Most people look at “luck” as something to envy. Something someone has, that they don’t.

They think of the lucky lottery winner, the lucky gambler, the lucky kid who had a car given to them.

But real luck in life, in business, and in a career has more to do with taking advantage of opportunities. Those opportunities are what successful people look back on and consider themselves lucky for having.

And it doesn’t matter where you start, it’s where you finish. Luck can come to anyone, regardless of their circumstances. One day you could meet a future business partner in your high school math class, or meet someone that will help you gain entrance into an industry you’ve dreamed of working in. One day you could read a paragraph that changes your entire mindset and opens your eyes to a new way of doing things. Some people believe these things happen for a reason and that they are lucky. It’s not lucky if someone doesn’t act and take advantage of them.

You don’t have to go looking for opportunities, but recognize when they come your way. Recognize a future powerful friend when you see one, that potential business partner, that breakout stock that is mentioned to you, that book that looks like it might be interesting, that mentor that could help you accelerate your career and many other examples of “luck” that could change your life if you just acted now. It’s better to act NOW then to wait for the perfect chance. Your lucky chance might have a lifetime, however long or short.

Harvey Specter from USA’s Suits says it perfectly…

A common misconception is that you can become rich by simply working hard enough and having a positive attitude. While they certainty help, there are no set values, or prerequisites for success. The path to wealth is complex, but it can be simplified with vague guidelines such as: doing the little things right, saving money when you can, taking risk in order to achieve more upside, and finding your passion. Simply put, everyone’s path to achieving their utmost potential is unique.

When someone states that their goal is to be “rich and happy” they have absolutely no idea about the struggles and dedication that it takes to become wealthy. If someone’s primary motivator in life is to have a lot of money, they will never achieve that. There are no money trees to grow. Simply thinking “how can I make a ton of money?” will prove unfruitful.

People with immense wealth, or even moderate wealth, have done something that provides them with income as a measure of their value in the market, and success in their field. Top lawyers win the most cases and are trusted for their legal advice, professional athletes are paid to help a team win with their exceptional ability and skills, and great entrepreneurs have dedicated themselves to their vision and work the hardest out of any of their employees; many other successful people have developed their skills while utilizing their time in the best manner in order to reach a level of attainment they wish to have, and for those reasons, they become “rich” and usually “happy”.

So it is not only disheartening, but aggravating to see someone list that their goal in life is to become “rich and happy” with no clear plan or purpose other than to have money. Develop a passion; the money will follow.

For people who also strive to reach high levels of success we understand that we must follow our own passion and develop it as much as we can before collecting a serious reward. A perfect motto for this would be “live the life most won’t for a few years, to live the life most others can’t for the rest”. We don’t want to be “rich and happy”, we want to be great at what we do. Hopefully some money will come along the way.