What’s luck got to do with it? Part 1

What you’re about to read may sound incredibly unlikely but, I assure you, this series of events took place just a few weeks ago, in a small patch of open grass just outside of Columbus, Ohio.  Scouts honor.

How luck happened to me.

It was the perfect spring day to spend out with Mother Nature.  Ryan (my husband and business partner) and I parted ways when he dropped me off at a local park.  He continued on down the road to find some quiet space where he could hunker down with his laptop and work on a creative writing project.  I was preparing for an upcoming Super Monday class, and had set a personal goal of finding a four-leaf clover to illustrate one of the day’s lessons.

In the process, an entirely different lesson fell right into my lap.  Even now, I can’t tell you which of these two lessons is more powerful.  My original intent was to ask students if they were truly looking for something new, different or creative in their work (the class topic was “Tapping Into Your Creative Self” and taught by myself and Michelle Black).

Up until two or three years ago, during my entire life I’d never come across a four-leaf clover.  I knew they were rare and didn’t think much of my poor “finding” record…until I discovered Ryan’s innate ability to squint at the grass and, more often than not, pluck out a four-leaf clover within a matter of minutes (once within seconds).  That very same season I found three or four of these treasures all on my own, after an unlucky streak of more than twenty-five years!

Look and you’ll find it.

What changed?  Was it that Lady Luck finally thought to pay me a visit?  Not at all. The only difference was that I finally began looking for a four-leaf clover.  Imagine that!  Look…and you will find. It sounds straightforward enough, but I just didn’t get it.  It wasn’t until I had gained confidence by watching Ryan collect clovers with ease that I opened my eyes and paid attention to what surrounded me.

This is the first lesson.  I’m sure several of you are a lot like me.  In both work and life I often dream of things that could be, awesome & imaginative images I could create and lifestyle changes that would surely lead to peace and bliss.  But when I’m being completely honest with myself, I know there are many times when I let those aspirations fall right back out of my mind, only thinking of them momentarily a few months later when I realize that nothing had become of those grand ideas.  I never sought out how to get those things that I desired.  I may want a four-leaf clover, but I’ve got to remind myself that I’ll never find it if I don’t get out in the grass, let myself get a little dirty and start looking for it.

Stay tuned for Lesson Two…either a crazy coincidence or pure kismet!