When
it comes to opportunity, everyone knows the saying, “it’s not what you know but
who you know that really matters”. It’s
a sarcastic way of suggesting that life isn’t fair. My response to that is, so what? Get good at knowing people.
We
are social beings and we do not live our lives in a vacuum. Opportunity happens when two or more people
engage each other to get something done. It would make sense then that having a
large network of friends and other acquaintances that care about you is a good
thing, right? People who are serious
about opportunity nurture relationships with others not for the sake of manipulating
people but for a genuine desire to help.
Givers gain. If you know many
people and help them when you can, typically they’ll return your generosity by
offering you opportunity as well.
Tip #1:
Get serious about nurturing positive relationships, networking to meet new
people and giving of yourself rather than receiving.
The
truth about opportunity is that you also need to “know stuff” too. So the saying above is true in both
respects. It’s also important to be able
to bring knowledge or experience to a situation where knowledge or experience
is lacking. So, toward this end, people
who want to find opportunity believe that learning new things is a life-long
endeavor. You don’t necessarily need a
college education, although I’m an advocate of college. Learning can happen in many ways; books,
videos, workshops, discussions with others, industry groups, etc.
Tip #2:
Make a habit of learning something new each week. Never stop!
You’ll be amazed at how just a little new information can set you apart
from others and position you for better opportunity.
Connect
yourself with people who are already successful. Find a mentor who will let you tag along
while they go about their business. A
good mentor will share all that they’ve learned with you, introduce you to
others who can help and then they’ll celebrate your success with you. Help your mentor, if you can, in their
pursuit of their hopes, dreams and goals.
Don’t be surprised if your mentor gives you work to do. This is a good thing. They know that you’ll learn a lot by doing as
well as by observing. When your mentor
finds even greater success, chances are they’ll share a little of that
opportunity with you as well. Climb the
ladder!
Tip
#3 Connect yourself with people you know who have already found some measure of
success. Tell them that you are
interested in pursuing the same type of opportunity that they are
pursuing. Ask them if you can help them
in some way.
Here’s
the glue that holds it altogether – positive attitude. Successful people don’t wait for opportunity
to come to them. They know it doesn’t
work that way. They are proactive,
always on the alert for something that will help them get to a better situation
in life. They are the ones who cheerily
volunteer for jobs that no one else wants.
Their positive energy draws others to them along with possible opportunity. No one can maintain a positive attitude
24/7. Surely we all have bad days every
now and then but successful people seem to bounce back faster than most.
Tip
#4: Continually strive for a positive
attitude of action, not idleness. Others
will find your positive attitude irresistible and believe that you are charismatic
person. Read motivational books, listen to motivational audio, and hang with
others who are positive. Stay away from
negative people as much as you can.
Negative people are never a source of opportunity.
Once
you have an idea about the type of opportunity you want, learn to ask for
it. This sounds too simple to work but
you’ll be amazed at how effective communicating your desire can be. Remember that large group of friends and acquaintances
we talked about earlier? Make sure they
ALL know what your hopes, dreams and goals are.
You may be surprised to find that someone you know is in a position to
connect you with opportunity, if only they know about your goal.
Tip
#5: Share your hopes, dreams and goals with others you trust. Ask them straight out if they can help you or
if they know someone who can.
Embrace
failure. What? That sounds ridiculous, doesn’t it? The truth is that successful people see
failure as a natural step toward success.
They don’t let failing at something stop them for long. They have developed ability over time to get
going again after life slaps them in the face.
Certainly, no one enjoys failing but too many people stop and give up
their hopes, dreams and goals after their first experience with failure.
Tip
#6: Try to see mistakes and failure as a natural step toward success. Learn from each incident of failure to adapt,
change and not repeat the same mistakes over and over.
Last,
but perhaps most importantly, give opportunity to others when you can. This goes back to the idea that givers
gain. But it’s really simply about being
a good human being. Finding success and
opportunity is more fun when you bring others along for the ride. If you find any measure of opportunity and
success in life, be sure to share it with others.
Tip
#7: Try to find ways to share your
opportunity with others in ways large and small.
