Poll: How much of your current success would you attribute to luck?
Thread poster: ProZ.com Staff
ProZ.com Staff
ProZ.com Staff
SITE STAFF
Oct 7, 2019

This forum topic is for the discussion of the poll question "How much of your current success would you attribute to luck?".

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Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida
Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida  Identity Verified
Portugal
Local time: 16:06
Member (2007)
English to Portuguese
+ ...
Other Oct 7, 2019

The harder you work, the luckier you get! I do not subscribe to the idea that the good things in life are attributed to "luck". This being said, there have been a few times in my life where I was in the right place at the right time.

svetlana cosquéric
Anna Herbst
ahartje
Iwona Budzynska MCIL
Mariana Borio
Muriel Vasconcellos
Philip Lees
 
Yetta Jensen Bogarde
Yetta Jensen Bogarde  Identity Verified
Denmark
Local time: 17:06
Member (2012)
English to Danish
+ ...
50-75% Oct 7, 2019

And 'luck' is a mystical factor

Elizabeth Tamblin
 
Kay Denney
Kay Denney  Identity Verified
France
Local time: 17:06
French to English
. Oct 7, 2019

Well I was born in the UK so my native language is the one most people need to translation into or out of.
My parents didn't bludgeon my brain but nurtured me properly.
I've been in the right place at the right time on occasion.
All the rest has been down to my hard work, perserverance, patience, guts, knuckling down, concentrating and perfectionism.

I could have said I'm lucky to have a linguist's brain. But then had I had a scientific brain I could have appli
... See more
Well I was born in the UK so my native language is the one most people need to translation into or out of.
My parents didn't bludgeon my brain but nurtured me properly.
I've been in the right place at the right time on occasion.
All the rest has been down to my hard work, perserverance, patience, guts, knuckling down, concentrating and perfectionism.

I could have said I'm lucky to have a linguist's brain. But then had I had a scientific brain I could have applied the same talents to earning heaps more money.
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Dan Lucas
Dan Lucas  Identity Verified
United Kingdom
Local time: 16:06
Member (2014)
Japanese to English
Let's define luck Oct 7, 2019

ProZ.com Staff wrote:
This forum topic is for the discussion of the poll question "How much of your current success would you attribute to luck?".

Luck: where opportunity meets preparation.

You may not be able to completely control the timing of opportunity, but you can of course take steps to generate more opportunities, or to create an environment more conducive to opportunity.

If on the other hand you are not prepared for opportunities when they come, if you have not got your marketing spiel in place, the skills to back up the spiel, and the discipline to execute it all, then you'll never be "lucky".

Regards,
Dan


DZiW (X)
Kaisa I
Spyros Salimpas
Vesa Korhonen
Christine Andersen
Mariana Borio
Maxi Schwarz
 
Muriel Vasconcellos
Muriel Vasconcellos  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 09:06
Member (2003)
Spanish to English
+ ...
25-50% Oct 8, 2019

I was lucky to land a translation job in an international organization with very supportive senior staff who trained me on the job. From there I was able to move easily to another organization. Both institutions have provided me with a steady stream of work since my retirement. My tours in those organizations also led to many other contacts in the field.

The rest was hard work. A lot of it!

[Edited at 2019-10-08 08:33 GMT]


 
Mario Freitas
Mario Freitas  Identity Verified
Brazil
Local time: 13:06
Member (2014)
English to Portuguese
+ ...
I was gonna say Zero, but Oct 8, 2019

In 2008, I was unemployed, and SNC-Lavalin needed a translator with experience in management. They had a hard time finding one, and my CV only said Admin Manager, and only mentioned I was also a translator. They found me, called me and hired me, with a salary compatible with that of a manager. It was really a lucky move, not only for the job, but for the opportunity of working in the engineering world, which I hadn't until then. I worked for six years in two international engineering companies, ... See more
In 2008, I was unemployed, and SNC-Lavalin needed a translator with experience in management. They had a hard time finding one, and my CV only said Admin Manager, and only mentioned I was also a translator. They found me, called me and hired me, with a salary compatible with that of a manager. It was really a lucky move, not only for the job, but for the opportunity of working in the engineering world, which I hadn't until then. I worked for six years in two international engineering companies, and that was a blessing in my career. Over 80% of my jobs are related to engineering or contracts nowadays.Collapse


 
Philip Lees
Philip Lees  Identity Verified
Greece
Local time: 18:06
Greek to English
Ticket Oct 8, 2019

A devout believer prayed to his god: "Dear Lord, please let me win the lottery." Each week, the same prayer, but no winnings.

Eventually, he lost patience. "Lord, why will you not answer my prayer?"

And a thunderous voice responded from the heavens: "BUY A TICKET!"


Dan Lucas
Kay Denney
Josephine Cassar
Daryo
 


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Poll: How much of your current success would you attribute to luck?






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