Forget Luck

Written by Carl Mazzanti
December 31, 2005
11:00 pm

Forget Luck
Used with permission of Joel H. Weldon & Associates, Inc.
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“Good luck,” said the manager to the salesperson leaving for an important sales call. “Wish me luck,” said the student to his mother as he left for school to take an important test. “Boy, were we lucky,” said the lawyer to his partners after winning the case.

You’ve probably heard it said that “Luck is when opportunity and preparation meet,” and “The harder I work, the luckier I get.” These are really truisms.

Take fishing for example. The people who consistently catch fish have a knowledge of the species — the feeding habits of fish, their preferred water temperature and clarity. They invest the time to study and then apply what they learn by keeping records of productive fishing spots, weather conditions, type of bait or lure used, and the speed of retrieval used.

And isn’t that exactly what the “professional” does in any chosen field — eliminating the possibilities of failure and using the experience of others to ensure the positive results they are after? Hoping for good results isn’t enough — it requires action: careful thought, planning, anticipation and alertness.

Now this article isn’t really about fishing. It’s about you and your important activities that shouldn’t be based on “luck.”

How much is LUCK a part of your life? Do you call yourself “lucky” or “unlucky”? Hopefully, by the time you finish this article you’ll decide to drop “luck” from your vocabulary.

Ask any fishery biologist or tournament fisherman. These experts are in agreement: over 80% of the fish are caught by fewer than 10% of the fishermen!

When asked about luck, Fred Ward, champion angler, said: “Luck plays a very small role in fishing. In fact, luck has practically nothing to do with it!” The same could be said about selling, managing people, raising children, having fun on vacation, making good investments, advancing in your career, and being happy.

No, it isn’t luck!

In the spring of 1980 an African American woman stood in an auditorium so packed with people that many lined the walls. The woman approached the podium, paused, and said:

“My mother is a deaf mute. I have never known my father. My first job was as a cotton picker. Yet I stand before you this day the Treasurer of the United States of America! My name is Azie Taylor Morton. No one has to stay the way they are if they don’t want to… and it isn’t LUCK. The next time you have a tendency to say it’s luck, take out a dollar bill, look at my signature, and say, If she can do it, so can I.”

Here’s what you can do:

1.	Forget luck — be more prepared and then stay alert for opportunities that surround you.
2.	Accept the responsibility for your own success and avoid references to some elusive “lucky” charm, streak or break.
3.	Instead of saying “Good luck” to someone, change it to: “Go get ’em.” “MAKE it happen.” “You can do it!

Carl Mazzanti

Carl Mazzanti is Co-Founder and President of eMazzanti Technologies, Microsoft’s four time Partner of the Year and one of the premier IT consulting services for businesses throughout the New York metropolitan area and internationally. Carl and his company manage over 400 active accounts ranging from professional services firms to high-end global retailers.

eMazzanti is all about delivering powerful, efficient outsourced IT services, such as computer network management and troubleshooting, managed print, PCI DSS compliance, green computing, mobile workforce technology, information security, cloud computing, and business continuity and disaster recovery.

Carl Mazzanti is also a frequent business conference speaker and technology talk show guest and contributor at Microsoft-focused events, including frequent prominent roles at the Microsoft Inspire (Worldwide Partner Conference / WPC).

Carl, a serial Entrepreneur, gives back to the community through Entrepreneur teaching engagements at Georgetown University, the company’s ocean wildlife conservation effort, the Blue Project, and Tree Mazzanti.