People who are lucky make their own luck. And you only make your own luck by staying in the game and owning it. “Owning it” means being in control of your profession or craft. It’s that awesome feeling that success was the result of earning it, not the result of luck or just being at the right place at the right time.

And earning it can take years or even decades. In my case, success wasn’t handed to me. I wasn’t born an expert on anything, much less automobile marketing and selling. Nobody is born an expert. But I got very good at what I do because I liked doing it and because I have continually worked hard to get better over many years.

In the book Outliers: The Story of Success, author Malcolm Gladwell says that it takes roughly 10,000 hours of practice to achieve mastery in a field. In the book, Love Is The Killer App, author Tim Sanders says the way to win in business and influence friends is to share your knowledge. How does Tim do that? By reading everything he can get his hands on that has to do with something his customer wants to know and then sharing what he’s learned with his customers. He says if you’re a competitor, then you don’t want him to out read you!

You can own your profession, control your own destiny. That is if it is something that you really want to own.

The idea of “ownership” is really aligned with “mastery.” One thing for sure, mastery or owning it, involves dedication, sacrifice, and an unrelenting drive to be the best. Is it worth it? That is something you will have to decide. I know most people won’t pay the price because it’s hard work. It’s been said, “You can’t give what you don’t possess.” You must own it before you can do it.

What about you? What drives you? I’d love to hear your story.