Successful people, especially CEOs, celebrities and influencers, invariably tell us that they succeeded through their hard work and wise decisions.
Your family and school teachers probably said something similar to you when you were young. That to do well, you must study hard and make sensible choices. That is true, of course, but in a curious way it can also limit your opportunities. Most of us choose to study similar subjects in college to the ones we enjoyed the most at school, and then go looking for our first job in the same field.
Maybe you did too, and it turned out well for you. But it probably also meant that you didn’t consider a whole load of other possible professions which might have suited you better. Mostly because you didn’t know anything much about them. That’s why so many people make major career changes in their forties. Because by then they know more about their abilities, and are more aware of all the other possibilities out there.
What this all means is that we grow up expecting that achieving our ambitions will be straightforward. But in fact, everything about our success in life is dominated by chance. Unexpected events that change everything. Bad things like the economy going down so you’re suddenly made redundant, or your chosen country changes its visa rules so it’s harder to get work there.
And also good things, like the chance conversations that generate new business ideas, find you a new client, or lead to a new job. Despite what the celebrities and influencers say, meeting the right people and being in the right place at the right time are just as important as hard work when it comes to getting ahead.
There are some attitudes that make a huge difference. Like being inquisitive, enthusiastic, and highly energetic. And willing to take risks. And improving your ability to spot opportunities, for example, by reading widely, keeping up to date with the news, and following technical trends.
It helps to develop your resilience, because things will always go wrong. So learn to see the positive side of everything, to be persistent, and to challenge negative thoughts.
You need to maximise your social skills, because just drinking with the same crowd every week will seriously limit your potential. Instead, learn to enjoy meeting and talking to new people. Just about every good thing that will ever happen to you will start with meeting a stranger, because it’s people you’ve never met before who’ll give you the best new ideas.
You should also work on your relationships, because it’s your family and friends who will make you happier than anything else in your life. And whenever you hear about an exciting new opportunity, go for it as quickly as you can. Because there’s no limit to what you can achieve in this unpredictable world.
