I recently had a book review published in a Florida newspaper.

While I’ve had other publishing credits to my name (see the body of work on this site), this one stands out because I often hear about “right place and right time” as an attribute to breakthroughs and success.

It’s usually put forward as a one-time deal. A person just happens to be at a particular place in the universe at precisely the right moment and everything took off after that. If you’re a lottery winner—absolutely.

However, reality is way more nuanced.

I met the author/magician in that article almost fifteen years ago and have been writing, publishing and working on my craft for close to twenty years at this point. Had I met him just now, or had he wanted this review when we first met, this offer wouldn’t have happened.

While I’ve missed opportunities in the past, the key, as I’ve learned, is to keep plugging away because there are no guarantees for the future. Sometimes a right connection is made at the right moment, but that moment requires a deep history behind it.

So it’s kind of true, but you simply can’t just show up without having done the work.

And if you want to stay relevant, you have to keep putting in the work.