So said the wise Jedi Master, Obi Wan Kenobi. Or is there?

I recently came across a neuroscientist / Zen practitioner (what a combo IMO!) Dr James Austin, who published a book in 2003, entitled “Chase, Chance, and Creativity: The Lucky Art of Novelty” which looks at the roles of persistence and chance in the creative process.

What really opened my eyes in his work was the idea that there are 4 types of luck, and only one of them is the luck we normally think of.

Type 1: Luck through Fate (or Blind Luck)
👉 This is what we normally think of – chance, a random occurrence. Completely out of our control, and not as a consequence of any action we have taken.

Type 2: Luck from Motion (or from Hustling)
👉 This is luck that comes through persistence, hard work, and motion. When you are moving, hustling, colliding with things, experimenting, you’re creating energy, you’re mixing things up.

Type 3: Luck from Preparedness and Awareness.
👉 As the French Chemist Louis Pasteur once said, “Chance only favours the prepared mind.” A curious and observant mind, mixed with a background of knowledge will help you spot opportunities and make connections which others may miss.

Type 4: Luck from Your Unique Character and Attributes
👉 Your unique set of characteristics and attributes attract a specific kind of luck and is the result of highly individualised actions.

What I love about this idea is that apart from type 1, you need to be doing stuff, taking action you increase the surface area to create the conditions for luck.