Adventure is a State of Mind
Greg and I hope to see the Aurora Borealis (aka Northern Lights) a ninth time in 2025. If you live in Alaska, northern Canada, or Iceland, that might not seem like a big deal. But for us living in the lower midwest of the U.S., it’s a pretty big deal.
So how are we planning to make this happen? By creating a little luck.
Sometimes Luck is Just Lucky… and Sometimes It Isn’t
There are many things in life we can’t control and, therefore, can’t plan. Celestial phenomena, like the Northern LIghts, definitely fall into this category.
But as with many things in life, there are things we can do to increase our probability of experiencing what we often refer to as “luck.”
The first time we ever saw the Northern Lights was out of the window of a plane. It was magical and it was pure luck. We didn’t do anything to make it happen, and we didn’t have any anticipation of it happening. Greg and I were flying across Canada at night, he looked out the window, and there they were. They were beautiful… and we were hooked!
Every time we’ve seen the Northern Lights since then, however, we’ve tried to increase the opportunity for luck to strike.
Increasing Our Luck with the Aurora Borealis
For example, when we traveled to Iceland, we made a point of going when there were lots of hours of darkness (October), and we stayed for two weeks. We hoped that even if there were overcast nights when we couldn’t see the sky through the clouds, being there for that long would mean there would be at least some clear nights.
It worked. We saw the Northern Lights four nights on that trip.
We also did other things to increase our luck – we read up on the phenomenon and learned that although it’s difficult to predict, the amazing Aurora Borealis displays usually increase approximately three days after the sun experiences solar flares. And we learned that there are websites and apps that track this and make predictions as to when the chances of a display increase. I’m sure you’re not surprised that we started following one of those websites.
While in Iceland, we also chose to stay in the countryside or on the edge of small towns, away from the city lights, so there was less light pollution and we could see the Northern Lights by just walking outside rather than having to get in our rental car and drive to the dark countryside.
And we made a point of looking outside as often as possible, regardless of what the forecast website was telling us.
This may sound silly, but I’ve met people who expressed disappointment that they weren’t able to see the Northern Lights when they visited Iceland, but also acknowledged that they were only in the country for a few days and stayed in a hotel in the largest city, Reykjavik, the entire time. I’ve also heard them complain that no one told them when there was going to be a display, but they didn’t independently research how and when the odds of seeing the Aurora Borealis would be highest.
Compounding and Improving the Odds
Doing just one thing – such as traveling to Iceland in the fall or winter when there are lots of hours of darkness – will improve your chances of seeing the Northern Lights. In doing so, you increase your luck.
And doing more than one thing begins to have a compounding effect on increasing your luck. For example, we almost guaranteed that we would catch the Aurora Borealis at least one night during our trip because we were there in the fall, staying in the countryside (with lots of dark skies), checked in with the prediction website (multiple times every evening), and frequently looked out the windows or walked outside to check, even if the prediction for that time was not high.
The first night we saw the Northern Lights in Iceland, all of those factors contributed to our “luck” in catching an incredible light show. In fact, we had plans to stay up late because the aurora was predicted to begin around midnight, but while my cousin’s wife and I relaxed in the hottub at the bed & breakfast, Greg decided to check out the northern night sky on the other side of the house. Even though it was a couple of hours earlier than we expected, the sky was putting on a show! That’s why I enjoyed that first experience of the aurora in Iceland while wearing flip-flop sandals, a damp bathing suit, and a towel. I could have taken the time to go into the house and change into warm clothing, but taking advantage of the opportunity when it presents itself to you is also another way to increase your luck.
Yes, it was cold. But, no, I didn’t care!
That night was one of the most amazing Aurora Borealis displays I have ever witnessed. We not only were treated to jagged sheets of otherworldly green, but there were magenta streaks of light that whisked through the sky like ancient gods riding flying dragons. It was easy to understand where much of the Viking folklore originated!
This winter, Greg and I have added another strategy to increase our luck – spontaneity. One of the reasons we recently retired from our jobs was to increase our time freedom. We want the ability to suddenly change our schedules and seize more fun opportunities when they present themselves to us. So we’re watching the prediction website and are planning to make a mad dash north if the chances for the aurora and clear skies are both good.
Those who don’t believe in magic will never find it.
Roald Dahl
Do You Want to Get Lucky?
