In this week's New Age Notebook, I am going to address a subject that often comes up in the chat rooms: LUCK. Why is it that some people seem to be born with horseshoes up the wazoo while others battle an endless string of disasters and setbacks?Is there such thing as being born under a lucky star? Is it karma or a curse? While some are eternal victims of Murphy's Law: "if something can go wrong, it will.", others seem to be able to get away with murder and suffer no consequences at all.
Luckily, I came across a very interesting article in the London Telegraph about this subject by Richard Wiseman, a researcher who has been studying extremely lucky and very unlucky people for the past ten years. His goal was to find out if it was possible for anybody to become "luckier."
Wiseman asked hundreds of people who felt they were either "very lucky" or "very unlucky" to fill out diaries and take part in questionnaires. I. Q. tests and experiments. The findings have revealed that although unlucky people have almost no insight into the causes of their good and bad luck, their thoughts and behaviour are responsible for much of their malfortune.
First he refers to what is called the "chance opportunity" or "lucky break." We all know that lucky people consistently encounter them, while unlucky people do not. Wiseman performed a test in which he asked both fortunate and unfortunate people to search through a newspaper and find out how many photographs were inside.
On average, the unlucky people took about two minutes to count the photographs while the lucky people took just seconds. Why? Because the second page of the newspaper contained the message: "Stop counting. There are 43 photographs in this newspaper!" This message took up half the page and was written in type that was more than five centimetres high. It was staring everyone in the face, but the unlucky people tended to miss it and the lucky tended to spot it. For fun, Wiseman apparently placed a second large message halfway through the newspaper: "Stop counting. Tell the experimenter you have seen this and win $700?." Again, the unlucky people missed the opportunity because they were still stuck in the past -- too busy looking for the original 43 photographs.
So it seems that being too obsessed or attached to pursuing one goal, tends to make you somehow blind to opportunity and somehow unlucky. Personality tests also revealed that unlucky people are generally much more tense than lucky people, and research has shown that anxiety disrupts people's ability to notice the unexpected. The harder they looked, the less they saw. Unlucky people miss chance opportunities because they are too focused on looking for something else.
Wiseman opened a "luck school, conducted all kinds of experiments and in the end concluded that lucky people generate good fortune by using the following three techniques:
? USE YOUR INTUITION! Unlucky people often fail to follow their intuition when making a choice, whereas lucky people tend to respect hunches. Lucky people are interested in how they both think and feel about the various options, rather than simply looking at the rational side of the situation. Gut feelings act as an alarm bell - to consider a decision carefully.
? VARIETY IS THE SPICE OF LIFE! Unlucky people tend to be creatures of routine. By contrast, lucky people try to introduce variety into their lives. Doing the same thing every day, or thinking about the same thing every day creates a rut that prevents you from encountering opportunity.
? ALWAYS LOOK ON THE BRIGHT SIDE! Lucky people tend to see the positive side of ill fortune. If they get a bad break, they cheer themselves up by saying "it could have been worse." When one of Wiseman's extremely lucky subjects broke his leg, he cheerfully explained that it could have been worse - he could have broken his neck.
So, in a nutshell, how do you change your luck? Think outside the box, think positive, don't dwell on the past and if you fall off your horse, get right back on it. According to Wiseman, good or ill fortune is not karma, its not a curse and its definitely not magic. It is self-created.
Samantha Steven's articles have been published in many high-standing newspapers and she has published several books. If you wish to buy Samantha's books about metaphysics click here http://www.insomniacpress.com/author.php?id=110 You can meet Samantha Stevens at http://www.insomniacpress.com/author.php?id=110 where she works as a professional psychic. You can also read more of her articles at http://www.insomniacpress.com/author.php?id=110
Oswego taxi to Midway ..People who are on the same journey tend to band... Read More
Work addiction is an unrestrained, unfulfillable internal demand for constant... Read More
Every one of us lives with a ceiling, a belief... Read More
Energy and persistence conquer all things. - Benjamin FranklinThough Ben... Read More
Unless you have been living in a cave, you have... Read More
Why do diets end up in gained weight? Why do... Read More
Why do some people end up with boring jobs living... Read More
In the film 'The Rock', Sean Connery takes a dim... Read More
Every man who accomplishes things sees first in his mind... Read More
"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our... Read More
If you help yourself, God and humans will help you... Read More
1)Failure is normal.Everyone has faced failure. Some people talk about... Read More
You're considering a new career, new place to live or... Read More
If you've been walking this earth for any length of... Read More
If you want to be rich and famous, you have... Read More
Success, in the dictionary, is defined as, "The achievement of... Read More
I thought this was unbelievable, but it's true.On average, security... Read More
Life is not a competition.Not at all. Life itself is... Read More
Does the thought of failure send a cold shiver down... Read More
An odd but frequent barrier to prosperity is the belief... Read More
Everyone wants to be successful. Everyone wants to have more,... Read More
Many UK citizens want to settle or retire in Spain... Read More
Do you feel like your stuck?No matter what you do,... Read More
The ultimate expression of life is not a paycheck. The... Read More
I once heard a speaker use the statement, "I have... Read More
shuttle from Midway Morris ..Thoughts move faster than the speed of light.Expectations jump faster... Read More
The best way to predict your future is to create... Read More
Success is a word that is much used in our... Read More
According to Bill Gates there are 3 keys to success... Read More
People say: "One can't help one's thoughts." But one can.... Read More
I prefer to call the challenges, obstacles, side-tracks, and barriers... Read More
Being organised is a major step to success and the... Read More
I receive several emails every week asking me about how... Read More
Do you think you have an "average" or perhaps an... Read More
Man is the most advanced being on this earth. We... Read More
The other day I went shopping at the local consumer... Read More
"When I think back on all the crap I learned... Read More
The greatest deterrent to success in life is fear. It... Read More
I am constantly approached by people when I am speaking... Read More
You have complete control over your thoughts. Thought patterns develop... Read More
These days success is a hotly debated subject. Nevertheless, people... Read More
Unexpected life changes. Anticipated transitions. Long, sleepless nights. What do... Read More
Of course by now we are all becoming aware of... Read More
We all want success. You do. So do I. Some... Read More
Let me tell you story about a friend of mine... Read More
What does "Lessons from My Garden" have to do with... Read More
There are two things that will determine your success or... Read More
We must never allow a day to pass without finding... Read More
People often ask me, "Josh, if you had one bit... Read More
Have you ever wondered why you're not where you want... Read More
Success |