When people talk about success and luck, they often present them as opposites. Some insist that successful people simply worked harder than everyone else. Others argue that success is mostly the result of being in the right place at the right time.
I believe both perspectives miss an important truth.
Success is rarely the result of either hard work or luck alone. More often, it is the combination of preparation, persistence, and fortunate circumstances that eventually produces extraordinary outcomes.
After reflecting on my own life, I have come to appreciate that luck has played a role in my success. But luck alone would never have been enough.
Success and Luck Are Partners, Not Opponents
We like stories where a single cause explains everything.
“He became wealthy because he worked hard.”
“She became successful because she got lucky.”
Reality is much more complicated.
Luck determines many things we never get to choose:
- The country where we are born
- Our family
- Our health
- The quality of our education
- The economy we enter as adults
- The people we happen to meet
None of these are earned.
Yet they influence our opportunities in profound ways.
Hard work, however, determines what we do with those opportunities.
Two people can receive the exact same lucky break and achieve completely different results.
The Lottery of Birth
One of the greatest examples of luck is something none of us had any control over: where we were born.
Someone born in Canada, the United States, or Switzerland begins life with opportunities that simply do not exist in many parts of the world.
Compare that with someone born in Afghanistan, Haiti, or a poor rural region in another country.
Does that mean someone born in a wealthy nation is guaranteed success?
Of course not.
Likewise, being born in a developing country does not mean success is impossible.
It simply means that the odds are different.
Life is not an equal playing field.
Recognizing that fact should make us more humble when we succeed and more compassionate toward those facing greater obstacles.
My Own Journey
I was born in Colombia.
Growing up, I did not have the advantages that many people in North America take for granted. Opportunities were limited, and the path toward financial success seemed uncertain.
Eventually, I immigrated to Canada in search of a better future.
Did everything suddenly become easy?
Not at all.
Like many immigrants, I had many low paying jobs. I worked as a janitor, as a bosboy, staking shelves in a sopermarket. I tried many ideas and I failed many times.
I started projects that didn’t work.
I applied for opportunities that never materialized.
The Quebecois discriminated against me because I didn’t speak proper French.
I experienced disappointments that made me question whether I was moving in the right direction.
Fortunately, I never stopped trying.
Each failure taught me something.
Each attempt increased my skills, expanded my network, and prepared me for future opportunities. My opportunity surface expanded.
Eventually, a few lucky breaks arrived.
Looking back, I realize those opportunities only mattered because I was ready to take advantage of them.
If I had quit after my first few failures, those lucky moments would have passed me by.
Probability Is More Powerful Than We Think
One of the most overlooked ideas about success is probability.
Imagine that every meaningful attempt at building a business, changing careers, or launching a project has only a modest chance of succeeding.
If you make only one attempt, your chances remain low.
But what happens if you make ten serious attempts?
Or twenty?
Every new effort increases the probability that eventually something will work.
This doesn’t guarantee success.
It simply means that persistence changes the odds.
Successful people often appear lucky because they gave luck more opportunities to find them.
Hard Work Creates More Opportunities for Luck
There is a quote often attributed to Thomas Jefferson:
“I’m a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work, the more I have of it.”
Whether Jefferson actually said those exact words is less important than the principle behind them.
Hard work cannot guarantee success.
It can, however, dramatically increase the number of opportunities where luck can make a difference.
Consider someone who:
- Starts several businesses.
- Applies for dozens of jobs.
- Publishes articles every week.
- Attends networking events.
- Continuously learns new skills.
Compared with someone who never takes action, who is more likely to encounter a fortunate opportunity?
The answer is obvious.
Beware of Survivorship Bias
Whenever we read biographies of successful entrepreneurs, athletes, or investors, we usually hear from the winners.
We rarely hear about the thousands of people who worked just as hard but never achieved the same level of success.
This is known as survivorship bias.
Recognizing this bias helps us stay grounded.
Hard work is necessary.
Luck matters too.
Admitting this does not diminish anyone’s accomplishments.
Instead, it reminds us to approach success with humility rather than arrogance.
Gratitude and Responsibility
Recognizing the role of luck changes the way we think.
It encourages gratitude instead of entitlement.
It reminds us that many advantages were gifts rather than achievements.
At the same time, recognizing luck should never become an excuse for inaction.
We cannot control where we were born.
We cannot control the economy.
We cannot control unexpected opportunities.
But we can control how much we learn, how often we try, how we respond to failure, and whether we continue moving forward.
The Best Strategy
If there is one lesson I have learned, it is this:
You cannot control luck.
You can control how prepared you are when luck arrives.
The best strategy is surprisingly simple:
- Keep learning.
- Work consistently.
- Accept failure as part of the process.
- Increase the number of opportunities you create.
- Stay in the game long enough for probability to work in your favour.
Eventually, good fortune may knock on your door.
When it does, preparation will determine whether you recognize the opportunity.
Final Thoughts
Success is neither entirely earned nor entirely given.
It is built where effort meets opportunity.
Luck may determine where we begin, but persistence often determines how far we travel.
Looking back on my own journey—from growing up in Colombia to building a financially secure life in Canada—I don’t believe my success was inevitable.
I also don’t believe it was accidental.
It was the result of years of effort, countless failures, continuous learning, and a few fortunate moments that arrived because I never stopped trying.
Perhaps that is the greatest lesson of all.
The goal is not to wait for luck.
The goal is to become the kind of person who is ready when luck finally arrives.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does luck matter more than hard work?
Luck and hard work both matter. Luck influences the opportunities available to us, while hard work determines how prepared we are to take advantage of those opportunities.
Can hard work overcome bad luck?
Not always. Some circumstances are beyond our control. However, consistent effort increases the chances of encountering future opportunities and improves our ability to benefit from them.
Why do some hardworking people never become successful?
Success depends on many factors, including timing, economic conditions, health, relationships, and chance. Hard work is often necessary but not always sufficient.
How can I increase my chances of success?
Focus on continuous learning, building valuable skills, expanding your network, trying new opportunities, and persisting through setbacks. These actions increase the likelihood that luck will eventually work in your favour.
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