Luck Surface Area was an idea that was first introduced by serial entrepreneur and podcaster, Jason Roberts. He explained it as, 

The amount of serendipity that will occur in your life, your Luck Surface Area, is directly proportional to the degree to which you do something you’re passionate about combined with the total number of people to whom this is effectively communicated.

He gives us the following equation:

Luck = Doing + Telling

One of our clients is using her accountability session to proactively go out and interact with more people. She is a small business owner, and she shared that getting out and talking to strangers, friends, just people, is increasing her luck surface area.

I think the concept is useful because a big part of my work is to help people overcome RESISTANCE. And no matter how successful or good you are at what you do, there is something about “telling” that breeds resistance. Replacing the idea of talking about yourself with increasing Luck Surface Area is inherently easier than terms we are resistant to like prospecting, posting, promotion, and networking. These, although real and useful, can create barriers of perception because they can be construed as salesy or transactional.

Our clients come to us to help them focus, create structure, and follow through. They never come to us because they aren’t passionate. Usually doing is an area that we are streamlining or making more effective. It’s rarely about doing too little; it’s more about doing what matters most.

But telling can be hard for people. Talking about yourself, sharing, posting, putting yourself out there. These are all activities where accountability helps a lot in overcoming resistance. So let’s do a quick reframe.

You are proactively increasing your luck surface area. So the next time you feel resistance to sharing what you’re working on, posting that update, or telling someone about a win, remember it’s not self-promotion. It’s just luck.