The Business Book

42

See also: Beating the odds at start-up 20–21 ■ Gaining an edge 32–39 ■

Understanding the market 234–41 ■ Forecasting 278–79

L

uck is usually regarded

as something over which

businesses have no control.

Yet, as McDonald’s CEO Ray Kroc

said, “the more you sweat, the

luckier you get,” suggesting that luck

can be created. The reality is that

both are true. As global markets

become more volatile and less

predictable, luck plays an inevitable

part in business success. Launch a

start-up at the same time as a rival

and it may be luck that determines

who succeeds, and who fails.

Making your own luck

A well-considered business plan is

designed to dispense with reliance

on luck. A good idea, underpinned

by detailed market research and

solid financial planning, may help

a start-up to ride the whims of the

market. A good plan charts a course

of action in turbulent markets,

protects against the unknown,

and prepares the company

for contingencies.

In addition, a well-conceived plan

can ensure that a company is in a

position to benefit from favorable

market conditions. In other words,

what might seem like luck is often

the result of planning. Take the

famous example of 3M Post-it Notes.

The invention of a reusable glue was

accidental, but it was business

insight that turned the lucky

discovery into a commercial success.

With so many variables, luck is

likely to play a part in the survival of

a start-up. But a good plan reduces

how much luck a company needs. ■

L U C K I S A D I V I D E N D

O F S W E A T. T H E M O R E

Y O U S W E A T , T H E

L U C K I E R Y O U G E T

LUCK (AND HOW TO GET LUCKY)

IN CONTEXT

FOCUS

Maximizing opportunity

KEY DATES

1974 3M employee Art Fry

uses the adhesive developed—

and rejected as defective—by

a colleague six years earlier

to attach a bookmark in his

hymnbook. This chance usage

leads to the Post-it Note.

2009 A Harvard Business

Review article “Are ‘Great’

Companies Just Lucky?”

reports that in only half of the

287 high-performing companies

surveyed could success be

attributed to distinguishable

practices or features of the

organizations themselves.

2013 Five years’ hard work

yields music group Daft Punk’s

aptly titled song “Get Lucky”. A

result of industry collaboration,

market research, and strong

marketing and publicity, the

song’s commercial success

demonstrates the value of

business planning.

The first rule of luck in

business is that you should

persevere in doing the right

thing. Opportunities will

come your way if you do.

Ronald Cohen

UK venture capitalist (1945 –)