The Washington Football Team (now the “Commanders”) recently won a game on a “Hail Mary” pass in the last seconds of the game. What’s a “Hail Mary” pass? It’s when the quarterback runs around and throws the ball as far as he can and his receivers (and all the defenders) all gather to try and catch it, knock it down, intercept it. It looks like, and can be, disorganized chaos. But one of the Commander players was in the right place at the right time and caught the ball after it had been batted away by a defender. Touchdown! Washington wins! “Oh, he was just lucky to catch the ball.” Maybe he was, maybe he wasn’t. But when he got the opportunity, he seized it with both hands and fully exploited it. Was that just luck? No, it was not. He was prepared. Huh? Yes, the Commanders had practiced a “Hail Mary” play the week before, and when they used it, it worked. Apparently, the defenders had not (one of them was off the field yelling at the Washington fans).
What works in football works in the courtroom and in real life. Think I’m kidding? I’m not. If you are a trial attorney (which I was before I retired), it’s called preparation: taking notes, writing down your questions, organizing your questions into a theme, anticipating the answers (and variations), practicing, rehearsing, trying to anticipate what the other side will do and how to counteract their strategies, and planning for the inevitable surprises. Then, when you win the case, you are not “just lucky.” In virtually all circumstances in life, surprises happen. How you respond to those surprises determines whether they say you were “just lucky” or “just unlucky.”
We should all use this lesson: think about things and prepare for all events, adverse and favorable. In a recent article, I wrote about “go bags” and how to prepare to evacuate. Last month, Sarasota (where I live) had two(!) hurricanes in three(!) weeks. Evacuate? Stay behind? Friends of mine evacuated. Others stayed. Me? I was prepared: Hurricane shutters up, check. Spare food, water, batteries, propane? Check. Home away from high water flood or surge? Check. Home built to code to deal with force 5 wind? Check. Ready for electric outages? Yes and No. Damage from a power surge when the power came back on. Oops! I was not fully prepared, and the unanticipated chance of a power surge caused problems. In my case, chance did NOT favor my unprepared mind.
How about in regular life? Is your mind prepared? Is your body prepared? What am I talking about, you ask? Well, consider some common situations: Are you walking down the street? While walking, are you texting or reading? Watching your feet and the sidewalk? Paying attention to the other pedestrians? Are you listening to music on your earphones (or hearing aids)? Have you thought about what would happen? Someone could come behind you, knock you down, and mug you. Or you could just trip. Or bump into someone. Have you thought about what you might do in these situations? You should. Will you just fall down?
If you fall, can you fall safely? As we age, we lose strength, become more brittle, and less flexible. What are you doing to counteract those problems? Are you working out to increase strength? Stretching to increase your flexibility? What about balance exercises? Have you practiced falling safely recently? If you do fall, are you prepared to be “lucky?” Or have you prepared so that chance will favor your prepared mind and body?
How about if you are driving your car? Are you on autopilot? Or are you alert for possible problems? Do you only watch the car in front of you? Or are you looking further ahead to anticipate problems? When was the last time you took a driver’s safety course? I take at least one motorcycle safety course each year. In the safety courses, we practice how to deal with surprises: a ladder in the road, a car turning in front of us. All kinds of surprises. That’s how, when something happens, we are prepared to be “lucky” and not get hurt.
The same is true about your health. Maybe 20-25 years ago, I was sitting in a hospital waiting room, waiting to hear the results of a life-threatening operation on a friend. The odds were not good. While I was waiting, I started to talk to a woman who was also waiting. Her husband was undergoing massive open-heart surgery. He lived. They were “just lucky.” It’s the back story that’s relevant: they had been planning a two-month trip to Africa, and she wanted to be sure they would be able to travel safely. So, he went to the doctor for a basic heart EKG. OOPS! 90% blockage on 4 arteries! Take him to the hospital NOW! So off they went. One year later, they took their trip of a lifetime. Again, plan ahead and prepare. In this case, chance favored the prepared mind.
Earlier this year, I went to get an echocardiogram. No particular reason to worry. But just in case, to reassure myself that there was no hidden problem that might crop up. It turned out that there was nothing to worry about, but still ... I checked to be sure. Now I know, not guessing that I will be OK when I work out at the gym or travel. So, no need to be “lucky” this time. What about you? Are you prepared? Remember: chance favors the prepared mind.
