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People often remark, “I was in the right place at the right time,” but very rarely can all the credit simply go to timing. I’m not suggesting that being in the right place at the right time has no value because clearly it does. You do need to be at the right place but what makes any given moment the right time is more than just luck. The right time is also created by a lot of preparation.

A woman I know had always secretly wanted an agent to help her acquire acting jobs and although she spent countless hours rehearsing monologues and scenes for various performances, she missed the deadline to audition in front of a prominent agent. However, her boyfriend had an audition spot and she accompanied him for support. As they sat in the room in front of the talent agent, my friend watched with envy as others went through their audition pieces. When her boyfriend finished his audition, the agent turned to my friend and asked her are you here to audition too? Without hesitation, my friend replied, “You know I’d love to.” She stood up, flipped through her mental rolodex of monologue options, selected a favorite and performed. In fact, not only did she perform; she secured an agent.

You could say that she was just at the right place at the right time and that would be accurate. Clearly she wouldn’t have an agent if she didn’t happen to be in that audition room. However, she could have very easily been in the exact same place and without preparation she wouldn’t have been able to win over the agent. If she hadn’t spent a lot of hours rehearsing, she would have had to answer the question “Are you here to audition too?” with a resounding, “You know I’d love to but I just don’t have anything prepared right now.” In essence, the effort that she’d put forth has met with a great break and that combination of preparation and opportunity almost always creates dynamite results.

So don’t just sit around waiting for the right time; prepare yourself, plan your success and when you find yourself in a fortunate situation, you’ll be prepared to capitalize.

How do you know what to plan? Well, there are two approaches you can take to prepare.

1. First, my suggestion is that you ask yourself the question, “What would be the luckiest situation I could find myself in?” Maybe it’s on the plane next to a leader in your industry, or at a dinner next to the president of your company. Perhaps it is being invited to share a few words to wrap up a volunteer activity. Whatever the situation is, picture yourself engaged in that opportunity.Now ask yourself, “What would I want to be ready to say, ask or do?” Prepare yourself. If you find yourself with that opportunity, you’ll be thankful for your preparation. Let’s be honest; you may never have the chance to chew the ear of the leader of the free world so would this preparation help you? Even if you don’t find yourself in that exact situation, you’ll be more confident and you’ll be better prepared for many other opportunities. 
2.  Second, simply do your best at the things that matter the most to you. When you’re passionate about something, you’ll be amazed by the number of circumstances you will find yourself in that allow you to make a difference in that area. The better you work to be prepared, the more likely you’ll be proud of your ability to seize an opportunity.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this four minutes of freedom.

Be Free!

Leah Simpson
Instructor