Statements like, “You’re so lucky you get to work from home” and “Oh, I wish I was lucky enough to be my own boss” really bother me because it completely discounts the amount of hard work that goes into making opportunities happen in one’s life.
Luck has almost nothing to do with someone being their own boss or making their business a success.
That mother working from home to be there for her family isn’t lucky.
She has taken risks and invested countless hours of hard work to get herself into a position to create that life for herself and her family.
She’s not doing anything that you couldn’t do yourself if you really wanted to.
One such mother who comes to mind is Staging Diva Grad Laura Kakoschke of Hunter Lake Home Staging and Design.
Laura isn’t “lucky” because she’s able to work from home and home school her three children while she earns more money than she ever did working her fancy government job.
Laura made this happen by setting herself up to succeed in a business based on her natural talent for decorating.
Laura did her research and took the home staging training program that would suit her needs and allow her to build a profitable business. Then she put what she learned to use.
It was smart marketing tactics (like being listed on the highly trafficked Staging Diva Directory of Home Stagers) rather than luck that helped Laura get the projects she needed to make this career work.
It wasn’t luck, but what she learned about properly pricing her home staging services that allowed Laura to start making more money than she did working in management position with the government.
Just like it’s foolish to wish you could win the lottery even though you don’t buy tickets (and actually even if you do), you can’t waste your life wishing you could fire your boss and go into business for yourself unless you make a move to make that happen.
Being in the right place at the right time can play some part in the success of a business, but mostly it’s commitment, hard work and doing something you’re passion about that will let you make your own “luck” in this world.
What are you going to do with your future?
Will you leave it to luck, or will you work hard to create the life you want to be living?
Home stagers, am I the only one bothered by someone saying “oh it’s different for you,” or chalking success and lifestyle up to luck?
Now that you’re in your own business doing something you love, do you hear this from others too? How do you react?
I’d love to hear what you think, please leave a comment below and we’ll discuss!
I couldn’t agree with you more, Debra. Commitment, hard work and doing something you’re passionate about as well as TAKING A RISK is what it takes! After 25 plus years in the corporate world, getting laid off was the kick in the butt (as well as the economic cushion due to severance) to start my own business. I work harder and more hours at building and managing and doing my home staging business than I did at my old corporate job. But it’s very different. Because I love what I do and don’t work for someone else, I don’t mind. But you have to be prepared for this – as with any small business – things don’t come easy. I recently got an invitation to connect with someone via LinkedIn whom I used to work with in the corporate world, and he said “you are so lucky to not be in corporate anymore”. I reminded him that that first of all the grass is always greener on the other side, and that during the 2009 recession when the home staging business was very slow for me and others, there were many times I missed the steady paycheck and the forced savings through my old company’s pension and 401K plans. So don’t always think that things are easier than they appear to be. Things were tough last year, but I continuously marketed in various ways and my marketing has paid off. Business has picked up in the last month or so and I hope it continues.
Luck? Lucky maybe that God gave me a talent for decorating and design. But what good would that do me if I didn’t develop that God-given gift into something productive and potentially profitable as well? It takes a lot of hard work and commitment to have your own business, between marketing, research, pricing, networking, and on and on. You can’t just sit at a desk and hope the clients will line up outside your door! I’ve been an entrepreneur since 1980 and luck has nothing to do with it! So, yes, I personally feel very “lucky” (if you will) to have my own business, but it isn’t “luck” that made it happen! It takes commitment and a whole lot of hard and constant work to keep going. In one of Debra’s Dispatch newsletters I read:
“When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope I would not have a single bit of talent left, and could say, ‘I used everything you gave me’. – Erma Bombeck.” I have that posted my office as a constant reminder of my commitment to my business. Luck? Maybe a little – but not enough to run a successful business.
Staging To Sell
Home Staging For Sellers . Interior Design & reDesign
231.690.0398
Jill R. Monczunski
President/Designer
http://www.staging2sell.com
jill@staging2sell.com
Michigan USA
Hi Debra
I often have people say to me that it must be nice to be in a position to take that kind of risk to start your own business. I have made many changes in my life over the years that to other people seem so risky that it isn’t something that they would even consider. Although not all of them have paid off I don’t regret any of them. They have made me who I am today and I am proud of that. To the people who are afraid, take the chance, what’s the worse that can happen. No matter what happens it’s better than sitting back saying I wish I could change my life.
Diana
I agree with you wholeheartedly, Debra! There’s nothing about what I did to get where I am that was “lucky”, except for hitting on your Website when I was looking for a next step in life. I wanted that step to be up!
I worked in criminal law before becoming a professional home stager. I ran my own law office with my husband… he’s still doing it. But after a number of years, I was hitting the snooze button more and more and when I finally got on the road to work, I had to stop 2 or 3 times to vomit on the side of the road. I just couldn’t face smiling and shaking another person’s hand that was accused of child sex abuse… So I gave it up, money and all!
I took one year off to get well again (I had lost over 50 pounds, couldn’t hardly eat or sleep) and then started looking at what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. I’ve always been passionate about decorating yet I still had the mindset of wanting to really help people. I remembered my grandmother telling me when I was a small child to “choose a career that passions you… that way, you’ll never have to work a single day in your life!” She was right.
Now, with home staging, I don’t hit the snooze button – I’m up before the clock even rings! I look forward to what I do… and I do it all day long and I’m loving it! But for those who think I’m “lucky”, boy, have they got that wrong! I’m a one-woman team: home staging, marketing, accounting, customer service, maintenance, secretary, receptionnist, computer tech, etc. There’s nothing lucky about working in Home Staging. It involves determination, hope, drive, patience, consistency, sacrifices, honesty, quick-thinking, promotion and most of all, hard work and persistance.
Though I haven’t reached the point yet where I’m making as much money as I was in criminal law, I’m darn close. But even if I wasn’t, it wouldn’t matter. I’ve never worked so hard in my life and loved it so much! No… luck isn’t involved in this at all. It’s all about actions… every single one that it takes to make your own business work.
I learned along time ago that the word LUCK is really an acronym….
Labouring Under Correct Knowledge.
Although, like Pauline, I do feel I was lucky to find the Staging Diva Program when I did! 🙂
When it comes to staging a home to sell, luck has everything to do with it………… if you buy into Brian Tracy’s definition.
“I’ve found that luck is quite predictable. If you want more luck, take more chances. Be more active. Show up more often.” – Brian Tracy:
Luck to me is when preperation meets opportunity.
Thanks Debra for all the great advice and preperation from your courses. After two years I have one luck (read busy) business.
Fabia thank you for sharing that great quote from Brian Tracy and congratulations on all your business success!
Don’t forget to send me your information so I can write an article about you and promote your business even more.
This is a free service available to you as a graduate of the Staging Diva Program. We’ve made it easy to submit your info here:
https://stagingdiva.com/homestagingbusiness/staging-success-stories/
I don’t think there is such a thing as luck in working for yourself. You just have to put it in your mind to do it and get to work. After you are established, things begin to happen that may seem like luck, but I believe that it’s because you are positive AND hard-working and people begin to notice. Thanks Dbra for the encouragement at every turn!