During an authoritative investigation that was hugely successful, changing the way many people think about luck, Richard Wiseman gave various subjects a newspaper, asking them to count all the figures. People who, during interviews before the test, said they considered themselves unfortunate, took on average several minutes to scroll through all the pages of the newspaper, counting each figure. Those who thought themselves lucky took only a few seconds. Why? On the second page of the newspaper, using a font about 5 cm high, Wiseman wrote: "Stop counting. There are 43 figures". Feeling lucky means learning how to make your own luck. Change your luck by seeking luck, keeping an optimistic attitude and creating a better life for yourself.
Steps
Method 1 of 3: Seeking Fortune
Step 1. Decide what you want and go out of your way to get it
Learn to define and value your desires - you will give yourself a better chance of achieving your goals. If you feel unfortunate and uprooted, without foundation, it is probably because you have not yet defined what you would like to do, what you would like to achieve from your life and what you can do to get it. The first step in getting somewhere is to decide where you want to go.
- For some people, it may be easier to start with a five-year plan, while others may need to start with something shorter term. What do you want today? What do you want to achieve by Wednesday? Do this as a daily exercise.
- Focus on those things that will greatly improve you in life on an emotional and profound level, not just superficially. Saying "I want to win the lottery" won't help you, because it doesn't match your real wish. Instead, learn to say "I want to have financial security and feel important." There is a big difference.
Step 2. Say "yes" instead of "no"
Often, feeling unlucky or disheartened is the result of not giving yourself a chance for success. As Grandma says, putting yourself in a situation already expecting to fail is the best way to secure failure. Instead of wasting time looking for reasons to avoid unfavorable situations or difficult scenarios, find reasons to act, confront and succeed. Say "yes" instead of "no"!
- Do you remember the last time your friend called you with plans for Friday night and you declined the invitation? When you are at home and relaxing, it is easy to find reasons to stay there. There is TV that needs to be watched! The sofa that needs to be tested! Next time, try going out expecting to have a life-changing experience - you'll be right.
- The unfortunate are well trained to get in the way. To get involved and give yourself a chance to succeed, you must also have the opportunity to fail. Choosing inactivity at the expense of action is one way to keep yourself safe from failure, but equally precludes your chances of success.
Step 3. Look at challenges as an opportunity for success
You've just been offered a new responsibility at work, it's exciting but intimidating you? Take it with resourcefulness. Have you been asked to speak in front of the crowd? Write a wonderful speech. Have you been tasked with picking up a great artist at the airport? Entertain him. Treat the circumstances that put you in trouble as opportunities to create your good fortune, not as obstacles that leave no hope.
It may seem trivial, but try to cheer yourself up. Create a playlist that encourages you psychologically, to listen to every day before you show up for work or when you need to do something that scares you. Sister Rosetta's "Up Above My Head" has never made anyone feel unlucky
Step 4. Take advantage of good luck
Unfortunate people convert luck into disgrace, using good luck as an opportunity to belittle or apologize. The lucky ones take luck and turn it into even better luck. In the newspaper experiment conducted by Wiseman, the only difference between the lucky and the unfortunate was that the former paid attention to reaping advantages, good luck and fortune, while the latter, having the same advantages at their disposal, left them. escape.
Step 5. Take control of situations
Francis Ford Coppola, the award-winning director for Apocalypse Now and The Godfather, is famous for his unusual way of shooting films, which is actually not all that strange. When he wants to make a movie, he just starts making it. Without a script, actors or the help of a studio? It doesn't matter: he has an idea and doesn't allow anyone to interfere. Respect yourself enough to give priority to your wishes and will over all other matters.
- Don't say "I wonder if I can do this", but rather say "Who could ever stop me?" Blaming yourself for your success will also give you the power to achieve it. Make sure you put yourself in control, not other people who you think might be preventing you from getting what you want.
- Don't wait for permission to do things - take what you want. At work, don't write a project proposal that needs to be approved - just update it and show the results. Don't wait until you've put together a draft of your book so you can take advantage of a publisher and write it, just start writing.
