Is there anything we can do to increase the chances of experiencing such good fortune?
The above question came to mind after a lengthy chat with a friend in London. She recalled a British couple who won one million pounds in the EuroMillions lottery for a remarkable second time.
Our friend was amazed at the fact that the exceptionally-lucky couple had beaten the odds of more than 283 billion-to-one. Twice. What did the couple have done that most lotto bettors should’ve had? They always believed that they could win the lotto jackpot prize. And again.
We used to play lotto for the thrill of it, not thinking too much about results. In this regard, we were particular about playing 6/42 Lotto and Mega Lotto 6/45. We figured that our chances would be higher than (playing) Grand Lotto 6/55 or Ultra Lotto 6/58.
We also braved the heat and traffic to join the annual cash promo of Manila Broadcasting Corporation (MBC) and GMA Promos, two of several unpopular games that have a higher chance of winning.
We met housewives who brought a bag-full of long, white envelopes. Their entries and proofs of purchases were found inside the envelopes. Sealed. They opened up to us (after we asked them about their reasons for joining). We were amazed at their consistency, and how some of them ignored the Quit Claim Form after they won the consolation prizes.
They were hopeful. “Dinadaan nila sa dasal,” they confessed. And they were quick to spot the opportunities (to join). In other words, they checked out the Facebook pages of MBC and GMA Promos. Many of them bought a lotto ticket now and then. It would depend on their budget, but they won’t give up.
The heat and traffic didn’t change their outlook. Could this be it? Or one of those things? We suspected so.
Our friend believed that the very lucky couple had that mindset. Her sister-in-law is a good friend of the couple, but that’s another story. I observed the people who joined promos and bought lotto tickets, not minding to ask a few questions. Was it an investigation into luck? Yes.
PCSO lotto is purely a game of chance, and our experience has shown that there are cases when too much wishful thinking didn’t influence our chances of success. However, being lucky in our personal lives and career, or what we keep on believing, could have an effect. We uncovered five psychological principles at work:
The lucky ones have a relaxed attitude to life. The first one seems so hard to believe. It would take an effort to remain optimistic after enduring the traffic jam and the unpredictable weather. But Filipinos have a sunny outlook on life. Furthermore, many aren’t anxious and focused on detail.
That was what we noticed on those who joined the promos. It was a slightly different case with lotto bettors, as some faces were more businesslike. We asked some bettors. Their response confirmed what we long suspected: They were more calculated on what lotto games to join and how much. We’ll get to that part a little later. Next!
The lucky people listen to their intuition and act quickly. We won’t say that unlucky people over analyze situations, but most things in lotto are beyond anyone’s control. But a former professor once told us a trick behind picking the right answers in a multiple-choice test.
Your first guess is likely to be correct. Or ninety percent correct. This rule can be applied to lotto as well. There’s no guarantee that the first guess would be the lotto jackpot prize, but we could only try. And keep on trying.
Lucky individuals believe that the future is bright, and these expectations become self-fulfilling prophecies. We thought long and hard about this principle until we realized that a similar concept was used in business circles. And by athletes.
If you want to make something happen, then think about it often. Say it aloud. It’s also important that you’re surrounded by like-minded people, if not those who are supportive. This is how the Law of Attraction works. Agree? Next one.
Those who are truly lucky are highly resilient, and keep on going in the face of failure. It’s so Filipino. Right? Let’s put it in another way: The road to success is bumpy. We don’t let the smallest problem drag us down. We do learn from our mistakes, and not buying too many lotto tickets would be one.
Winners don’t feel guilty about what they do. Some people would look at it as blind faith, and we won’t argue about it. There was one time that we bought a lotto ticket twice a week. We did it for several months. We may not have won the PCSO lotto jackpot, but we didn’t regret doing it. We sensed it, not thinking twice about it.
We also learned that all numbers have equal probability. And the so-called lucky numbers, birthdays of loved ones included, don’t work most of the time. We look for another way. Innovative ways. If you have one, please let us know.
