Lucky.

Wow, you’re lucky that you have time to work on a side project.

You’re lucky to have such a nice house.

You’re lucky that you got that job.

You’re lucky to have so many clients.

You’re lucky that your kids are healthy.

You’re lucky.

I used to think that people were lucky. High profile entrepreneurs, actors, pro sports players, kids with rich parents… all lucky to have that going for them. As i’ve gotten older, though, I’ve realized that luck is very much in the eye of the beholder. What I’ve learned is that what appears to be luck is oftentimes actually years of blood, sweat, tears, pain and suffering. In reality, calling someone lucky is almost insulting.

The definition of luck is:

success or failure apparently brought by chance rather than through one’s own actions.

The operative word there is “apparently”. When you are only seeing a small piece of the bigger picture (success), it’s easy to fill in the gaps with our own assumptions.

Next time you think someone got lucky, dig a little deeper to see how they actually got to that place. I would bet the reality behind that luck would surprise you.