Step 6. Stop thinking and start "feeling"
Lucky people have learned to respect their own intuitions, feelings and instinctive reactions. If you have a tendency to over-analyze situations and look for reasons to feel weak, offended, or unlucky, learn to follow your instincts instead.
Try this experiment - the next time you need to make an important decision, do it instantly. Indulge your immediate gut reaction and don't give yourself the chance to second thoughts. Did you just realize that you are no longer in love with your partner? End the relationship. Now. Have you suddenly felt the need to quit your job and volunteer in an organic grape vineyard for a couple of months? Pack your bags. Make it happen
Step 7. Work hard
Coppola did not hold back in the face of difficulties. Together with the crew, he spent hundreds of hours of boring jungle toil in Vietnam, mornings struggling with Marlon Brando's oddities, and hundreds of film clips to review. But he tried his hand at it. He cultivated the seeds of luck with work: hard work.
- Those who work hard are open to opportunities and benefits, as their results are better than anyone else's. If you struggle twice as hard at work, your work will be doubly satisfying and you will feel twice as lucky to have done it.
- Try to focus on doing one thing at a time and doing it extremely well. On Mondays, don't worry about everything you have to do for the rest of the week. Try not to even think about what you will have to do in the afternoon. Just worry about the present moment, now, and finishing what you started.
Method 2 of 3: Maintain a Positive Attitude
Step 1. Expect luck
The reason luck presents itself to the lucky ones is that they face situations expecting success and a positive outcome. It's just like grandma used to say: if you expect something to be boring, then it will be. If you go to work with the belief that it will be a heavy day, it is possible that it will be. If you live an experience believing that you will have an opportunity for success, then you will make this happen.
Expecting a lucky ending will make you more aware of the benefits and opportunities. Just as lucky people can read between the lines, you yourself will have greater awareness and will be able to notice all those little events that will make you lead the game, rather than giving up prematurely because you feel unlucky
Step 2. List your successes daily
At the end of each day, think back to what you have achieved. Anything crossed off your to-do list, every day goal you've completed should be celebrated with mental praise and reward. Don't think about the things you wish you had done, or the things you wanted to make time for. Think about what you really did: focus on your successes and celebrate them.
List the big and small achievements. Cleaning the kitchen without complaining? This is one result. Getting out of bed and taking the bus to work? That's already a lot. Feel lucky for this
Step 3. Celebrate both big and small wins equally
Take some time each day to celebrate your accomplishments. It doesn't have to be a blast cake and champagne party, but a quiet reflection on new accomplishments and old successes is very important to help you feel lucky.
- Learning to do a mental review every day to review your successes will also help you move forward and prepare for further results. Get used to that pleasant feeling of accomplishing something productive today.
- Make sure your celebrations aren't counterproductive. Celebrating a hard day at work with a long night out at the pub won't make it any easier for you to face tomorrow.
Step 4. Stop comparing yourself to others
You certainly do not have the responsibility of achieving the same results as those with whom you graduated, your colleagues, your siblings, your friends, your partner or your parents. The only person you need to please with your successes is you. Stop comparing your achievements to others and start feeling lucky for what you do.
For many people, social media bragging rights are a real cause for depression. If you're tired of the constant vacation photos of your old roommates and bragging about promotions, block updates or, even better, consider signing out of Facebook altogether
Step 5. Try to be more outgoing
Learning to get involved can help you make contacts, feel happy and lucky. Expect that every interaction you have with a stranger, even a five-minute ride on the subway, could be life-changing. Maybe the bored guy chatting to you at the post office could be a kindred musician to start a band with. Maybe the nice bartender will be "the one". Don't let the opportunities slip away from you.
Step 6. Be more flexible
Having set plans is a great way to feel unlucky and disappointed. No one always feels lucky or meets good luck every day, but being able to cushion the blows and be at least a little flexible will help you make the most of situations that don't go your way.
