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Jason Zweig wrote a great
little article in Money Magazine called "R+U Lucky?
Some Guys Do Have All The Luck. Here's How to Join Them"
(Money, August 2003 pp85).
In it he describes the patterns that "lucky" people
follow and how to increase your odds of success by basically
placing yourself in the "right place at the right time."
Can you always be in the right place at the right time?
Not really, unless you broaden your definition of that
phrase a bit, as I have.
MORE...
My Definition of The Right Place at The Right Time:
"Putting yourself in every corner of your market niche
in some fashion so as to be in front of customers and
people who can further your business through partnerships,
buyouts, joint ventures and many other opportunities
that only come through the luck you *create* by being
active and involved in your niche."
Zweig talks about the fact that some people seem actually
"skillful" at being lucky. A British psychologist, Richard
Wiseman, even wrote a new book on the subject called
"The Luck Factor." (See
www.luckfactor.co.uk)
Wiseman did a study on over 400 people who thought of
themselves
as either very lucky or unlucky.
"He found that some are indeed luckier than others,
that lucky people share similar attitudes and that many
apparently random outcomes can be controlled" says Zweig.
Think of the first person that comes to mind who owns
an online business and who you think of as "lucky."
Actually, think of about 5 people. Should be an easy
list to make - they are your competition, or business
owners you admire, most likely.
Now, what trait would you say your list of 5 lucky people
share? I would venture to say they all share the same
trait of being, at one point or another, "in the right
place at the right time."
How did they do it? Was it really blind luck? Are the
odds dismal? The same as winning your state lottery
jackpot?
Not even close! Although there are some people who really
cannot explain their luck, and who truly were just "touched
by an angel," most successful people are successful
because they are engaged to the hilt in their business.
They are active promoters of their businesses in a radical
way. They all have a fanatical involvement in networking
themselves and their businesses.
The biggest mistake I see people make with their online
businesses is that they separate their "self" from their
business. They let the products speak for themselves,
which is ok as one component of a marketing campaign,
but that's not enough. They also successfully market
*themselves* as well as their business. They see themselves
as important factors in the success and identity
of their business.
"Lucky" people see no separation of the two in fact.
Products and services are inanimate "things." They are
nothing really, without the people behind the scenes
who put themselves in front of the scenes as much as
possible and let others get to know THEM.
Why do you think so many people come back from conferences
with
stories of how they landed a great partner they never
thought they'd even get to answer an email?
Conferences and seminars are the epitome of "creating
luck." The least important thing about them is the formal
ceremonies. The good stuff happens at the bar in the
hotel after the presentations are over. The "good stuff"
is being in the right place at the right time. You are
definitely creating luck whenever you network with peers
and possible partners.
If you let yourself get lost in the day-to-day operations
of your business and you don't allow yourself time to
think about the ways in which you can get your "self"
in front of the people who can break you into a whole
new league of success for your business, you will be
less "lucky" in business.
There are lots of real rags-to-riches stories on the
net. People are succeeding and profiting online like
never before, but few do it in a vacuum. You will find
more often than not that a story of success will begin
with a line like "My business REALLY took off when I
met..." or "I was talking on the phone one day with...and
all the sudden an idea was born."
Want to create some luck for yourself? Get involved
in your business at a level in which you are always
in the right place at the right time. Being active in
online forums, calling people on the phone rather than
using email, meeting people in person who can help you
get your products in front of thousands of potential
customers, all these practices are used by the ever-lucky,
most successful people on the planet.
Put yourself into your business as part of the product.
Develop relationships. Run far far away from people
who want to sell you on the concept that you can succeed
online without having to talk with or meet others. Success
has never knocked on the door of people who aren't open
to human contact - that's a ridiculous and self-defeating
practice.
If you are passionate about making money with an online
or offline business, good old fashioned networking
will always win out over any other method of advertising.
So, now you have the formula for "creating luck." If
you can sit down this weekend and figure out all the
ways you can put yourself in the right place at the
right time to increase your business - including a powerful
linking campaign for your website - you are going to
start to see that there is a pattern indeed to
creating luck and making things happen for your business.
--------------------------
Jack Humphrey is the Author of "Power linking 2: Evolution"
which hit the net this week to rave reviews. Grab your
copy
before your competition does at
http://power-linking-profits.com
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