Fortune Cookie Friday: The Odds May Be in Your Favor
Some people like to play it safe when it comes to decision making. Many times this can be a good strategy. Financial advisers suggest that a long-term investment in the stock market is preferred over short-term to protecting ourselves when things become volatile.
Life tends to throw a curve ball every once in a while, and it is best to have a plan. Unfortunately, many play it too safe and end up as unfulfilled as if they lost it all in an economic crash. We need to take some chances in life if we want to spice it up.
There are plenty of ways to take a chance if we’re willing to play the odds. We could play the lottery. The odds of winning the Powerball jackpot are 1 in 292,201,338. Amazingly, plenty of people take a chance on winning this lottery. We could improve our chances of being a big winner by playing the Tim Hortons Roll Up The Rim promotion. The odds of winning their big prize, a 2018 Honda Civic Sedan EX-T, are 1 in 13,542,336.
Of course, if we are looking for something with a little less risk, the odds of being called to be the next contestant on the Price is Right are 1 in 36, but we have to go to the studio three hours before the show and stand in line to fill out a form. I guess that would be a small price to pay to be on the Price is Right.
If you think that you don’t want to play the odds, remember that there are all sorts of risks in life that we have little control over. In the U.S., we have a 1 in 13,500 chance of being struck by lightning in our lifetime. Our risks run a little higher when it comes to toilets. We have a 1 in 10,000 chance of a toilet-related injury each year – people, double check the seat position. To make matters worse, our odds of injuring ourselves on the stairs each year is 1 in 263.
Hey, accidents happen, but so do happy accidents. Imagine you sit down to enjoy a plate of oysters. Baring any seafood allergies, you have a 1 in 12,000 chance of finding a pearl in an oyster. I don’t recommend eating thousands of the little bivalves just to get a pearl, but it would be nice to find a gem along with my dinner.
Sometimes a happy accident is right beneath our feet. We have a 1 in 10,000 chance of finding one four-leaf clover, but if your Sydney, Australian resident, Suzi Mekhitarian, you are even luckier. She has found more than 250 four leaf clovers in her front garden as of 2015. I am going to guess that she doesn’t subscribe to using weed killer around her yard.
Whether it’s by choice or accident, we take risks every day. We need to become comfortable with those risks and recognize that we don’t fail, we only produce results. It’s what we do with those results that matter. Consider all that we, as human beings, have gained from such risks. Penicillin, stainless steel, Velcro, Popsicles, x-rays, and airplanes are just some examples. If it weren’t for people taking risks, even small ones, our world would be a very different place.
As for me, I plan on living up to this cookie’s fortune. When the opportunity arises, I will take a chance. I don’t know what result I will get, but it’s a risk I’m willing to take. Are you?
