How Opportunity Works

Have you ever wondered what it takes to become worth more?

Not a philosophical or spiritual question.. I am talking about being worth more money.

I know.. taboo right?

I have spent years thinking about this...

How is it that some people work their entire lives in a business and never get ahead, while other people launch a business and in just a few years get it so profitable they are actually able to afford a life you can only dare to dream about?

It's even more apparent with people who launch a company, get it profitable, sell it, and then they do it again.

Seriously.. what are the chances of that?

If you were like me and grew up blue collar or lower income, you probably heard and said things like this:

"It takes money to make money"

or

"Must be nice [insert thing that is nice here]"

I'm not talking about getting "rich" though.. there are endless gurus that will tell you how to get rich on the internet.

And to be clear.. I don't even know what "rich" means.

I'm talking about the about the ability to not suffer in poverty, when the choice is there to not suffer anymore. I've been there.. and it sucks.

I believe this: Either you don't know enough to make the choices that will get you past where you are (financially) or you do know and you choose not to anyway.

If you are in the camp of truly not knowing or caring, my guess is you wouldn't be here. People who assume the outcome is to remain where they are forever don't generally spend their time and energy studying things that would improve the situation.

And if you do know you could make different (better) choices that will lead to a financial life you want I'll assume you're here because you hope to learn something along with me.

let's dive in.

What did Ford mean about belief?

A famous saying and one of my favorite quotes from Henry Ford:

Whether you think you can, or you think you can't, you are right

Several years ago, a good friend and I were talking about understanding. In our talk, I mentioned how frustrating it was that it seems no matter how much I pursue understanding (pick the topic) I just never seem to "get it".

He said something like:

"That is it. Not understanding, while pursuing understanding, is how you find it. It's not a destination.. it's a path and those who believe they can will, those who believe they can't won't."

As far as I can tell, that's true.

The purpose of growth and understanding is never to be the one who grew, and now understands. You can't get there... if you are a student you are a student for life always in pursuit and the foundation is always knowing that there is more to know.

Back to Mr. Ford.

I have heard that quote used wrong a lot, and it's a huge bummer. There is some serious power in acknowledging that, as a human, we have the ability to choose a path that is good and can always improve it by assuming that good or "better" is possible.

I'm going to come at this from that side to show what I mean.

What is opportunity?

The Cambridge definition of opportunity is:

an occasion or situation that makes it possible to do something that you want to do or have to do, or the possibility of doing something

Opportunity is not inherently good, or bad. It's just the possibility to do something.

ok.. so, what then does that mean?

Usually we only use that word to sell our feeling about something we want think, job opportunity, vacation opportunity, meeting someone you admire.

Those occasions are not random, they present themselves when you have an express interest in the thing that YOU consider good, it's because it matters to you so you notice it.

Belief is the catalyst for opportunity

Here's and example:

You are running errands with a friend and you both notice a VW bug. You have been riding around town for years and you never notice VW bugs but now you do see one, you talk about how funny they look, or how your aunt used to have one of them and decide to play a game of slug-bug. First one to see the bug gets to hit the other on the shoulder.

But, later that day, you start seeing them everywhere. You might see 5, 10, 15 of them before heading home. Maybe you even comment on it again, where did all these things come from?? My shoulder is sore!

Why are you seeing more bugs today than usual? - Is it because people secretly want you to engage the timeless game? No. its because now you have a reason to see them and you desire it so they become noticeable. They were always there, you just didn't care until you shifted your focus.

Opportunity works the same way, and the statement Ford made about belief is the catalyst. When you believe in an outcome, or when you believe you can accomplish something, "opportunity" becomes noticeable.

If you spend your life assuming nothing you want is possible, then you won't ever see the opportunities that will make it so.