Have you ever looked at someone else’s success and thought, “Swerte lang siya”? We’ve all done it. A colleague gets promoted, a friend lands a big client, a stranger suddenly goes viral online. From the outside, it feels like they just happened to be in the right place at the right time. Luck. Pure chance.
I used to believe that too.
Years ago, I joined a raffle at an event. The prize was small—a gadget I really wanted—but I was excited. I bought several tickets, convinced that with enough entries, I’d increase my odds. I didn’t win. Someone who bought just one ticket walked away with the prize. People around me laughed and said, “swerte niya.”
But here’s the thing: that one lucky break didn’t change her life. It was just a moment. Meanwhile, the people I’ve seen who seem “lucky” again and again—the ones who keep winning opportunities, clients, or breakthroughs—aren’t depending on raffles or random draws. They’re creating conditions where luck has no choice but to find them.
Luck, I realized, is a lot like farming. You can’t control when the rain will come. But you can till the soil, plant seeds, and be ready when the rain comes.
So maybe the question isn’t, “Why is she lucky and I’m not?” The real question is: “What am I doing to be ready when fortune arrives?”
This is what this article is about. Not waiting for lightning to strike, but building your own lighthouse. Not waiting for fate, but creating conditions for fortune. Because here’s the truth: luck isn’t found. It’s made.
The Hidden Work Beneath Luck
Tell me if this sounds familiar.
You scroll through social media and see someone announcing a book launch, a successful business, or a promotion. Everyone congratulates them. And there you are, staring at the screen, whispering: “Ang swerte naman niya.”
What you don’t see is the mess behind that polished post. The drafts that never worked. The pitches that were rejected. The sleepless nights when quitting looked easier than continuing.
All of that is invisible.
What’s visible is the win. And because the win is visible, your brain plays a trick on you. It tells you that success is common, that it’s easy, that the winners are “just lucky.” This trick even has a name—survivorship bias.
Think about this: for every bestselling author, there are thousands who wrote books that nobody bought. For every viral video, there are millions that died in silence. You don’t see the failures because they don’t get posted, celebrated, or shared.
I’ll confess something. When I finished my first book manuscript, I thought it would instantly change my life. I imagined people lining up to read it, invitations flowing, doors opening. But when I looked around, I realized—nobody was waiting. The book wouldn’t ship itself. The world wasn’t holding its breath for me.
At first, I felt unlucky. Then I saw the truth. The only difference between “lucky” authors and me was that they published, they promoted, they persevered. They gave luck a chance to find them. I was still holding back.
Luck, it turns out, is an iceberg. People see the shiny tip above the water—the success. They don’t see the massive weight of effort, risk, and persistence beneath.
So the next time you catch yourself saying, “swerte lang siya,” I want you to stop. Look beneath the surface. Ask: “What invisible work made that possible?”
And then, a harder question: “Am I doing my part, so when fortune passes by, it actually recognizes me?”
Because here’s the shift: luck is not about waiting. It’s about multiplying your chances until opportunity has no choice but to notice you.
Why You Must Make Your Own Luck
If you looked at the biggest turning points of your life—good or bad—how much of it felt like your choice, and how much felt like chance?
Most of us give chance too much credit. We say things like, “Kung para sa’yo, para sa’yo.” Or “Bahala na.” It feels safe to believe that life is already written, that luck or fate is in charge.
But here’s what I’ve seen again and again: two things shape our outcomes more than anything else—the quality of our decisions, and randomness.
One of these is outside your control. The other is in your hands every single day.
I once worked with a group of young leaders who dreamed of getting promoted. Some of them waited quietly, hoping their bosses would notice. They said things like, “Kung swertehin ako, mapapansin din ako.” Others did something different. They kept showing up, took on small projects nobody wanted, and found ways to make their team’s life easier.
Guess who got promoted? Not the ones waiting for swerte.
It looked like luck from the outside, but it wasn’t. It was agency.
Think of luck like fishing. You can’t control when the fish will bite. But you can control how many lines you cast, what bait you use, and whether you even bother showing up at the lake. The people we call “lucky” are usually the ones who cast more lines, more often, and in better waters.
When you wait for luck, you become a passenger in your own life. When you make your own luck, you become the driver.
And drivers go farther.
So I’ll turn the question back to you: are you sitting in the passenger seat, hoping for a smooth ride? Or are you ready to grab the wheel and steer?
Because here’s the truth: you can’t control randomness, but you can multiply your odds.