If you’re not an aurora chaser, thank you for sticking with me this far because my point has less to do with the Northern Lights and more to do with luck — with whatever you enjoy or are seeking more of in your life.
You can increase your odds of experiencing luck in most areas of your life. For example, the chances of getting a promotion or an opportunity to do something new and exciting at work can increase if you make small changes, such as increasing how often you talk with the decision makers in your workplace, letting them know what skills and interests you have, and going to the right meetings at the right times.
You also can increase the number of lucky experiences you have when you travel. I’m sure we’ve all listened to friends’ stories of their travel adventures and at some point responded, “Oh, how lucky!,” to a story they told. It may have been stumbling across an amazing restaurant in a tiny little village, joining in a town’s holiday celebration, playing a game with children in a town square, seeing a rare bird, being invited into someone’s home, or getting to see an ancient building on the one day a month it’s open to the public.
Yes, like seeing the aurora out the window of a plane, many of these things happen completely unexpectedly.
But we can increase the chances of these fun, “lucky” experiences happening by making some choices to increase our luck. Researching an area might help you to understand what days the locals celebrate certain holidays. Knowing the “magic words” (or perhaps more importantly, the word for “delicious”) in the local language might earn you a special treat from the chef. Learning the rules of the country’s national game might allow you to join in, even if you don’t speak the language.
Luck Surface Area
There is a concept called “luck surface area.” I’ve seen its origin attributed to several different individuals, most frequently to Jason Roberts. The basic concept is that although we can’t choose our starting point in life (such as our genetics or who raised us), we can do things to increase our odds of encountering positive, lucky experiences.
The ways we do this can be summed up as “putting yourself out there.” The more you’re interacting with others and with the world, in general, the more likely you are to experience lucky opportunities. Here are some ways of putting yourself out there, both with travel and with life:
- Follow your curiosity. Don’t be afraid to research things and learn more just because you find them interesting, whether or not anyone else does. Knowledge often unlocks doors – the more you learn, the more likely you are to feel confident and take action. For example, if you love Japanese, even if you don’t know when you would ever use it, follow your curiosity and spend time learning how to write and speak the language. Perhaps eventually that will lead to you taking a trip to Japan or making friends with someone who is from Japan.
- Try new things. This is related to following your curiosity, but it also means getting out of your comfort zone (and living room) from time to time. Action, even if you don’t know where it is ultimately taking you, will eventually take you somewhere. Maybe you take a Japanese language class and decide that you’re not as interested as you thought you were, but through learning some of the language, you meet someone who offers to teach you how to make some traditional Japanese foods and you realize you’ve found a new passion.
- Talk about your interests and experiences. It’s easy for each of us to feel that we’re the only one interested in certain things, and none of us wants to feel “weird.” But it’s amazing how often once you begin sharing the things that interest you, someone will respond with, “Me too!” And sometimes it’s through those connections that opportunities present themselves to us. Even before I began writing this blog, I talked openly about my love of travel, and many of my travel adventures were born when a friend approached me about sharing a trip with them.
- Be open to opportunity and spontaneity. Have you ever known someone who bemoans how boring their life is, but every time they’re invited to do something unexpected, they pass on the opportunity? Sometimes we stick to our routines because they feel safe and comfortable. Or we’re so locked into our way of doing things, we aren’t even seeing the “luck” when it shows up. If you start looking for opportunities, they will appear. But you have to seize them when they do! Just like the Northern Lights, some opportunities only last for a short while. If you put them off because you don’t feel ready, the opportunity might disappear.
- Be persistent. Sometimes people lose out on opportunities because they give up too soon. If we had spent only one night in Iceland, the odds of our seeing the Aurora Borealis would have decreased significantly. Even if you’re only able to make small changes to increase your luck surface area, over time, those small changes can accumulate to create opportunities.
Let’s All Get Lucky!
Increasing your luck surface area means making yourself a bigger target for luck to happen. It also means being on the look out for luck so that it doesn’t sneak past you.
There aren’t any guarantees that Greg and I will see the Northern Lights again this winter, but I know our chances of doing so are better than if we didn’t take any action to increase our luck. We’ll also be on the lookout for luck in other areas of travel and our lives.
Think about some areas where you’d like a little more luck in your life, whether it’s related to your work, your relationships, or your travel adventures. What can you do to increase your chances of encountering that luck and taking advantage of it? How can you increase your luck surface area?
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