What is Luck?
If you’ve been reading along with me over the past few months, you might start to wonder why I begin every blog with a question. Before we jump into this month’s theme—creating our own luck—let me address this habit of mine.
When I write, teach, or engage in any form of dialogue, it is never with the intention of positioning myself as an all-knowing expert. Quite the opposite. My goal is to invite questions that awaken the wisdom already present within you. Nothing I say should be taken as absolute truth on blind faith. Instead, I hope to offer a different perspective—one that encourages you to reflect deeply, to look within, and to discern what resonates with your direct experience. So, let’s think together as we explore a perspective on luck that may challenge what we’ve been taught.
How Do You Define Luck?
When I ask myself this question, my initial definition of luck is this: luck is when something perceived as good happens to someone who did not do anything to deserve or manufacture it.
We hear people use the word luck to describe winning the lottery, getting an empty row on an airplane, making a lot of money, or achieving success in sports. On the surface, it appears that some people receive benefits out of nowhere. But if we investigate, is that actually true? Is there ever a situation where something happens to us that we had no participation in?
This is an essential question because if luck truly means that events occur without cause, then we are powerless to influence it. However, if everything that happens to us is connected to something we have participated in—even in ways that aren’t immediately obvious—then the opposite is true: we can influence our luck.
Do Things Happen to Us for No Reason?
Let’s examine a common scenario: a car accident. Suppose you’re driving along the highway, and suddenly, someone rear-ends you. We would call this bad luck, typically positioning one person as the victim and the other as the perpetrator. This is how we often conceptualize bad luck—someone suffers, someone is responsible.
However, reality operates beyond our legal and social frameworks of right and wrong. In an absolute sense, the accident happened because you were there. You were driving that road on that day. While I am in no way suggesting victim-blaming (and certainly, legal responsibility exists for a reason), I am asking you to consider this: outside of social constructs, is there ever an event in your life that happens without your presence, your choices, or a series of conditions that led to it?
Let’s go deeper. What about good luck? Consider someone who wins the lottery. Can anyone win without first buying a ticket? Even if they were gifted the ticket, that, too, is the result of a chain of causes and conditions—relationships, circumstances, and decisions. What appears as luck is often simply an outcome of subtle interdependent factors that we may not immediately perceive.
In some traditions, this concept is referred to as karma—the natural law of cause and effect. Karma does not mean that everything that happens to us is the direct result of a past action we consciously recall. Instead, it speaks to the web of interconnected causes and conditions shaping our experiences.
Can We Influence Our Own Luck?
If nothing in our lives happens without our participation, then yes—we can influence how often good things happen to us. But don’t take my word for it. Pause here and ask yourself: Has anything ever happened to me that I had nothing to do with?
When we realize that we are always participating in our experiences, the next question becomes: How can we intentionally stack the odds in favor of positive outcomes?
Four Practical Ways to Create Your Own Luck
Be Present. Presence increases awareness. The more attuned you are to your environment, the more likely you are to notice opportunities. This applies to everything from spotting a $20 bill on the ground to recognizing an unexpected job opportunity or sensing a reckless driver before an accident occurs.
Be Generous. Generosity attracts goodwill. Studies (such as those by Adam Grant) suggest that generous people receive maximum benefits in their relationships, often leading to unexpected opportunities. What may appear as luck is often a natural consequence of how we engage with others.
Be Kind. Just as generosity creates positive ripple effects, kindness does the same. People are less likely to extend opportunities to those who are unkind, regardless of merit. When we move through the world with kindness, others are more inclined to help us, advocate for us, and share valuable information with us.
Be Open. True openness is not rigid specificity. Many people claim to be open but have such tightly defined expectations that they block potential. Consider a friend who writes a detailed letter describing the exact qualities of their ideal romantic partner—income, interests, physical attributes—only to end up in an unhappy relationship. Their hyper-specificity closed them off to a broader range of possibilities. If they had instead focused on core qualities like love, connection, and emotional resonance, they might have invited a different and more fulfilling outcome.
Luck, in many ways, thrives in potential rather than fixed outcomes.
Reframing Luck: A Mindset of Gain
When we envy others for their perceived luck, we may be missing the full picture. Often, their experiences are shaped by how they show up in the world. And if that’s true, it means we can take small, intentional steps to influence our own circumstances.
None of this guarantees instant lottery wins or an accident-free life. Bad things will still happen. People will die, jobs will be lost, and houses will burn down. But even in these moments, those who have cultivated presence, generosity, kindness, and openness will find more ways to grow and benefit from their experiences.
And maybe that is the real definition of luck: the ability to recognize gains, even in the face of loss.
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