Luck or Dedication
Being of Irish descent provides a feeling that luck is my constant companion. And I recognize, as do my family and friends, I am a fortunate person. Luck has provided me with unexpected opportunities and circumstances that have been valuable factors in my success.
Dedication, on the other hand, has been a much more critical factor in that success. Thinking back on competing in and completing a marathon is a good example. It was pure luck that I knew a runner who was also a volunteer trainer with the Leukemia Lymphoma Society and who invited me to join that marathon team. It was even luckier that I recruited a dear friend to train with me on weekdays. However, as I reached the finish line, what flooded my mind was the six months of dedication to weekday runs, yoga, carbing up and going to bed early on Friday nights, then waking up at ungodly hours on Saturday mornings to run long distances. It was pushing through the recovery of a major surgery amid all the training and not using that as an excuse to quit.
Consistently working towards your goals, putting in the required time and effort and persevering even when faced with challenges and setbacks – that requires dedication. For me, as an American-Irish-Cuban woman, I’ll take all the luck I can get. And then I’ll roll up my sleeves and dedicate myself and my team to the success of our clients.Seizing an opportunity, whether it arrived through the “Luck of the Irish”, or otherwise, then dedicating the time, effort and expertise to achieve success is what sets the winners in business apart from the also-rans. Forethought is a dedicated partner.