“You’ve gotta ask yourself one question: ‘Do you feel lucky? Well, do ya, punk?’–Clint Eastwood, Dirty Harry
Doesn’t it seem like some people are born with a horseshoe over their head? Good things just seem to come their way. Ah, if only you could tap into some of their good fortune…
Perhaps some people are just born lucky, but for the rest of us, we have to make our own. The good news is, you don’t have to carry a rabbit foot in your pocket to turn the tides in your favor. Here are a few tips to make 2013 your luckiest year yet:
1. Prepare for success and then, let go. Do your work. Yes, you do have to work. The trick is learning to LET GO of expectations. Do your work, and then… do nothing. Don’t try to force things to happen. If you are tense and controlling, you do not create a good environment for serendipity to come into your life.
2. Say yes more often. I often blog about the power of saying no, but today, go ahead and say YES! Ah, doesn’t that feel good? Say yes to opportunities. Say yes to being helpful. Say yes to your kids. Say yes to your spouse. Say yes to the universe. Get the message out there you are willing and the universe will say YES right back to you.
3. Be open to new possibilities. Opportunity doesn’t always look like we expect. We have an idea of how our opportunities should look, a certain kind of client, a particular speaking venue etc. However, opporunities often shows up in an unusual forms. What if you thought your ideal clients were women entrepreneurs, but you get invited speak to a group of dentists? I happen to know someone to whom this happened and now they have a very profitable new niche. BE OPEN.
4. Make a habit of meeting new people. You will be amazed how your life will change when you widen your network. Sure, you will probably get more clients and grow your business, but that’s just the tip of the ice-berg. Bringing more people into your life broadens your perspective, creates more meaningful connections, creates new friends and even makes you healthier! Don’t you feel luckier already?
5. Read material outside your area of expetise. I know, I know, you are a dedicated “fill-in-the-blank.” You read every trade journal, every new industry book. You have to the top 10 business books of 2012 sitting prominently on your shelf. Good for you. What truly new and inovative idea did you come up with reading and re-reading the same basic material all year? Ok, sure you strengthened your knowledge base, but did it expand your thinking in new and unique ways? When you go outside your normal sphere of influence, you get new sparks of insight that just might help you improve you luck.
6. Take action everyday. You can pray all day, but unless you get up off your knees ain’t nothin gonna happen. The amount of luck you have is almost always in direct proportion to how much action you take. Even if you don’t see immediate results, you start to put forces in motion on your behalf just by showing up and doing the work. Take action today, tomorrow, the day after and the day after that and keep doing it every day and you WILL eventually get lucky.
7. Try to write everday. I don’t care if you write “I will not pull Susie’s hair in class.” one hundred times on your white board, just write something every day. You do not have to be Maya Angelou to create magic with your words. The process of writing forces your mind to focus and gets your thoughts away from your to-do lists. Someimes writing pure garbage is even better than trying to write a masterpiece because there is less pressure and your mind is free to loosen up and create. Writing opens up the door for luck to sneak in.
8. Speak up. You will be amazed at how lucky you get when you speak up. I see it all the time. I ask for my husband to pass the salt and low and behold it appears next to me. I ask for an car rental upgrade, and abracadabra, I get a bigger car for the same price. Just imagine all the wonderful things you could be lucky enough to manifest if you just opened your mouth and asked for them.
9. Be willing to fail. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. You have to be willing to risk failure to increase your chances of getting lucky. Just by adding more tries to your tally, you increase your chance of winning. You also get better at what you do by trying more often, even if you fail. Eventually your failures turn into wins and your luck improves. Try watching the movie “Rudy” and you will never look at failure the same way again.
10. Be a giver. The funny thing about giving is the minute you start doing it, you feel better. You feel like the lucky one even if you are not on the receiving end, or perhaps because you are not on the receiving end. However, there is also the universal law of reciprocity, when you give something others feel compelled to give back. So you get a double dip of luck with this one.
You now have the power to turn 13 into one of your luckiest numbers. Just follow these 10 tips and by the end of 2013 your answer to Clint Eastwood will be “Yeah, go ahead and shoot Old Dude. Today luck is on my side!”
Here’s to you and your best year yet in 2013!
I love hearing from you!
Is there anything you do to make you feel luckier?
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Heather Poduska is a Reach certified personal brand strategist, image consultant and business coach who helps women entrepreneurs create client attractive brands, polished brand images and brand communication strategies to increase their visibility and impact in the marketplace and grow their businesses. To learn even more about Heather and the Clear Voice Branding System click the link. www.clearvoicebranding.com
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