Luck is supposedly everywhere: in gambling, in science, in business and even in sports and academics. The point is that luck does not exist. It is reasonable to say that an individual can be fortunate with some events or outcomes throughout their lifetime. However, that is not because of luck. Everything happens for a reason.

You may hear the phrase “he or she just got lucky.” That is simply untrue. An individual does not just “get lucky.” There is always a reason something happens. The same principle applies to professional athletes. Michael Jordan wasn’t just lucky when he ended up being arguably the best basketball player of all time. He did not even make his high school basketball team, but instead of giving up, he worked everyday to become the athlete he turned out to be.

Tom Brady is similar in this sense. At the University of Michigan he was considered to be a mediocre quarterback and went as a sixth round draft pick. Brady has won five super bowls and multiple Super Bowl and NFL MVPs. Both Jordan and Brady worked day in and day out to improve their abilities and both ended up being one of the best at their respected sports.

Besides that, doctors and lawyers do not get through four years of college and four to six years of medical or law school because of luck. Those individuals work hard to get to the positions they have in life. Often socialist or communist thinkers argue that capitalism is evil because “some people just get lucky, and end up making a lot of money.” This perspective is seen in Russia, where the political culture advocates for the idea of egalitarianism, or economic equality. President Vladimir Putin has thrown people in prison before because they “took advantage” of the capitalistic system. Again this is just false; those individuals who made a large profit were intelligent and knew how to capitalize. They did not “just get lucky.”

Luck is defined as success or failure apparently brought by chance rather than through one’s own actions. Although events can take a fortunate turn, no event or action is entirely relied on by the principle of luck or chance. Again, it is very important to note that everything happens for a particular reason. Whether it be skill, intelligence, or even just knowing the right people, these factors do not correlate with luck. Luck being the dominating principle in any event occurring is never true.

Chance is a part of life, any statistician or stock broker will say, but chance is not the most significant or dominating factor in life. Individuals freely make their own choices during their lifetime and although chance can play a small role in one’s choices or actions, one’s skills, intelligence and choices are the real and dominating factor in one’s success.