

Not just luck and talent: "positioning" - rafaelc
http://michaelrwolfe.posterous.com/not-luck-not-talent-but-positioning

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pprov
Sounds a lot like Heinlein's rules for writing.
<http://www.sfwriter.com/ow05.htm>

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bigiain
And "I find the harder I work, the luckier I am." – Thomas Jefferson

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Create
Did he tell this to his _slaves_?

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lionhearted
Totally agree, really good article.

You know, when you look at history and say "this person/side was lucky to
win", I'm not so sure that's the case. With adequate preparation and enough
attention to detail and caution, you're very likely to have a mild/medium
success even if you don't completely break out.

For instance -

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Date_Masamune>

Masamune fought on the winning side in the final part of the Japanese Sengoku
Warrring States Era. Sekigahara turned out to be the decisive battle, and
after that, the Western Forces were never a serious threat to the Eastern
Forces.

Tokugawa, the leader of the Eastern Forces, then had a very stable, consistent
government that ruled for 250 years of relative peace.

However, if Sekigahara goes differently, or Tokugawa Ieyasu misgoverns or dies
younger, then perhaps Date Masamune becomes the final unifier of Japan. He put
himself into a position where, if the opportunity arose, he could have done
it.

The opportunity didn't arise, and instead he wound up founding Sendai, one of
the most beautiful cities in Japan, developing the local land a lot, and
opening up diplomatic missions with Europe. He put himself in a position to be
massively successful if the opportunity came for it. _It didn't_ , but he
still wound up quite successful and is well-respected to this day, and his
family governed a pleasant, stable area for a long time in peace and
prosperity.

Positioning, indeed.

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nazgulnarsil
smart optimization involves pruning the decision tree such that all remaining
branches lead to victory.

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tobtoh
Is that someone elses quote, or did you come up with that yourself? Either way
- I like it!

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dangoldin
Reminded me of the quote attributed to Seneca - "Luck is what happens when
preparation meets opportunity."

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Mz
I would add that if you happen to find yourself in some uniquely valuable
position, the ability to recognize that and act on it is enormously powerful.

