May You Never Be Lucky

Everyone has their quirks, right? Everyone who knows me well knows I suffer serious aversion to certain things. Like chalk. Unglazed terra cotta pots. A certain coated paper stock that feels like suede (I cannot touch it!) And a certain short word used to describe a perfect, decadent cake, starting with the word m and ending with t. Ick! That word should be struck from the English language. I know I’m not the only one who hates this word. I’ve seen it come up as detested by many on Facebook and the internet. Apparently, it’s a thing. There’s another word I hate almost as much, though. Lucky. It’s used a lot. Lucky strike. Lucky rabbit’s foot. Lucky duck. I think it’s one of the most demeaning words around, really. Even if you win the lottery, you still had to pay for a ticket. You still had to make a little effort to win the big bucks. But when it comes down to it, if you’re successful, you’re not lucky. You may be smart. You may have some talents – connecting with people, honing your selling skills, forging relationships, learning new skills, investing your money wisely. When I am successful at something, it really comes down to doing the hard work in order to reap the rewards. I didn’t win the triathlon, or get that promotion, or even grow great flowers in my garden this summer by just thinking about it. I put in the time, I rolled up my sleeves, I nurtured them. Luck had absolutely nothing to do with it. When things go awry, the same holds true. I didn’t put in the time, I neglected a detail that I shouldn’t have, I didn’t care enough. If you’re a retail jeweler in a family business, maybe when you were younger and business was thriving and people were spending money on jewelry, you felt pretty good about your future. Can you say the same now? Maybe yes. Maybe no. I’m not writing this to tell you you’re crazy to be optimistic. I think you can still nod your head. I think you can still say yes. IF you are smart. If you forge those relationships. If you are open to learning new skills. If you invest wisely in your business. If you put in the time, roll up your sleeves, nurture it. Luck really has absolutely nothing to do with it. Jewelers, may your cake always be decadent, never m***t. And may you never, ever call yourselves lucky.