A lot of people believe that they were born either lucky or unlucky. But a recent Yahoo! Shine article says that luck is really all a matter of outlook and attitude. Author Richard Wiseman recruited hundreds of self-identified lucky and unlucky volunteers, and spent a decade interviewing them, testing them, and having them complete diaries and questionnaires. What he found was that lucky people are that way because of some basic principles: they seize chance opportunities, looking at what they actually see rather than just what they’re looking for; they add variety to their lives and try new things, making them more likely to come across opportunities; they create self-fulfilling prophecies through positive expectations; and they have a resilient attitude that lets them see the upside of bad occurrences. Wiseman also found that luck can be learned. He conducted experiments in which he taught people these principles of being lucky and how to incorporate them into their lives through a series of exercises. After just one month, a whopping 80 percent of participants said they were happier, more satisfied with their lives — and luckier!

Check out Richard’s website: http://www.richardwiseman.com/