You say it’s luck, I say you’re lazy

My husband has a very old basketball t-shirt he can’t bear to part with.  It says “You say it’s luck, I say you’re lazy.” I thought he just loved the colour and shirt but I’m beginning to believe it has more to do with his (and i suppose my own) attitude.

We’ve had friends in the past say things like “You’re so lucky because you met her/him” or “You’re so lucky you own your own home” etc etc.  Sure, we made some crap choices in pour lifetime but ultimately we made more good choices than bad.  And, sometimes we sacrificed in the short run for the long run benefit.

I’m sure some here will think I was born with a silver spoon and all that but I really wasn’t.  My parents did ok.  I think I had a pretty standard upbringing filled with public schooling, both parents working, and supportive parents who read to me at night and all that stuff.  Later, I was thrown out of school for suspected drug use, my parents divorced, some other family stuff, and I married a man that was a T-Coll drop-out turned receptionist.  I did go to university.  I did pretty well and I did get pretty good jobs – and for the record so did my husband.  He worked his way up a corporate, got an MBA and now owns his own businesses.

My point is that I just don’t believe in luck.  When a person realises that they are in charge of their life and they are the one that gets to make the choices and decisions; then that is the moment that that person becomes powerful (in their own right).  How do we teach that?  And, before anyone accuses me of beneficiary bashing I’m talking about so many people.  Being the victim, “luck did this to me” is alive and well in New Zealand.  Take some responsibility people.  To get ahead everyone has to work hard and yes, some do have to work harder than others.

So, next time you think you have to make a decision and you think there’s only one choice to make, look again, there might be a better one (it just might be a harder road).