Five Ways to Multiply Your Fortune
1. Vision is Your Lighthouse: See the Future Before It Happens
Imagine walking into a crowded airport with no ticket, no destination, no plan. What are the odds you’ll end up where you truly want to be?
That’s how many of us live our lives.
For a long time, I wrote without vision. Ten manuscripts sat unpublished because I hadn’t decided what they were for. Was I writing to keep busy, or writing to make impact?
That question changed everything.
“Lucky” people aren’t drifting. They have a lighthouse guiding them—a vision. They don’t always know the how, but they know the where and the why.
Here’s how you build yours:
- Distinguish means goals (promotion, money, status) from end goals (love, growth, contribution).
- Ask the three most important questions: What experiences do I want? How do I want to grow? How do I want to contribute?
- Dare to dream boldly. Luck follows vision.
When your vision is clear, the world conspires to meet you halfway.
2. Win the Inner Game
The hardest battles happen in silence. The voice inside whispers: “I’m not ready. Who am I? What if I fail?”
I’ve heard that voice before stepping on stage. And yet, every time I pushed forward, someone would say, “You’re so lucky you can speak like that.”
Not luck. Just courage over self-doubt.
But here’s the real trap: many of our limiting beliefs aren’t even ours. They’re Brules—bullshit rules society installed. “Don’t aim too high.” “Play it safe.” “Success is only for the connected.”
Delete them. Question them. Replace them with beliefs that serve you.
And then, practice Blissipline. Don’t wait for success to be happy. Build small rituals of daily joy. Energy attracts opportunity.
Because people don’t want to work with those who radiate defeat. They want to join those who radiate possibility.
3. Plant Seeds Daily: Learning and Systems
Farmers don’t wait for rain without planting. Why should you?
When I started training, I collected stories, insights, and failures. At first, they sat in notebooks. Later, they became my greatest tools. Seeds planted long ago bore fruit when I needed them most.
Lucky people are sponges. They plant seeds of knowledge everywhere. They build small systems to capture lessons, ideas, and failures.
Because when opportunity rains, it waters only what you’ve planted.
4. Raise Your Hand: Show Up and Share
Opportunities can’t knock on a door that’s invisible.
I know because I hid. Ten books sat unseen because I was afraid to publish. Once I started sharing—even imperfectly—things shifted. Invitations came. Collaborations began. People noticed.
Was it luck? No. It was visibility.
Think of fishing: you can’t catch anything if you never cast your net.
Stop hiding. Show your work. Post the reflection. Launch the prototype. Share the draft. People don’t expect perfection. They respect courage.
Luck doesn’t come looking for the silent. It finds those who raise their hand.
5. Stay in the Game: Effort, Tiny Steps, and Perseverance
It’s not failure that kills dreams—it’s quitting.
I know, because I stopped just short of shipping my books. Ten drafts, zero published. That wasn’t bad luck. That was hesitation.
Think of an airplane: it burns the most fuel during takeoff, not cruising. Most people give up in takeoff—right before momentum makes things easier.
The luckiest people are often just the ones who stayed.
So take baby steps. Stay consistent. Get on the plane. Don’t wait for life to invite you—go where fortune lives.
Stay in the game, and eventually, luck will catch up with you.
Choices Create Luck: Strategy is Fortune’s Compass
Luck often hides in the choices we make.
I once worked with a client facing a risky project. The safe choice was “no.” But after mapping out their objectives and alternatives, they chose “yes.” That decision opened doors others called luck.
Life is chess. You can’t control every move, but you can improve your position.
So here’s your framework:
- Identify real objectives.
- Generate alternatives.
- Balance data with intuition.
- Reframe the problem when stuck.
Every choice is a seed of fortune. Don’t wait for signs. Choose.
Don’t Wait for Luck, Make It
We started with a raffle ticket, with me muttering, “swerte lang siya.”
Back then, I thought luck was random. Now I know: real luck is built. It’s farming, not gambling. It’s lighthouse, not lightning. It’s vision, belief, learning, engagement, perseverance, and choice.
If you wait for luck, you’ll sit on the sidelines. If you make your own, you’ll create conditions where fortune has no choice but to visit you—again and again.
So let me ask you one last time: are you waiting, or are you building?
Take one step today. Plant one seed. Challenge one belief. Share one thing. Make one bold choice.
Because luck doesn’t belong to the chosen few. It belongs to those who choose themselves.
And starting today, that can be you.
