I am not by nature a jealous person but now and again I look at someone and think, “I wish I was THAT lucky!”

When life dealt me another body blow the other day I found myself thinking about what luck actually means and why some people seem to get all the luck.

Luck can be defined as success or failure apparently brought by chance rather than through one’s own actions. But is it chance? Why is it that some women seem to get all the luck? Are they just in the right place at the right time, or is it that they have the ability to spot an opportunity?

Are Some People Bad Luck Magnets?

Looking at bad luck gave me quite a lot of clues. I have various friends and relations who are depressives and have a negative outlook on life. They work on the principle that if they always assume the worst they will be ready for anything, and boy do things go wrong for them!

If anything bad is going to happen, it will happen to them. They are the ones from whom a passing seagull steals a pasty or whose new appliance breaks down the day after the warranty runs out. They foresee the most obscure troubles, which then proceed to descend upon them.

Those who see life as a brilliant gift and look for the best in everything generally find it and good luck sticks to their heels. They don’t take account of the bad things that happen to them, whereas the members of the bad luck brigade wallow in their tribulations.

Is it Possible to Make Your Own Luck?

I have recently heard of three people whose lives have been saved by medical problems, which when investigated, exposed other life threatening conditions of which they were unaware. In these cases, apparently bad luck turned into incredibly good luck at the flick of a switch.

There is also the preparation that goes into your attitude. You have to be ready for luck when it strikes. If you are always looking at your feet, you’ll miss that rainbow.

Help Lady Luck Find You

What goes around comes around and if you spread joy and love you may be sure that they will return to you. People say, “You are lucky you have so many friends.” I never go looking for friends; they just seem to find me. Maybe I regard everyone as a friend until I am proved otherwise. This has led to some misfortunes but you need to take risks in life to get lucky. I think maybe that luck is the result of an attitude honed by living.

People say to me, “You are so lucky to live on a beautiful island.” Yes, but I took the risk of moving there many years ago. However, I AM definitely lucky not to live in a city that is being bombed; but that fact carries with it the responsibility to do something about those people who, from no fault of their own, live there.

Often success depends on a chance meeting that sparks a conversation, which leads to an interview and the job you always wanted, but if you hadn’t put yourself in the way of Lady Luck it would never have happened.

The Cornell University economist Robert H. Frank writes in his book Success and Luck: Good Fortune and the Myth of Meritocracy that the more you acknowledge that luck has played a part in your success, the more fortunate you will be. So, on that basis get out there, prepare the ground for the seeds of luck to flourish and just watch them fall.

What are your experience with Lady Luck? Do you think some people are more prone to luck, maybe ladies more than men? Is it possible to make your own luck? Please share how luck has played a part in your life.