FEMI TAIWO ON MONDAY: Enhancing Serendipity (iv): Convert Bad Luck into Good Luck

Michael Oluwafemi Taiwo, Ph.D

Part 1: FEMI TAIWO ON MONDAY: Enhancing Serendipity: First Principle of Increasing Your Luck in Life

Part 2: FEMI TAIWO ON MONDAY: Enhancing Serendipity (ii)

Part 3: FEMI TAIWO ON MONDAY: Enhancing Serendipity (iii): Expect Great Things

We now come to the last of the four principles I have observed in lucky people. Lucky people turn their bad luck into good fortune. But how exactly do they turn their bad luck into good?

To start with, lucky people see the positive side of their bad luck. Many things in life are a question of how you look at them. A friend’s Facebook status once read “Your tithe is someone’s salary, be grateful; your salary is someone’s tithe, be humble.” How true! So are you going to look at your tithe (10% of your pay check) as someone’s salary or are you going to look at your salary as someone’s tithe? The situation is still the same but the way you look at it determines whether you feel lucky or unlucky.

Another aspect of this sub-principle is that lucky people engage in what psychologists call “counter factual” thinking. This means they think of what might have happened rather than what actually happened and stay positive. For instance, if lucky people get involved in an accident, they will consider themselves “lucky” to have survived and not “unlucky” to have damaged their cars and properties. A lucky man would say “It could have been worse, I am happy to be alive.” An unlucky man would say “Why me?” Lucky is believing you are lucky.

Secondly, lucky people believe that any ill fortune they experience is temporary and that things will ultimately work for their good. Lucky people refuse to stay down. Even when they cannot see how, they take the long view and stay convinced that the bad luck they are presently experiencing will someway somehow morph into a stepping stone to their eventual success. This helps them to stay positive and make better decisions. Unlucky people, however, believe that a random setback will start a pattern of further mishaps that will lead to their doom. This belief makes them anxious and makes them prone to making disastrous decisions. Expectations are self-fulfilling prophecies.

Lastly, lucky people take constructive steps to prevent more bad luck in the future. They don’t assume there is nothing they can do. They consciously make a decision to take control and not be a victim of bad luck. They do something NOW. They don’t wait for next week or even tomorrow to do something about their bad luck but right now. They make a list of all their various options and seek out different possible solutions. They think outside the box. They harness all the resources in their power to look for a way out. They then decide on the optimal solution and path forward. Finally, and most importantly, they start to solve the problem. These steps don’t mean another bad thing won’t happen to them but it reduces the chances of them experiencing one. Unlucky people however feel helpless and hapless and hence have the same likelihood of a repeat unfortunate event occurring.

To conclude, the good fortune experienced by lucky people is neither the result of the gods smiling on them, nor their being born lucky. Instead, without realizing it, lucky people have developed ways of thinking that make them especially happy, successful, and satisfied with their lives. In fact, these techniques are so effective that sometimes it appears as though lucky people are destined to lead charmed lives. But deep down, they are like everyone else. Deep down, they are just like you.