Lady Luck Can Take a Hike

Guest Contributor: Kayleen Reusser
Kayleen's Posts - Kayleen's Blog


I was in a group meeting lately when the leader said, "When luck strikes, you better be ready!"

As a result of the reading I've done in the past year on preparing one's self for goals and dreams, I realized that what he had said was not true and I quickly spoke up. "Ready for what?" I asked. "What does luck have to do with the good things that happen to us in life? I believe luck has nothing to do with them. Instead, luck is something that occurs with little or no effort on the part of the person to whom it happens."

My viewpoint may differ from other people in that I would not count winning the lottery as one of the "luckier" things that would happen to me in life (I have never bought lottery tickets as I consider it a waste of money and never will). Rather, it has been the blessing of having a supportive husband and family, spending time with close family and friends and knowing my purpose in life as a Christian that I count as the best things that have ever happened to me. But those things occurred because I was willing to better myself by learning to get along with people and study to improve myself and discover Truth in life.

I believe a person who has taken the time to prepare herself for opportunities to promote her skills, such as by joining Toastmasters and Master Mind groups, will be ready for nearly every "surprise" that should happen.

However, those of us who think positively and feel capable of taking on new experiences because we've prepared ourselves will not be too surprised, after all, when the experiences come our way. It is usually when we are asked to be on a TV guest panel, help write a book, or get hired for a job, that someone has recommended us. Or our own efforts at self-promotion have paid off.

Just today, I passed on a freelance travel writing assignment to a friend, Cathy Shouse (www.cathyshouse.com). She has time in her schedule now and will do a fine job for the editor. I would not have risked my own reputation with the editor with whom I have already been published and have more assignments in the hopper by giving her a recommendation of someone I did not believe would do as good as a job as I would.

So based on Cathy's past performance as a writer and her friendship with me, I gave her the details for a paying job.

On Cathy's end, she recently asked for ideas for an article she was writing about how to get teens involved with volunteering. I gave her some ideas and she quoted me in this prestigious parenting magazine article. I've never been quoted before, having always been on the other end of the interview!

My Master Mind group is the same way. When we get together, I always come away with more ideas and encouragement than I started out the meeting with. But if I was not willing to put forth the effort to get together and work at self-improvement, it would not happen.

Master Mind groups are all about working together to come up with ideas to better ourselves and our society. Luck can just take a hike.