Have you ever listened to the NPR podcast “How I Built This?”
The host, Guy Raz, ends each interview by asking the entrepreneur, “How much of your success do you attribute to your skill, your intelligence, your hard work? And how much of it do you attribute to luck?"
It turns out luck is always in the equation.
Every. Time.
And these aren’t just any entrepreneurs.
They’re the mavericks behind the world's best-known companies like Dropbox, Airbnb, and Canva—individuals who have achieved the type of success you want.
I point that out because we often think of ourselves as the master of our own destinies. We make our own luck, no one else.
But sometimes, luck—specifically, being in the right place at the right time—can be the game changer!
And if these successful entrepreneurs aren't afraid to admit the role luck and timing played in their success...neither should you!
Consider this example for a second:
Before Tobias Lütke launched the e-commerce platform Shopify in 2006, he was an avid snowboarder who wanted to launch his online snowboard shop.
But not liking the e-commerce options online, Tobias decided to write his e-commerce software for his snowboard shop.
Fellow online merchants were so impressed by the software they asked to license it from Tobias. And with that, Shopify was born.
"This is not the kind of company that could have been started two years later," Tobias told NPR.
Launched when people were just getting familiar with e-commerce, the timing couldn’t have been better for this small, unknown Canadian company.
Tobias compared the timing of Shopify's launch to "winning the lottery five times in a row".
According to Forbes, Tobias now has a net worth of $10.6 billion. I don’t know about you, but luck doesn't sound like a bad thing to have on your side.
Success = Timing + Hustle
Timing, however, doesn't discount the blood, sweat, and tears you put into building your dream. In the case of Shopify, Tobias was the one who saw the need and also created the solution.
You’ve still got to hustle and do your part to create the lifestyle you’ve dreamt about.
That’s all part of the journey.
But if you have all the small pieces together and you’re in the right place and at the right time? Well, you might have the next story we hear on “How I Built This.”
To Your Success, Paul Hanson
P.S. Stay tuned for something that can fit into this success equation = Timing + Hustle!
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