Last week, during an orientation lecture at the Kirloskar Institute of Management, a student asked me a deceptively simple yet profound question:
"How important is luck in creating our success?"
It was the kind of question that forces you to pause. After all, we spend years learning strategies, frameworks, and theories about how to build successful careers and businesses. But this question cut through all of that – right to the heart of the matter.
As I stood there reflecting, my mind turned to a book that has influenced how I think about success: The Almanack of Naval Ravikant, compiled by Eric Jorgenson. Toward the end of Part 1, there's a section titled “How to Get Lucky”, which I believe offers one of the most nuanced and empowering ways of understanding luck – and how we might shape it.
Yes, Luck Matters. But It’s Not What You Think.
Naval Ravikant – entrepreneur, philosopher, and investor – doesn’t dismiss luck. In fact, he acknowledges its presence, but rather than leave it as an abstract force beyond our control, he breaks it down into four distinct kinds of luck. Each represents a different relationship between action and outcome, and each shows how we can consciously shift the odds in our favour.
Let’s explore each of these forms.
1. Blind Luck: The Serendipity We Can’t Control
This is the luck we typically associate with chance – pure randomness. You're born into a certain family, bump into someone influential by accident, win a contest you didn’t even know you entered. There’s no cause you can trace, no pattern you can repeat. It just happens.
This kind of luck is undeniably powerful, but it’s also unreliable. You can't design a life strategy around it.
Yet it plays a part in many remarkable stories. Consider the early life of a young man working as a bus conductor in Bangalore. He had a flair for mimicry and dramatic expression, which one day caught the eye of a playwright. That chance observation led to an introduction to acting school—and eventually, to stardom. That young man was Rajinikanth. His talent was real, but the ignition, being seen by the right person at the right time, was pure serendipity.
2. Luck from Hustle: Creating Motion That Attracts Opportunity
The second type of luck rewards energy. It comes to those who are in constant motion – those who are trying, experimenting, learning, reaching out, and making things happen. When you’re always doing, you increase the chances of something unexpected and good happening.
You don’t wait for opportunity – you generate momentum, and opportunity collides with motion.
Dhirubhai Ambani’s early life is a vivid example. He started as a petrol pump attendant in Aden, Yemen. From there, he learned about trade, currency, and global markets – not in a classroom, but by observing patterns on the ground. He returned to India, set up a textile business, and hustled every inch of the way to build what would become one of India's largest business empires. His journey wasn’t scripted by luck – but his unrelenting hustle created an
environment where luck could happen.
There’s a phrase often attributed to Thomas Jefferson: “I’m a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work, the more I have of it.” That spirit is alive in every entrepreneur, artist, and professional who refuses to stand still.
3. Luck from Awareness: Recognizing Opportunity Others Miss
The third type of luck is more subtle. It rewards the trained eye – the prepared mind that sees value and opportunity where others see nothing. You become lucky because you know what to look for.
This is the kind of luck that often feels like foresight or instinct – but it’s actually grounded in years of experience, learning, and internal clarity.
Infosys, for instance, wasn’t built on a hunch. Narayana Murthy and his co-founders saw a shift coming – the rise of computing, the digitization of business, and the global demand for high-quality IT services at scale. Most people in India didn’t see this at the time. But Murthy and his team recognized the signals and prepared accordingly. They weren’t just lucky – they were observant and early. Their preparation allowed them to capitalize on what others
missed.
This is also the kind of luck that rewards curiosity. When you consistently seek to understand the “why” behind events, trends, and behaviours, you build a mental map that can guide you to unseen opportunities.
4. Luck That Finds You: Becoming the Magnet
The fourth kind is the most powerful, and perhaps the most philosophical. It doesn’t come from randomness, hustle, or even preparation – but from who you become over time.
Naval puts it beautifully: “Build a unique character, a unique brand, a unique mindset – where luck finds you.”
You become so known for your integrity, excellence, or creativity that people bring opportunities to you. You become a magnet for luck – not because you chase it, but because your way of being attracts it.
Over time, this form of luck compounds. People remember your reliability. They recommend you without being asked. They offer you partnerships, investments, roles—because of who you are, not just what you’ve done.
One doesn’t have to look far to find this in India. Think of Ratan Tata. Across generations, he has come to embody trust, vision, and a deep sense of purpose. Entrepreneurs reach out to him with new ideas. Governments consult him in moments of crisis. Philanthropic ventures invite his leadership. He doesn’t seek the spotlight – but the spotlight often finds him.
This form of luck demands long-term thinking, patience, and a deep alignment between your values and your actions. It’s the slowest to build – but the most enduring.
How to “Get Lucky” – A Playbook for the Thoughtful Professional
So, how do we move from hoping for luck to creating conditions where luck is more likely?
Naval’s framework suggests that we don’t need to rely on randomness. Instead, we can engineer our own surface area for luck by:
- Showing up every day – with discipline, energy, and optimism.
- Developing rare and relevant skills – and then sharpening them continuously.
- Learning how to observe – patterns, people, and emerging needs.
- Being known for something valuable – and delivering it with integrity.
- Helping others without agenda – because generosity builds invisible bridges.
In a world obsessed with overnight success and viral breakthroughs, this approach is refreshingly grounded. It tells us that while we may not control every outcome, we do control how we show up – and who we become in the process.
A Final Thought from Kirloskar Institute of Management
To the student who asked me about luck – thank you.
Because in raising that question, you helped uncover a conversation that cuts across entrepreneurship, leadership, and life itself. You reminded all of us in the room that success isn’t only about qualifications or connections. It’s about choices, character, and curiosity. And yes, luck plays its part – but we have more power than we think in shaping how, when, and why it shows up.
In the end, the best kind of luck is the one that finds you because you’ve become someone worth finding.
And that, I believe, is the real secret.
