I have often heard successful men and women role models answer that they were lucky, when asked about their successful careers. I believe luck (or opportunity) comes to those who work hard. But we also have to work hard on the right things. And some of those 'right' things are not in our job description. We can't wait for luck, but as the quote suggests we can generate some luck.
Sharing Mistakes, which seemed like bad luck at the time!
I have found that sharing my mistakes has been helpful to those seeking my advice; so many mentoring discussions have begun with my biggest career "a ha" moment. And that was the realization that I had to plan my career and no one else (not even a kind hearted manager and mentor) cared as much about my career as I. At the same time, I also learned hard work alone is not always rewarded and what seemed like bad luck, may have been by my design.
Who's in charge here anyway?
My mistake, which I can smile about now, came from very early in my career. I had a strong enough network at the time to know that a new, strategic role was being created. And... in my opinion, I was perfect for the role! I had the relevant work experience, I had been doing great work and my leaders were very happy with my achievements. Of course they would see that I was the best candidate and my long overdue promotion would finally come, in this newly created role. When the announcement was published and I was not the one; I was very unhappy. In fact, I was angry. I was annoyed with the company, with my boss, with the hiring manager and instantly completely disengaged.
Ready to take the shot?
The bad luck was that I never told anyone of influence that I was interested in the role. I didn't seek the position and never told my leaders of my aspirations. I expected my work to speak for itself. I thought my leaders would reward good work and my career would naturally progress as a result. That was the big mistake! If I had expressed an interest in the role, and expressed a desire to move up the corporate ladder would I have gotten the role? Perhaps...Perhaps not, but without my expression of interest, I was probably not even considered as a potential candidate. As Wayne Gretzky famously and best said, "you miss 100% of the shots you never take" and I hadn't even laced up my skates.
The Lesson
Take ownership of your career. Set goals. Have a plan. Share your goals. Share your plan. Take a shot. Work hard on your career and in your career. And generate your own luck.
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