The Harder You Work, the Luckier You Get

If you study well-known entrepreneurs, you might assume that they succeed at everything they do, with few to no stumbling blocks. This is because people will generally champion their successes and kick their failures under the rug. As a result, it might seem as though successful businesses got that way because the stars aligned and Lady Luck paid a visit.

As a serial entrepreneur myself, I'm convinced that successful entrepreneurs are simply adept at capitalizing on failures, willing to try again and skilled at generating their own luck through a consistent approach to hard work. To be brutally honest, I've been failing forward for most of my career. Failing forward means to try, to fail but make progress and to try again, drawing from knowledge gained from the previous failure. There is no secret that will suddenly unlock the mysteries of entrepreneurship and make you a magnate overnight. You should expect to fail. However, when you fail forward toward your goals, you'll reach them eventually.

Step 1: Take advantage of lucky breaks generated by hard work

Have you ever seen a giddy lottery winner on the news and thought to yourself, "Why can't I ever be that lucky?" In fact, all of us have benefited from lucky breaks at various times in our lives. Take a moment to reflect on the times in your life when you've been lucky. Perhaps a kind stranger returned your lost wallet without asking for a reward or you snagged a store's last must-have holiday toy for your child. Every human life is built on a series of lucky breaks. Whether it's your health, family, wealth or any other privileges you enjoy, you likely have it better than millions of others. Appreciating your luck will help you learn to take advantage of the lucky breaks that lie ahead for you.

Lucky breaks in business can range from meeting the right connection at the right time to snagging a low-cost advertising deal. I know a thing or two about luck. By pure chance, I stumbled into a meeting with someone who owned the URL that my company needed. After discussing the vision for the company, that particular individual was so enamored with the idea of Lottery.com that he gave us the URL and even invested in the company. Talk about luck!

You too can make your business venture successful by taking advantage of the lucky breaks generated through hard work. First, you need to believe in your own vision for your company. Next, you need to clearly communicate that vision to others. This seems simplistic, but eventually, you'll find someone who also believes wholeheartedly in your vision and wants to help you succeed. However, you need to be willing to risk failure.

Step 2: Persevere by continuing to move through failures

Failing forward requires perseverance. Most successful entrepreneurs don't reach the pinnacle on their first try. Rather, they were able to ride out the rough patches, sustained by their belief in their vision and their faith in their own abilities. Believe that the tide will turn, and it usually will at some point. You simply need the perseverance to continue working toward your dream without giving up on it, no matter how big the obstacles seem. Perseverance is the bait you'll use to lure in Lady Luck, and it will help you weather the storms.

These storms might include market fluctuations, employee turnover and delayed or canceled contracts. It's essential to accept that certain things are beyond your control. You can control how hard you work and what you work on, as well as your attitude and the example you set for your team. When a problem is something you can control, take a step back to assess the situation logically. When control is out of reach, strive for optimism. Optimism is an incredibly powerful tool for the human psyche. It can find silver linings in disasters, opportunities in miscues and a sense of calm in the storm. Forward failure is still progress, and it provides invaluable learning opportunities.

Find yourself reaching a breaking point? There's nothing wrong with letting issues percolate for a while. Find a way to take your mind off things for a while. Change your routine or talk to someone new in search of inspiration. The next day, that impossible task might not seem quite as daunting.

Step 3: Build the right team and get comfortable with delegating

Entrepreneurs come from all walks of life, but they tend to share a few things in common. For example, they all have a vision and a desire to create something amazing. Many of them wouldn't be happy working for someone else. And by and large, entrepreneurs like to do everything themselves. Yet, in order to realize your vision, you will need to accept the need to delegate responsibilities.

Remember that consistent hard work breeds stability and credibility for your brand. In turn, this will help you attract highly competent people for your team who possess the necessary business savvy, expertise or connections that will enable your brand to flourish. Additionally, your trusted team members shouldn't hesitate to tell you when you need to delegate more and when you're making any sort of misstep.