Mar 17: 🍀 Consider Yourself Lucky
Even if you don't believe you are.
Mar 17: St. Patrick’s Day
Every living thing is, from the cosmic perspective,
incredibly lucky simply to be alive.
—Daniel C. Dennett
In a land of infinite possibilities, a miracle occurred. A gift so unlikely, so impossible, that it defied all odds.
That miracle was you.
Imagine the incredible series of events that had to happen for you to be here, reading these words—the odds of your parents meeting and then having a baby. But that's just the beginning.
Think about your ancestors, all the way back to the dawn of humanity. Generation after generation survived wars, famines, diseases, and natural disasters.
And then there's the biology aspect—the chance of sperm meeting egg and creating the unique combination of genes that make you who you are.
You don't have to make yourself breathe, worry about blood pumping through your heart, or consciously digest food.
You weren't born during the Black Plague or the Ice Age.
You weren't born into slavery as Harriet Tubman was, forced to endure unspeakable hardships and fight for freedom.
You can access knowledge, technology, and opportunities your ancestors could only dream of.
Considering all these factors, it's clear that being born is nothing short of a miracle. You are here against all odds with a purpose and destiny only you can fulfill.
You’re as Lucky as Your Thoughts
But we don't feel lucky. We complain, belly-ache, feel sorry for ourselves because the coffee got cold, and the cat threw up.
A complaining mind is a chaotic mind full of thorns and thistles. Every perceived irritation, from the air's temperature to the time waiting on customer service, deflates your lucky chances like a hot needle to a balloon.
We are a society of complainers, evidenced by the prevalence of social media, which makes it easy to express our grievances. Complaining doesn't bring solutions or peace; it just creates and reinforces victimized feelings.
Lucky people find no reason to complain. What good are they? Yes, your skin is cold in the winter wind, your stomach growls from hunger, and your back aches.
Things appear as they are. Rather than succumbing to a habit of complaining, the lucky ones replace complaints with gratitude and appreciation for what is.
How can you cultivate a luckier mindset? It's time to enroll in Luck School.
Let’s Go to Luck School
Richard Wiseman, a psychology professor at the University of Hertfordshire in England, spent ten years studying lucky people.
His conclusion? We create our own good and bad fortune.
Yes, it's you—all you. There's no one else to blame. Either you have a lucky mindset, or you don't.
The good news is that you can turn your luck into gold by following the rainbow with these four principles Wiseman uncovered that lucky people live by:
1. Open to opportunities. Lucky people are always open to new experiences and opportunities, which they see as potential luck sources. They also trust their instincts and take advantage of unexpected events.
2. Listen to intuition. Lucky people listen to their gut feelings, believing they hold valuable information about their world. They pay attention to hunches, coincidences, and even dreams that may provide essential insights.
3. Expect good things to happen. Lucky people have a positive outlook on life and believe that good things will happen to them. This doesn't mean they ignore negative situations; instead, they look for the silver lining and try to learn from challenges.
4. Turn bad luck into good. Instead of dwelling on misfortunes, lucky people find ways to turn them into positive experiences. They may find the lesson in a difficult situation or use it as motivation to change something they have control over.
🍀 Here are three more lucky attributes I added.🍀
5. Practice gratitude. Lucky people appreciate and express gratitude for what they have. They recognize the blessings in their life and are thankful for them, which helps attract more positivity and luck.
6. Surround themselves with positive people. Luck can be contagious, so it's essential to surround yourself with positive and optimistic individuals. These people can lift your spirits and help you see the good in any situation.
7. Don't complain. Complaints attract negativity and can hinder your luck. Instead, keep things to yourself. If you need to vent, write in a journal or go for a walk. Remember, words have power, so choose them wisely. Watch the 7-minute How My Son Ruined My Life video about how complaining and luck are related (see more below).
Your Purpose, Your Destiny
You are here against all odds with a purpose and destiny only you can fulfill.
Your function, the reason you are here, is to be a conduit of love. In the new universal moment, within this very second, only extend love—and then the next second, and the next, and the next, to infinity.
Your purpose is to make other people feel lucky: lucky that they know you, lucky you are there to help them, lucky you are someone they can count on.
This Week’s Inspiration: Watch How My Son Ruined My Life
How My Son Ruined My Life is a seven-minute video of James Baraz’s (author and mindfulness meditation teacher) 91-year-old mother sharing how seven simple words transformed her life when she was 89.
The day she passed, several years after this video, she said, "I feel so lucky. Lucky to have you all here, lucky to have had the life I've had."
Watch the video to learn these seven little words to bring good luck into your life.
Comments
Tell me in the comments. What do you do to be the luckiest person on the planet?
More Reading
📚 Want to read more about how to cultivate luck? Here’s an article you may enjoy.
Sending Love
This publication is free, but I appreciate your support by clicking the 🩷 button to wish The Spiritual Almanac good luck! 🌈
Go and wake up your luck. —Persian saying
Loved this article and the video talk, thank you. I intend to be lucky enough to get to 91 at least and be that smart and funny. 😂
Happy St Patrick's Day!