“There's no such thing as luck. Luck is where preparation meets opportunity.”
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Amy Hempel 24
Short story writer 1951Related quotes
“Luck is when opportunity meets preparation.”
“Luck is a matter of preparation meeting opportunity.”
“Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.”
Has been attributed to Seneca since the 1990s (eg. Gregory K. Ericksen, (1999), Women entrepreneurs only: 12 women entrepreneurs tell the stories of their success, page ix.). Other books ascribe the saying to either Darrell K. Royal (former American football player, born 1924) or Elmer G. Letterman (Insurance salesman and writer, 1897-1982). However, it is unlikely either man originated the saying. A version that reads "He is lucky who realizes that luck is the point where preparation meets opportunity" can be found (unattributed) in the 1912 The Youth's Companion: Volume 86. The quote might be a distortion of the following passage by Seneca (who makes no mention of "luck" and is in fact quoting his friend Demetrius the Cynic):<blockquote>"The best wrestler," he would say, "is not he who has learned thoroughly all the tricks and twists of the art, which are seldom met with in actual wrestling, but he who has well and carefully trained himself in one or two of them, and watches keenly for an opportunity of practising them." — Seneca, On Benefits, vii. 1 http://thriceholy.net/Texts/Benefits4.html</blockquote>
Disputed
Source: Have Space Suit—Will Travel (1958), Chapter 2
The Bee, from Insects for Everybody
How to Attract the Wombat (1949)
“[Irene] hated trusting to luck. It was no substitute for good planning and careful preparation.”
Source: The Masked City (2015), Chapter 11 (p. 141)