Accidental Millionaires

Forrest Gump wanted to be a shrimp boat captain.

So, after he returned from the war, Forrest went out and bought a shrimp boat and persistently failed until luck visited him.

With that luck, as well as the help of his reluctant, yet devoted apostle, Lieutenant Dan, Forrest was able to build a shrimp distribution empire that transformed him into an Accidental Millionaire.

Only in the movies, right? 

But, as I learned from my five year study of self-made millionaires (Rich Habits Study), luck plays a very important factor in striking it rich.

But the luck I’m referring to isn’t a random good luck many rich-haters ascribe to the wealth.

The luck I’m referring to is called Opportunity Luck.

This is a type of luck that only visits those with persistence, good daily habits and a work ethic driven by a passion that borders on the obsessive.

There are many self-made millionaires out there who were beneficiaries of Opportunity Luck.

Tabasco Sauce

Edmund McIchenry, a struggling farmer, was tired of eating bland food.

So, in 1865, in an effort to liven up his food, he began experimenting with some of the hot Mexican peppers that were growing in the garden, just outside his kitchen.

The sauce he created became known as Tabasco Sauce.

Q-Tips

Leo Gerstensang noticed his wife trying to clean their baby’s ears with a toothpick and some cotton.

Worried she might hurt their child, he created the Q-Tip.

Apple Computer 

Steve Jobs was desperately seeking seed capital in order to get his fledgling Apple Computer up an running.

There was one wealthy individual in town who had turned Jobs down on his funding request.

That was until the wealthy local saw Jobs having lunch with a representative from Rockefeller Venture Capital.

The wealthy local man, thinking the Rockefeller’s were investing with Jobs (they too turned Jobs down), decided to invest $150,000, which gave birth to Apple Computer.

Slinky

In 1943, Navy engineer Richard James was trying to figure out how to use springs to keep the sensitive instruments aboard ships from rocking themselves to death, when he knocked one of his prototypes over.

Instead of crashing to the floor, it gracefully sprang downward, and then righted itself.

Slinky’s went on to sell 300 million worldwide!

Opportunity Luck requires that you be tuned in to opportunity.

The Reticular Activating System (RAS) is part of our old brain (brain stem) physiology.

It’s purpose is to filter out most sensory data, unless that data is important to us. 

Our name, for example, is important to us.

When you hear your name, even in a crowded, noisy airport, you turn in the direction of the person calling your name.

That’s the RAS at work.

You can tune your RAS into receiving only specific sensory information, like your name.

When you set a big goal or follow a life dream, your RAS becomes tuned in to sensory data that will help you achieve the goal or realize the dream.

Opportunities we did not see previously, become obvious.

The law of attraction is actually the RAS system at work.

You are not actually attracting opportunities but rather becoming aware of them thanks to the RAS.

This is why those who set big goals or pursue a major purpose or dream in life are so much more successful than everyone else.

Their RAS is working for them, allowing them to achieve great things in life.