Most entrepreneurs successful or otherwise will repeatedly tell you that “Luck is just preparedness meeting opportunity”. Is that really true or would guys like me who risk everything for what we believe in like it to be so?

For the same reason millions of rational air travelers decided to drive right after 9/11 here in the U.S., the belief in control in the midst of chaos is a natural human reaction as nicely illustrated in this recent Time article. Even though statistically, we are much safer flying than driving, driving represents the “feeling” of being in control despite the numerous variables to the contrary.

It’s the same with luck. In today’s interconnected world of increasing variables, the illusion of control is more essential than ever. Hard work is obviously a given, but how much that work actually reduces the risk variables is highly questionable.

Faith has always been the path of least resistance, and maybe the belief (in ourselves in this case) is instrumental in making us less anxious so that we can make better decisions. As I’d written in Don't Do. Be. sometime back, how we “feel” about our ability to control our destiny may just impact the “luck” in our favor. This captures it well:

"A wise man will make more opportunities than he finds."
-Sir Francis Bacon