Why Some People Seem To Have All The Luck

their perfect partner and so miss opportunities to make good friends. Why do some people have all the They look through newspapers luck while others never get the determined to find certain types breaks they deserve? I set out to 'of job advertisements and miss examine luck, 10 years ago. Why other types of jobs. are some people always in the right Lucky people are more relaxed place at the right time, while and open, and therefore see what others consistently experience ill is there rather than just what they fortune? I placed advertisements are looking for. My research evenin national newspapers asking for tually revealed that lucky people people who felt consistently lucky generate good fortune via four or unlucky to contact me. principles. They are skilled at creHundreds oLextraordinary ating and noticing chance oppormen and women volunteered for tunities, make lucky decisions by listening to their intuition, create my research and over the years, have been interviewed by me. self-fulfilling prophesies via posiI have monitored their lives tive expectations, and adopt a resilient attitude that translInd had them take part in experiments. The forms bad luck into good. results reveal that I wondered towards although these people the end of the work, have almost no insight whetherthe~eprinciples into the causes of their could be used to create luck, their thoughts and good luck. I asked a THE behaviour are responsigroup of volunteers to ble for much of their spend a month carrying SpEAKING good and bad fortune. out exercises designed TREE Take the case of seemto help them think ingly chance opportunities. Lucky and behave like a lucky person. Dramatic results! These exercises people consistently encounter such opportunities, whereas helped them spot chance opportuunlucky peopie do not. . nities, listen to their intuition, I carried out a simple experiexpect to be lucky, and be more ment to discover whether this was resilient to bad luck. One month due to differences in their ability later, the volunteers returned and to spot such opportunities. I gave described what had happened. The both lucky and unlucky people a results were dramatic: 80 per cent newspaper, and asked them to look of people were now happier, more through it and tell me how many satisfied with their lives and, perphotographs were inside. I had haps most important of all, luckier. secretly placed a large message The lucky people had become halfway through the newspaper even luckier and the unlucky had saying: 'Tell the experimenter you become lucky. Finally, i had found have seen this and win $50'. the elusive 'luck factor'. This message took up half of 1) Listen to your gut instincts the page and was written in type - they are normally right. that was more tQ.an two inches 2) Be open to new experiences and high. It was staring everyone breaking your normal routine. straight in the face, but the unlucky 3) Spend a few moments each day people tended to miss it and the remembering things that went well. lucky people tended to spot it. 4) Visualise yourself being lucky Unlucky people are generally before an important meeting or more tense than lucky people, and telephone call. this anxiety disrupts their ability Have a Lucky day and work for it. to notice the unexpected. As a result, they miss opportuThe author of 'The Luck Factor' nities because they are too focused teaches at the University of Hertfordon looking for something else. They shire. This article is in circulation as go to parties intent on finding an e-mailforward.
Richard Wiseman