It's Better to Be Lucky Than Good

It Is Better to be Lucky than Good!


One of my former bosses used to say this on almost a daily basis. I am sure you could find many examples of this being correct. There is probably some element of luck involved in almost every success. In the NASCAR Coca-Cola 600 this past weekend, David Reutimann won the rain-shortened race by staying out on the track during the caution for rain that ended up being the last caution of the race. There were 13 cars in front of David when the yellow flag was waved. All of them decided to come into the pits to get tires and fuel, expecting the sprinkles of rain to end soon and the race to get back under way. David’s crew told him to stay out on the track. This was a huge gamble: if the race were restarted, he would either have to race on old tires, making him slower than the competition, or give up track position to come in and pit, putting him nearly in last place.

David’s team had to determine if the risk was worth the reward. In this case it was: the rain never did let up and the race was called with David taking the victory, his first in NASCAR’s premiere series. It was also the first win for Michael Waltrip Racing and for its crew chief. They rolled the dice and came home winners. They got lucky that it kept raining, but thirteen other teams had had the opportunity to make the same call and probably would have ended up winning. Yes, there was an element of luck, but only David’s team had the guts to make the right call. It took the risk, and now it’s the 50th winner of the Coca-Cola 600.

All of us need to determine what risks we are willing to take to win. We need to decide whether the risks are worth the reward. Then once we take the risk, we must own it. Live with it no matter what the outcome. Remember, it could be our shot at victory.

Erik Elsea

www.erikelsea.com

Quote of the Day!- “ Never get so busy making a living, that you forget to make a life.”-unknown