Rich People Increase Their Chances Of Getting Lucky
By: Kevin Shan
Tags: Investing, Wealth, Self, Self Improvement, Money

Increasing Range Of Skills And Knowledge

One way successful people increase their chances of getting lucky is by increasing their range of skills. It’s not enough to be at the right place at the right time. You also have to be the right person in the right place at the right time.

I often come up with what I think are great business ideas. The only problem is that they’re all app and technology ideas. Without any programming experience, I have no idea where to start.

What I do spend a lot of time on, however, is building WordPress websites. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit and many businesses had to shut down, I made a website for the Kumon franchise I work at part-time and earned an extra $100 per month without doing much.

Even though I consider building WordPress websites very easy, other people who have not dabbled in the same topics as I have would not have gotten this opportunity. All my co-workers had the same chance as I had to create a website, but none had the skills.

You don’t always have to develop new technical skills. Knowing what’s happening around you is a form of knowledge as well.

When I was in grade 9, we had to do a project related to the stock market. I decided to do the investing with a virtual cash project. One of the stocks I picked for my virtual portfolio was Nvidia, which was priced at about $100.

I decided to pick Nvidia because of what I had learned when researching computer parts for my first custom gaming PC build. I found that Nvidia graphic cards at the time were the best. If you were trying to build the best possible gaming computer, you would use an Nvidia graphics card.

Since I was trying to build a gaming computer that also performed well for CAD activities, I was also researching graphic cards in the professional industry. Again, I found that Nvidia graphic cards were the best. During my research into the professional market, I also found that Nvidia is a leader in designing hardware used for AI development.

After learning all of this and at the end of my school project, I told my mom to buy shares of Nvidia’s stock at $130. She was skeptical until Motley Fool started to recommend Nvidia, in which she purchased the stock at around $230. Since then, Nvidia has become the most profitable stock in her portfolio, nearly doubling its value at its current price of $520.

But imagine if she had bought Nvidia when I told her to buy. The stock would have almost quadrupled her investment. The problem was that my mom was not building a gaming computer. She did not know about Nvidia until its stock blew up and analysts were covering the stock everywhere.

Being aware of what’s happening around you is how you can strike gold. The average person buys groceries choosing his favorite brands without thinking about the company. If all your friends are raving about their new iPhone 12 and telling you about how amazing it is, maybe it’s time for you to check out Apple’s stock.

It doesn’t always have to be stock investing either. If you hear that a major corporation is moving its headquarters to your city and you know a little about real estate, this could be a huge opportunity. Or if you’re working at a job and you hear how your managers wished their employees had this one particular skill, you can go get this skill, making you a more valuable employee and giving you leverage over your salary.

You will find that opportunities are everywhere if you notice everything that’s happening, explore different things and obtain new skills. The more you know, the more chances you have to get lucky.