seniors. I told her to imagine how much better she’ll be in four years- that’s the level she’s competing against right now.
She said “Yes, but all I need are five good minutes. If I have five good minutes” (the length of the audition, more or less) “and everyone else has five bad minutes, I can get in.”
Now, if she weren’t practicing hard for this audition, I would say this is a very bad plan. But she is practicing, and having extra lessons. So I like her attitude! Why not go for it and hope for a little- or, in this case, a lot- of luck?
Do you leave room in your life for luck? Or do you not believe in luck as a factor in success?
30 Responses
I agree. There are so many small and large things that are out of our control and contribute to whether we succeed or not … not to mention the lottery that is the family/place/time you are born into.
I really like your daughter’s attitude. Why not give it a go? If she misses out she’ll still have gained, being better than she would have been without all the extra practice to prepare and she has one more audition experience under her belt.
Yes, I agree- her playing will improve so much just by taking this audition. In future years hopefully luck and skill can come together for her.
Yes! Prepare as we might for a race, there’s always that last percentage of unknown that we can’t control. But with good preparation, we are also in a better place to deal with unexpected challenges.
There’s this story I read from the marathon in Mexico City: a runner’s shoe fell apart mid-race. A spectator gave him his shoe as a replacement. The runner continued with that shoe (which was a few sizes too big for him). By the time he got to the finish line, the other remaining shoe had also begun to fall apart. But the runner still ran a 2:57!
He had bad luck, but he managed to make the best of it.
All the best to your daughter! I’m excited to see what happens!
WHAT??? He ran a 2:57 with that shoe situation??? My daughter making jazz all-state as a freshman sounds about as likely as that story- but I guess if he could do it, she can too!
I like your daughter’s attitude! And GOOD LUCK to her at her auditions! 🙂
Thank you Debbie! She can use all the extra luck you send her!
I like her attitude! Because you never know! Good luck to her, and I hope she has a great audition, no matter what the end decision is. I love how confident she is!
I am a huge believer in luck, but also in making your own luck. Sometimes you have to make good decisions with the fortune you have, and more luck will come your way. Not always, but sometimes!
The funny thing is, she’s not this confident in other areas. I’m trying to point that out to her- “If you think you have a chance to make jazz all-state, why can’t you think you can do XYZ?”
I agree you can’t be passive and just hope luck will come your way- you do have to work hard and make good decisions.
I think luck can definitely be a factor in success in many cases. In my case, I got lucky to meet a great person in a writing class that a former firm hosted. This person, Paul, liked that I had a degree in math and could write. Paul has had the single most impact on my career by far. I worked very hard, too, but he took a chance and hired me 12 years ago and then helped get me over to my current firm where I hope to stay for the rest of my career. You can’t entirely rely on luck, of course. But it can really make a difference!
I love your daughters attitude. It’s better than being a defeatist and thinking you won’t have a shot. And if she doesn’t get it, she knows she worked hard and the chips just didn’t fall her way (and she had many more times to try to make all state jazz band).
Yes, I definitely hope that’s her attitude if she doesn’t get it- and she’s got more chances and the chips could fall her way next time.
Did you name your son after Paul, your mentor?
No but my coworker liked to joke that I did! Our Paul was named after my dad and the first son of Phil’s parents that tragically died just shy of age 2. We asked my MIL for permission/her blessing to use the name and she loved that the name would live on. It’s nice that it has meaning on both sides of our family!
Oh, that’s sweet (and bittersweet.) Funny that you have so many “Pauls” in your life! We pretty much just picked the name at random- it seemed like it went well with our last name, and we like the author Paul Theroux.
Unfortunately I think luck is the most important factor. ESP in a race.
You train hard and then it rains or is 90 degrees.
Of course luck can’t carry you through.
I love your daughters attitude. I wish I could be that optimistic. Luck could be in her side. The best musicians could get sick.
Yes, that’s her attitude. I would say it’s wildly optimistic, but optimism will carry you a lot farther than pessimism!
Luck is everything. I was lucky to be born an American citizen. I was lucky to be born smart. I was lucky to be born white. I was lucky to be born able-bodied. I was lucky I was in a place with great healthcare when I had a catastrophic break in my leg. I mean, sure, I work hard and try to prepare and do everything I can, but at the end of the day, it’s all luck of the draw.
Yes, when you look at it like that, luck really is everything. And it’s good to periodically remind ourselves how lucky we are.
I’m a firm believer in hard work but I also think luck comes into play with everything., especially when it comes to running.
Sometimes luck was definitely a factor in my PRs, etc.
Yes, you have to work hard- otherwise you can’t take advantage of luck when it comes your way.
I’ve never given much thought to luck or chance but at this point-I will take all the luck I can 🙂
Ha ha, maybe you’re due for some good luck!
Oh I totally believe in a little (or alot of) luck! For any situation, no matter how much you prepare or sacrifice, there are always going to be factors out of one’s control. It’s nice when luck, or the stars aligning just right, religious faith or simply fate intervene to help us 🙂
Yes, there are a lot of ways to look at it- but there are definitely factors out of our control
Oh, I love this lesson! I’ve really been trying to focus on no matter how much prep/work/overthinking I do, whatever happens ON THE DAY isn’t always up to me: There’s luck and weather and the universe and so many other variables! So, finding joy in the prep/work and not making the result matter so very much might be a better approach (as someone who keeps having things happen, haha)!
Yes, absolutely! You have to enjoy the training, because nothing else is guaranteed. I also think the good luck balances out the bad- not exactly even of course, but everyone gets some of both, eventually.
I agree, luck is such a large factor to so many successes and failures. Other factors of course are hard work and determination, but luck will trump them 9 times out of 10.
I used to enjoy watching horse racing, before I learned how cruel of a sport it is. The sport in the US went MANY years without a triple crown winner, and several times the factor was luck. Like the time the favorite’s shoe was knocked loose at the beginning of the race, and he ended up being pulled up and coming in last. Lots of preparation, lots of hard work, and one second of bad luck threw it all away.
YES! So many things are like that. You do have to work hard to be able to take advantage of the good luck when it comes your way, but there’s no guarantee.
I love the confidence your daughter is going into these auditions with! Of course, that may mean big emotions if she doesn’t get it, but kudos for her to feeling so confident in her talent and skills! I was never that way at her age, but have gotten better about being confident as I’ve gotten older.
I do think so many things in our lives are about luck, and acknowledging that can help us a lot when things don’t turn out the way we expected them to.
Yes, I’m wondering what will happen when (if?) she doesn’t get it. We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it!
I love your daughter’s attitude! When is her audition? Good luck to her!
Thank you Zenaida! It’s next Saturday, gulp. Should be interesting!