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On Luck, Success, and Our Inherent Interconnectedness

Life — and success — contain a high degree of luck, randomness, and serendipity. It’s not just me that thinks so. Researchers are proving what our intuition has been telling us for generations. A study out of the University of Catania in Italy showed that the most successful people are not the most talented, just the luckiest. (See If you’re so smart, why aren’t you rich? Turns out it’s just chance, MIT Review.)

Persistence, fueled by ambition, and a stroke of good fortune are often all that separate the the high-rollers from the homeless. But you have to try. Where would you be if you didn’t even try?

We often look inside ourselves for the answer. Perhaps we are looking in the wrong direction. Perhaps we should be looking outwards.

On so many levels we are all the same, separated by relatively minor variances in intelligence and capabilities. What separates us more is our limited network of meaningful relationships and our reluctance to nurture and grow that network.

Life is not a journey, or an adventure, nor a solo trek. Life is an ecosystem, a living, breathing, expansive, ecosystem. Living a meaningful life comes from functioning fully within that ecosystem, giving more than you take, and leaning into our interconnectedness. We all need each other and we all have a part to play.

Find your role in the ecosystem by asking yourself, “What does ________ need? What does my team need? What does my community need? What does the universe need?” The answers that come to you will be those that are within your talents and means to contribute.

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