27 Dec 2016 · 5 min
Brent Kelly argues that luck is just preparation meeting opportunity. He contrasts accidental thinking like "someday" with intentional language like "I will," using his own regret about skipping baseball to show how inaction costs you.
Does it feel like some people are just luckier than others? You know, that things just fall into their lap and good things happen? The question I want to talk about in today's biz growl is, are people lucky or are they just prepared when opportunities present themselves, and most importantly, they take action when it does. Hey there. This is Brent Kelly of Biz Griz. So, growing up as a kid, I always loved playing sports. I tried most of them, all the ones that I, at least I could in my small town. Soccer, baseball, swimming, basketball, track, and football. But in high school, I settled on my three favorites. Football, basketball, and. Well, actually, I guess I settled on my two favorites because I didn't really get to baseball. Let me explain the story. See, my freshman year, I played football and I played basketball. But before the baseball season started, I started thinking about what it would be like to have the spring off, to have more free time with friends and focus on football and basketball training. Now, the reality was I was much more focused on hanging out with friends than I was getting better at football or basketball. And even though I love baseball, I decided that having this free time was more important. So I decided not to go out for baseball. Now, it felt like a good idea until I went out to watch a game. See, I started to feel guilty, and I wondered if maybe I'd made the wrong choice. Two more years came and went, and even though I still had this love for baseball, I decided that I would continue to watch from the bleachers. Now, finally, during my senior year of high school, I decided to give baseball another try. Now, at that time, I was certainly rusty and nowhere near the player that I could have been, but I did feel good about getting out in the diamond again and at least giving it a shot. Now, the baseball season was fun for that one year, but I also realized that I had squandered three years of a great opportunity. Now, looking back, I see many parallels to this situation. Those situations I see in the business world every single day. See, every day you have opportunities to seize those things that are right in front of you. But too often, we simply go by with only the thoughts of what could have been. To seize opportunities, you've got to move from an accidental thought process to intentional steps. To seize opportunities, you have to move from accidental to intentional. Nothing will ever happen because you were just simply at the right place at the right time. Because even when opportunities present themselves, and they will, you still have to take action and move with intent and purpose. Now, when I work with insurance agencies and insurance producers, I often hear of all these opportunities that they're working on, right? Maybe it's a a brand new prospect or a new company relationship or a new marketing strategy. But the difference though between those agencies that succeed and those that don't is that those that succeed take action on the right opportunities. See, intentions without actions are meaningless. John Maxwell writes about this brilliantly. The difference between good intentions and intentional living in his great book named Intentional Living. Now, if you're curious whether you spend more time in the land of just good intentions or more time in the land of being intentional, take a look and listen to this list that he provides. Here are some words of good intention, desire, wish, someday, fantasy, hopefully passive, occasionally emotion, somebody should and survival. Those are words of good intention. Now what are words of intentional living? These are words like action, purpose. Today, strategy, Definitely. Active, continual, discipline. I will. And success. See the differences? Can you hear that? Can you feel it? They're staggering. To move from accidental to intentional, you need to do less talking and more doing. No business can survive long term, let alone grow with intent. Alone. Every day is going to be filled with new opportunities for you to do and become more. The question I want to leave you with is this. Are you going to be standing on the sidelines in the bleachers or are you going to be in the game? Hey, thanks for listening. This is Brent Kelly with Biz Grizz with another daily Biz growl, reminding you each and every day, go face your grizzly.
