ART AND SCIENCE

Fortune Favors the Prepared: 4 Ways to Make Your Future a Little "Luckier"

We’ve all had those times when we’ve felt either incredibly “lucky” or seriously “down on our luck.” But what is truly behind the successful side of “luck” and how can we all maximize our own?

Expert researchers, professors, and doctors in the study of “luck” tend to agree that, in a nutshell, good luck comes from four key factors:

1. SERENDIPITY, AKA MAXIMIZING CHANCE OPPORTUNITIES

Christian Busch, author of The Serendipity Mindset: The Art and Science of Creating Good Luck, wrote an article for the Harvard Business Review about how to create your own career luck. He also believes we have more of a hand in our ability to create luck than we might think.

We typically think of luck as a random event that just happens to us and that we have no control over, but there’s another type of luck that the most inspiring and successful people studied share –serendipity. This means being mentally prepared to embrace the unexpected moments in life to create your own luck.

“You have to see something in that moment, and do something with it,” Busch says. And you can learn this behavior by staying attentive to opportunities and being prepared for anything that may come your way.

This year for St. Patrick’s day we have a Lepra-GNOME! He’s come all the way from Ireland, the place he calls his HOME. He’s always up to mischief and so he needs to HIDE. See if you can find this rascal on the pages INSIDE. When you find this wily GUY email Tiffany Oldham to REPLY. If Irish luck does not WITHHOLD, you could win the POT-O-GOLD.

3. ATTITUDE IS EVERYTHING: EXPECT TO BE LUCKY, AND KEEP A POSITIVE OUTLOOK

Steven D. Hales, a professor and chair of philosophy at Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania and the author of The Myth of Luck: Philosophy, Fate, and Fortune, conducted a study to determine whether there is a relationship between having an optimistic disposition and the attribution of good or bad luck to ambiguous luck scenarios.

Hales concludes that both lucky and unlucky things happen to us all, the difference is just a matter of how we see things. We make our own luck with a perspective on our experience that we interpret as lucky.

Lucky people are certain that the future is going to be full of good fortune. These expectations become self-fulfilling prophecies by helping lucky people persist in the face of failure, and shape their interactions with others in a positive way.

4. TURN IT AROUND: MAKING BAD LUCK ...BETTER

Wiseman states that lucky people employ various psychological techniques to cope with, and often even thrive upon, the ill fortune that comes their way.

For example, they immediately understand how things could have been worse, do not dwell on the ill fortune, and take control of the situation.

Overall, the consensus is that shifting your concept of luck to something more empowering can only make you luckier.

“We shouldn’t think of luck as a one-time phenomenon,” Kaplan says. “You want to make a lucky life — you don’t want to just make a lucky moment.” 

Sources: “The Art and Science of Being Lucky” | “Luck”, Dr. Richard Wiseman | How to Create Your Own Career Luck

March is Ladder Safety Awareness Month: Tips to Stay Safe this Year

300,000+ Injuries occurring from ladder accidents in the U.S. each year (Bureau of Labor Statistics)

100 Number of accidents that result in death Missing the Last Rung While Descending Most common ladder injury

 P1 has received more ladder injuries and near misses recently, caused by the very issues highlighted above.

The American Ladder Institute (ALI), the only approved developer of safety standards for the U.S. ladder industry, is sponsoring Ladder Safety Month for its 7th year, with the objective of spotlighting safe ladder use at work and at home.

Here are some important tips that can help turn those injury statistics around:

 SELECTION: Decide on the best ladder for the task before starting. Be sure it can reach the desired elevation.

 INSPECTION: Inspection of a ladder should be completed prior to EACH use. Inspect the rungs, rails, feet, labels, and the locking device. Look for cracks, bends, loose rungs, bad gripping, and missing labels. If defects are found, do not use the ladder.

 SET-UP: Make sure the ladder is secure before climbing. Extension ladders need a pitch with a 4:1 ratio. Secure the ladder at the top and bottom if possible to prevent movement. The top of the ladder must extend a minimum of three feet above the landing surface. Step ladders should be set up on level ground and in the locked position.

 PROPER USE: Proper-use requirements include: keeping your belt buckle between the rails; using three points of contact and face the ladder when ascending & descending; and NEVER stand on the top or second to top rung of a step ladder. Always follow the manufacturer's guidelines when using a ladder.

 CARRYING LADDERS: Prevent strains and sprains by using proper lifting techniques, not twisting at the waist, and get help when needed if the ladder is too large.

Don’t let the first step on a ladder be your last. Take part in ladder safety awareness!