Try to stay focused on a larger project. If your peaceful Sunday, the day you wanted to dedicate to cleaning or to your partner, was interrupted by a friend of yours who needs a ride to the airport, don't react badly. Rejoice in the chance to go out with your friend before a long trip. Face it with positive energy
Method 3 of 3: Use Lucky Charms
Step 1. Support your hard work with good luck charms
While it may seem superstitious to some, it is true that equipping yourself with lucky items or paying attention to signs of luck can help many people feel more fortunate. You shouldn't trust all your positive feelings to random symbols and signs, but it's perfectly natural to feel lucky on any day a ladybug lands on you or starts with a positive omen.
Step 2. Look for lucky bugs or animals
In various cultures, insects and other animals are often thought to be carriers of good luck or bad luck, depending on the situation. If you are in the outdoors, beware of the following insects or animals:
- Crickets. Crickets are believed to be the bearers of good luck from Europe to Asia, as well as in Native American tribes, who believed crickets to bring good luck. In some cultures, imitating the sound of the cricket is seen as a sign of ill omen.
- Ladybugs. Some people believe that a ladybug landing on a newly married woman reveals, with her dots, the number of children she will have or the amount of money she will soon find. In addition, ladybugs are believed to be carriers of good weather. Never kill a ladybug if it lands on you.
- Dragonflies, beetles, rabbits, eagles, turtles, dolphins, frogs, bats and many other animals are commonly considered lucky. If you have a favorite animal, bring a photo of him or a totem representing him for luck.
Step 3. Grow lucky plants
Whether they're aromatic or just plain beautiful, keeping plants in your home can be a fantastic way to spice it up and, for many cultures, a symbol of prosperity and health. Different plants are believed to have a wide variety of luck-bearing properties. Some commonly considered lucky houseplants are:
- Honeysuckle, lavender and jasmine are some of the most aromatic plants you can grow that bring beneficial scents into your home. Some people think that the presence of these plants can affect your dreams, help you sleep and make it easier for you to start a new day of luck and good luck.
- Bamboo is one of the luckiest plants, it is believed that it brings well-being, creativity and good health to those who grow it. Bamboo forests are considered mystical and sacred places in many cultures.
- Basil, rosemary, and sage are all thought to be protective herbs to grow in or around your home. Plants resistant to many climates, these aromatic herbs are useful in cooking and were also commonly used in exorcisms.
Step 4. Wear lucky charms
You don't have to go looking for lucky jewels - take them with you! Having a lucky necklace, a rabbit's foot, or any other item in your pocket can give you that feeling of luck that will help you maintain a positive attitude and luck-creating behaviors.
- Carrying acorns, chestnuts or stones in your pocket is a common practice among farmers. Guitarists sometimes use lucky picks and athletes wear lucky shirts.
- Whether an object is really powerfully lucky or not doesn't matter. What matters is that it helps you feel lucky, which can affect your behavior.
Step 5. Make your home lucky
While it may sound silly, organizing your home following design principles will help you channel your positive and lucky energy into positive attitudes. If you are satisfied with creating a space for yourself that is fortunate and beneficial, you will behave in ways that reflect your best interests.
- Tidy up the entrance to your home, The entrance to the house emphasizes the flow of energy and positivity. Leaving piles of mail to open, keys and shoes near the entrance won't help you feel lucky when you go out or come back. Keep the area clean around the front door.
- Some people believe that the color of the doors can help make the house lucky. According to feng shui principles, south facing doors should be red or orange, while north facing doors should be blue or black.
- Arrange the furniture to create circular spaces. A box-like organization can disrupt the flow of positive energy and luck in your home. Instead, try to give your furniture a curvilinear arrangement, to create more fluid living spaces.
Advice
- Being lucky is having a kind of liveliness, a special energy. This doesn't mean you have to be charismatic, independent, or very good at something. Everyone has a particular gift or talent, or a quality - you just have to find them.
- One lucky charm is much more special than millions of others. Make sure it means something to you - maybe it's your favorite color, something your grandmother gave you or something you've had for a long time. It must also have an emotional value: the economic value does not count for anything in terms of lucky charms.
