Is success in life more a matter of luck than anything else?

[Bagpuss]

Is it luck to have a big willy that women like, or is it hard work?

I think some would argue that it was hard work, Pot Noodle to the ready

[Platypus]

Book recommendation:

The Luck Factor: Change Your Luck and Change Your Life

[tim123]

I subscribe to the "you make your own luck" theory.

Whilst on average people will all get a similar number of good/bad breaks in their life, some will take advantage of them, and some wont. The former are the "lucky" ones.

No-one could possibly be as unlucky as Johnny Herbert - there really must have been something wrong with his driving technique.

tim

[Stan.goodvibes]

Funnily enough there is an article in a NZ paper today from entrepeneurs stating that to be successful you need to a strong sense of self-beleif, perserverence, and a spot of luck.

In our society you *can* make your own luck, but I have read plenty of stories of people just luckily being in the right place at the right time and making money (if thats your definition of success) almost by accident.

I have been 'lucky' several times in my life, but then sometimes that luck was the result of being prepared to try something different or move country for better opportunities, so maybe that was me making my own luck.

[EternalOptimist]

Perhaps as Baggy said, I should have used the word "randomness" rather than "luck". I believe randomness is more pervasive than we think and as a lot of posters have demonstrated on this thread they ascribe personal qualities to what is in the end often an accident of birth.

To sumarise the SasGuru position

'Their is a vast mass of events that are out of our control, but we misguidedly think we are in control (it's human nature). The tiny bit that we DO control is random anyway so whats the point ? just get on and enjoy it, dont fret.'

On AGW

'Their is a vast mass of events that are out of our control, but we misguidedly think we are in control (it's human nature). The tiny bit that we DO control is random anyway but thats the point. Get the hairy shirt and taxes on, dont forget to fret.'