Increasing Luck With Risks

At a recent TED Salon event, Stanford engineering school professor Tina Seelig delivers an entertaining speech on luck and how people can increase their occurrences of luck.

The idea of luck may seem like an unquantifiable and random occurrence but according to Seelig, this is almost untrue. In her speech on luck, Seelig quantifies the occurrence of luck on the number of risks a person takes. These risks continuously push people out of their comfort zones, which Seelig explains leads to greater success.

This idea of pushing out of comfort zones is something Seelig often employs with her students. She explains that in her classes students complete risk-o-meter assessments which help them understand the various risks that they are willing to take. Seelig then pushes them to tackle the risks they haven't tried before as a means of finding greater success in fields they may not have explored before.

Seelig's speech on luck may not offer direct instructions to increase luck, but the idea of taking risks fits in with the idea of increasing chances of success. This concept fits in with Seelig's primary focus on entrepreneurship, as exploring new ideas is pivotal to finding success in new and innovative fields.