Maggie's Farm

We are a commune of inquiring, skeptical, politically centrist, capitalist, anglophile, traditionalist New England Yankee humans, humanoids, and animals with many interests beyond and above politics. Each of us has had a high-school education (or GED), but all had ADD so didn't pay attention very well, especially the dogs. Each one of us does "try my best to be just like I am," and none of us enjoys working for others, including for Maggie, from whom we receive neither a nickel nor a dime. Freedom from nags, cranks, government, do-gooders, control-freaks and idiots is all that we ask for.

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Thursday, April 14. 2016

Thanking lucky stars


Why Luck Matters More Than You Might Think


No, I don't think so. I think people fully accept the partial roles that good and bad luck play in their lives. Still, the old cliches apply: "Make your own luck,"  "Turn lemons into lemonade,"  "Make the most of the cards you're dealt."


I like to view life as a passing conveyor belt loaded with good and bad choices, good opportunities and terrible ideas, nasty surprises and pleasant surprises. But if I come down with cancer, it's bad luck.

Posted by Dr. Joy Bliss in Psychology, and Dr. Bliss at 14:11 | Comments (3) | Trackbacks (0)

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I used to have a little poster that said, "No amount of planning will ever replace dumb luck."
#1 feeblemind on 2016-04-14 15:13 (Reply)
Chance favors the prepared mind.

I believe that Napoleon rewarded his lieutenants who were "lucky". His logic was that luck seems to favor the same people time after time and that there was something more there than could be identified. Sometimes people who are "lucky" are in fact doing all the right things.

In a way it is a lot like "white privilege" in that with a lot of planning and a lot of work you can do well and make it look easy. Others will attribute this to luck or privilege.
#2 GoneWithTheWind on 2016-04-14 16:16 (Reply)
Luck is preparation meeting opportunity.

On the other hand, I consider myself to be where I am, for the most part, as a result of pure, dumb luck. Great wife, good job, healthy kids; I never planned for any of it. Maybe God has a plan. The down side to that idea is that if God has a purpose for everyone, have you ever considered that you've already served it?
#3 Jack Walter on 2016-04-15 00:49 (Reply)

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