I’m Not Lucky, I’m Good.

The following is a guest post by Heather Monahan.  Her bio follows.

I found myself thinking about St. Patrick’s day this year and realized that the luck of the Irish struck me differently than it had in years past .  As a good Irish girl, I have always celebrated with friends and made sure to wear my green and consume green beer while listening to Irish music.  Growing up in Boston has a way of making you a big fan of St. Patrick’s Day in the conventional sense.  This year when I realized the luck of the Irish was upon us, I also realized that I have never been particularly lucky.  What is funny is how many times in the past that I have chalked up my success in life to luck and specifically to being a lucky Irish girl.  This was an epiphany moment for me. 

As you gain experience in life and confidence you are able to see things differently, this is why I am writing today.  Years ago when someone would compliment me on how I looked, I would chalk it up to having good genes.  If someone was to tell me how excited they were that I was promoted, I would tell them it was because I was a lucky Irish girl.  Throughout my life, I have realized that I never took credit for what I had done or who I had become or even how I presented myself when others complimented me.  It is almost as if I felt I didn’t deserve the compliment or wasn’t able to accept it because I wasn’t sure how I had actually achieved it.

Now that I am 42 years old, I see things for what they are.  I have worked insanely hard my entire life, while friends vacationed, I worked.  I got married much later than my friends and had a baby in my thirties; these choices were made because I wanted to advance my career and myself first and foremost. 

I realize that I look the way I do because I make myself a priority and I invest in myself.  I get up at the crack of dawn to do a boot camp most people would consider torture.  I put time and effort into getting ready when I am so tired I can barely wake up for my alarm.  As a single mother I have managed a routine in the morning that allows me to get my son ready for school and get myself ready as well.  We can never leave the house later than 7:20am but somehow we make it each day.  We are a team. 

There have been many opportunities that have presented themselves and at times I have let them pass but now I jump on them and take advantage of each one.  I believe in my own unique talents and listen to my intuition as opportunities arise.  I am now empowering myself to be the boss of my life and am standing in my power unapologetically. 

Not much that I do is easy.  My life is a lot of work.  But I finally realize that I am where I am in life because of the work that I put in and good that I put out there for others.  I am happy today to say that while I am Irish and will enjoy a green beverage, I am not particularly lucky but I am really good.

The Author

Heather Monahan, runs Heather Monahan LLC, a mentoring group that advises women on various workplace topics.