Luck comes to those who seek it
“What is happening guys, take him down!” someone yelled in frustration. We were 5–0 ahead in the first half and the other team stood no chance of winning. Yet, this guy on their team, just kept going at it. He ran whole heartedly into every tackle and miraculously came out with the ball. He kept giving it everything despite the rest of his team having given up. He was playing to win.
Our team grew more and more agitated. Why couldn’t this guy just accept defeat and stop giving us a hard time. By half-time you could tell the frustration in our team. Someone yelled that he couldn’t believe how lucky this guy was. Our coach asked everyone to quiet down and said something I’d never forget: “Guys, listen up. Luck comes to those who seek it”.
I realized something in that moment, that I’d take with me for the rest of my life. You tend to stop playing to win when you’re uncomfortably behind, and likewise, you tend to stop playing to win when you’re comfortably ahead. I’ve seen this play out throughout my whole career. So how do you play to win and create opportunities despite the circumstances?
It’s easier said than done because it’s counterintuitive. Can you play to win, when all of your job applications are rejected? Can you play to win, when you’re lacking behind on your targets? I don’t remember the final score of our match, but I’ll never forget how that guy played to win despite the circumstances. Luck comes to those who seek it.
