EP144: Your Results - Is It Luck or Is It You?
WHO GETS THE CREDIT FOR RESULTS?
You or luck?
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(The notes below are only a brief bullet point summary of what is discussed in the podcast. Be sure to listen to get all of the goodness! If you would like a full transcription of the episode, please send an email request to: angie@angie-robinson.com. We’d be happy to provide that!)
Recently, someone said to me, “You’re so lucky,” and it made me pause. Luck? Is that really what’s happening here, or have I created the results in my life through intention, effort, and action?
It’s easy to see someone’s success and chalk it up to luck—whether it's getting a promotion, winning an award, or being chosen for an opportunity. But is it really luck? And when someone congratulates you, do you respond with, “Oh, it was just luck”? If so, let’s dig deeper into what’s really at play.
The Reality of Luck
The dictionary defines luck as "success or failure apparently brought by chance rather than through one's own actions." I’m not saying that luck doesn’t exist. Sometimes life presents us with circumstances beyond our control—think of natural disasters or even winning a scratch-off ticket. In these instances, it can feel like pure chance. But most of the time, especially when it comes to success in our careers or personal lives, I believe that we play a much bigger role than luck alone.
Jim Henson, the beloved creator of the Muppets, once said, "I believe that we form our own lives, that we create our own reality, and that everything works out for the best." This resonates with me because it speaks to the idea that while chance may play a role, our mindset, behaviors, and actions are what truly shape our outcomes.
Giving Luck Too Much Credit
When we say others are "lucky," we often dismiss the hard work, determination, and mindset that went into their success. By doing so, we rob ourselves of the opportunity to learn from their journey. Instead of being curious and compassionate, we might even feed into feelings of envy or comparison.
On the flip side, when we attribute our own success to luck, we downplay our achievements. Dismissing the effort and energy we’ve invested in our goals diminishes the very real work we’ve done.
This also works in reverse. When things go wrong, it’s easy to blame "bad luck." But by doing so, we miss the chance to take responsibility and learn from the experience.
Luck and the Law of Attraction
I recently came across an interesting take on luck: an acronym for “Living Under Cosmic Knowledge.” This concept, tied to the Law of Attraction, suggests that we align ourselves with universal energy through our thoughts and beliefs. In this sense, luck isn’t something random; it’s the universe responding to the vibration we put out.
If you’ve followed me for a while, you know I’m a big believer in the power of mindset. Our thoughts create our results. This idea of “living under cosmic knowledge” fits right into that belief. It’s not about waiting for luck to strike but about intentionally shaping our reality through our mindset and actions.
Your Thoughts Create Your Results
Let’s look at how this works in practice, using the framework I often refer to: the CTFAR model (Circumstance, Thought, Feeling, Action, Result).
Imagine this: You’ve been chosen to attend a prestigious leadership conference, and out of 50 people, only two were selected. That’s the fact—the circumstance. Now, if your thought is, “I just got lucky,” you might feel undeserving or neutral. As a result, you won’t fully embrace the opportunity, you won’t celebrate your achievements, and you might not even push yourself to grow from the experience.
Now, let’s flip that thought to something like, “My hard work and dedication are paying off.” This creates feelings of excitement, pride, and worthiness. You’re likely to fully engage in the conference, share your learnings with others, and continue to build on your success. The result? You create more evidence that your hard work is, in fact, paying off.
The difference is clear. When we label success as luck, we downplay our role in creating it. When we own our efforts, we reinforce the belief that we have the power to shape our outcomes.
Take Ownership of Your Results
By attributing outcomes to luck—whether good or bad—we lose sight of our own ability to create, adapt, and respond. If we think someone else is just lucky, we might believe that success isn’t possible for us. And if we think we’re just lucky, we might never fully acknowledge our own capabilities and growth.
So the next time someone says, “You’re so lucky,” or you find yourself thinking, “That was just luck,” take a moment. Reflect on the work, mindset, and actions that have contributed to your results. You’ve done more than you realize. Own it.
Your results aren’t a product of luck—they’re a product of you. By recognizing and celebrating this, you’ll continue to grow, succeed, and create the outcomes you desire. Luck might play a small part, but the real driver behind your success is your ongoing effort and belief in yourself.
Let’s stop giving luck so much credit and start giving it to ourselves and to others where it’s truly deserved.
What Do You Think?
Think about your own current results. Are you giving yourself the credit for your own actions and outcomes?
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