4 ms·

Talking to people is of course important, but it's also about being in the right place at the right time. You can't just "create your own luck."

orangethirty 14y ago
That is where the being away from the keyboard part comes into action. You have to actually meet with people to be able to talk them into giving you opportunities.
- w1ntermute 14y ago
  I don't mean physically being in the right place at the right time. I mean that you happen to be interested in and start a company at the right point in history, where a confluence of technological and societal factors enable you to be that one-in-a-billion person like Jobs or the Zuck. Just running around talking to people isn't going to make you Jobs or the Zuck. It's necessary, but definitely not sufficient. Of course, that's not to say that you can't be a moderately successful entrepreneur if you "hustle" enough. Just don't expect to have books written and movies made about you. I know plenty of people who have started ventures in important niches and have found moderate success. There's absolutely nothing to be ashamed of if you exit for $10 or 20 million after a couple of years of hard work. But, going in, you have to be aware of the fact that you're almost definitely not going to end up a multi-billionaire.
mindcrime 14y ago
Depends on how you define "luck" I guess. In a strictly pedantic sense, I agree that you "can't create luck" as there is no such thing. Luck is just a word we apply, in retrospect, to describe what did or didn't happen. But I would argue very ardently that the expression "the harder I work, the luckier I get" contains a great deal of truth. Work, intent, and focused will can do a lot to shape the world we live in. I'm reminded of that post that showed up here a year or so back about "how to date a supermodel", which started with something like "move to where supermodels live and go the bars where they go". Yeah, that might not be sufficient, but there's a lot to be said for the "create my own luck" aspect of at least taking the actions that are needed to move you towards your goals.
- w1ntermute 14y ago
  You should obviously do whatever you can to improve your chances of success. I'm just saying that you shouldn't expect to be the next Facebook or Apple, because that's unrealistic. There's nothing wrong with expecting moderate success. > I'm reminded of that post that showed up here a year or so back about "how to date a supermodel", which started with something like "move to where supermodels live and go the bars where they go". Yeah, that might not be sufficient, but there's a lot to be said for the "create my own luck" aspect of at least taking the actions that are needed to move you towards your goals. To follow up on your supermodel analogy, if you were to do that, it would be reasonable to expect that you'll eventually score a date with a supermodel - just don't expect to score a date with $a_top_10_supermodel (whoever that might be).
  - mindcrime 14y ago
    Agreed.
  - orangethirty 14y ago
    Yeah, being an average success is great too! I'm average at best, and I have an awesome lifestyle. I dont care about the billions. I just cre about providing a good life for my family.

orangethirty 14y ago

That is where the being away from the keyboard part comes into action. You have to actually meet with people to be able to talk them into giving you opportunities.

w1ntermute 14y ago
I don't mean physically being in the right place at the right time. I mean that you happen to be interested in and start a company at the right point in history, where a confluence of technological and societal factors enable you to be that one-in-a-billion person like Jobs or the Zuck. Just running around talking to people isn't going to make you Jobs or the Zuck. It's necessary, but definitely not sufficient. Of course, that's not to say that you can't be a moderately successful entrepreneur if you "hustle" enough. Just don't expect to have books written and movies made about you. I know plenty of people who have started ventures in important niches and have found moderate success. There's absolutely nothing to be ashamed of if you exit for $10 or 20 million after a couple of years of hard work. But, going in, you have to be aware of the fact that you're almost definitely not going to end up a multi-billionaire.

mindcrime 14y ago

Depends on how you define "luck" I guess. In a strictly pedantic sense, I agree that you "can't create luck" as there is no such thing. Luck is just a word we apply, in retrospect, to describe what did or didn't happen. But I would argue very ardently that the expression "the harder I work, the luckier I get" contains a great deal of truth. Work, intent, and focused will can do a lot to shape the world we live in. I'm reminded of that post that showed up here a year or so back about "how to date a supermodel", which started with something like "move to where supermodels live and go the bars where they go". Yeah, that might not be sufficient, but there's a lot to be said for the "create my own luck" aspect of at least taking the actions that are needed to move you towards your goals.

w1ntermute 14y ago
You should obviously do whatever you can to improve your chances of success. I'm just saying that you shouldn't expect to be the next Facebook or Apple, because that's unrealistic. There's nothing wrong with expecting moderate success. > I'm reminded of that post that showed up here a year or so back about "how to date a supermodel", which started with something like "move to where supermodels live and go the bars where they go". Yeah, that might not be sufficient, but there's a lot to be said for the "create my own luck" aspect of at least taking the actions that are needed to move you towards your goals. To follow up on your supermodel analogy, if you were to do that, it would be reasonable to expect that you'll eventually score a date with a supermodel - just don't expect to score a date with $a_top_10_supermodel (whoever that might be).
- mindcrime 14y ago
  Agreed.
- orangethirty 14y ago
  Yeah, being an average success is great too! I'm average at best, and I have an awesome lifestyle. I dont care about the billions. I just cre about providing a good life for my family.