I don’t believe life is random...

If you haven’t seen the movie Slumdog Millionaire... watch it when you can.

I’ve referenced it a couple of times over the years, and I believe that movie is a brilliant representation of what is available to each and every one of us in life.

I’m not saying everyone is going to make a million dollars or end up on a game show like that.

What I’m saying is that as we go through life, every experience we have, everything we go through, everything we learn and gather and put in our tool belt... becomes a tool for us to use when we need it.

That might seem obvious to some.

But I don’t believe life is random.

There might be seemingly random things that happen because we haven’t been able to connect the dots yet. I believe that what we experience, what we go through, what we learn, all has meaning.

It’s just a matter of pulling from our database of experience and connecting the dots at the right time and place.

“Right place, right time”

Sometimes people will say, “I was just in the right place at the right time.”

To me, what that means is they had enough prior experience that when a moment hit, they were able to recognize the opportunity and then take action.

So a few things had to happen. And that’s why this “random” event isn’t actually random.

• They had to live the life they did prior to that event
• They had to log the experience leading up to it
• When the event happened, they had to recognize the opportunity
• They had to take action and move forward with it... not necessarily knowing it was going to work out

That last one is the part a lot of people skip.

There’s another saying: you miss 100% of the shots you don’t take That was Wayne Gretzky.

And it has everything to do with that last part. The taking action.

Think about what goes into a shot on goal.

You have to know how to skate. You have to know how to handle a hockey stick and a puck. You have to get through and around your opponent. You have to see the window of opportunity to shoot.

ALL of that happens before you take the shot.

But none of it matters if, in the end, you don’t take the shot. It doesn’t matter if you saw the opportunity or not. If you didn’t take the shot, it’s not going in.

It’s an unfortunate thing to say out loud, but I think a lot of us live our lives not even recognizing the opportunity. We believe random things just happen and none of it is tied together. And if that’s how you want to walk around life, reactive to the things you believe randomly happen to you... so be it. BUT if you can just flip the switch, take a hard look at the life you live, and start connecting the dots, I think it will open the door to more opportunities than you can possibly imagine.

So what does flipping the switch look like?

It’s simple. It’s being conscious and intentional about recognizing the things that happen to you throughout the day, and connecting them to experiences you’ve had in the past, in order to move you in the direction you want to go.

That last part is very important.

If you don’t have a direction you want to go, then any way you walk might feel like the right way. You can be lost or on the right path and you’ll have no idea. So FIRST, define the direction.

• What are you trying to do?
• What are you trying to achieve?
• Who do you want to be?

Then, as you go throughout your day, things are going to happen to you, or around you, or you’re going to be a part of them. Take a second and try to tie those things in with the experience you already have.

Maybe it’s not even you that will benefit. Maybe you’re able to connect two people who you think would work really well together.

Or maybe...

You spoke to somebody on a virtual call the other day who mentioned a book they were reading.

As you walk past the bookstore, you see that book on one of the shelves. So you get it, because it was recommended by a friend.

You read it. And months later, there’s a reference in that book that somebody else brings up on a podcast you’re listening to. So you do a deep dive on the person on the podcast, and you realize there’s a skill you have that you can help them with. You reach out and offer your services... and eventually become a business partner with them. You think I’m kidding, but this kind of thing really happens. It can happen to all of us. But most are not even paying attention.

My ask to you today

Just flip the switch and start paying attention.

You have a life full of experience to pull from. Start connecting those experiences with the new ones you have each and every day.

Open your mind to the possibility that the life you live might not actually be random.

That it might be a series of hundreds or thousands of events put in front of you each and every day, and it is up to you to reach out and grab onto them. And what if that isn’t the case? We should all act as if it is.

It is truly in our hands, and up to us, whether we take action.

Until next time...

Stay in the fight,

Kevin