“Remember that sometimes not getting what you want is a wonderful stroke of luck.” -Dalai Lama
Opportunity often hides in the most unlikely places, but it isn’t easy to see it when you’re disappointed life didn’t meet your expectations.
Michael Jordan’s high school coach cut him from the basketball team, which may have pushed him to work harder and become an NBA superstar. Soichoro Honda wanted to be an engineer at Toyota until he was rejected, inspiring him to start his own company.
You never know when a disappointment might pave the path for something great. What wonderful stroke of luck have you had lately, and what can you do to benefit from it?
This post was originally published in September, 2009. Photo by LisaRoxy.
About Lori Deschene
Lori Deschene is the founder of Tiny Buddha. She started the site after struggling with depression, bulimia, c-PTSD, and toxic shame so she could recycle her former pain into something useful and inspire others to do the same. You can find her books, including Tiny Buddha’s Gratitude Journal and Tiny Buddha’s Worry Journal, here and learn more about her eCourse, Recreate Your Life Story, if you’re ready to transform your life and become the person you want to be.
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Though I run this site, it is not mine. It's ours. It's not about me. It's about us. Your stories and your wisdom are just as meaningful as mine. 
Inspiring quote as always! Awesome new @tinybuddha website! Love it! 😀
Fantastic.
Wonderful new site 🙂 love your inspiration
I never looked at it that way
This is so true. I remind myself constantly that what I think I want is not important. Your perception of events and the changes they bring about within are the only important thing. Learn from everything you experience. Thank you so much for being, tinybuddha.com
This is so true. I remind myself constantly that what I think I want is not important. Your perception of events and the changes they bring about within are the only important thing. Learn from everything you experience. Thank you so much for being, tinybuddha.com
how about if i want not to have the aids because i just spend a week in thailand
mingeling with the natives and i get it anyway, is that good luck i don't think so buddy, why don't you go meditate somewhere else
suck my cock
Hence the “sometimes” bit
funny how some people cant read the word SOMETIMES.
and “sometimes” actually getting what you THINK you want comes with a high price.
Whatever you say! I don't know enough to argue this statement. But I also know that I didn't get what I wanted at the right time, and it made me unfulfillable in this area: it made me desire it all the time. So, wouldn't it be better to have it in the right time, suffer it trough and then be free and have a life after?
the “sometimes” makes this statement powerless.
Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck.
–Rachel
I had this same wisdom being shown to me throughout this entire month through my own experience. This really reaffirms my thoughts about it. Thanks for posting this. You never realize how posting a little quote can change somebody's entire life for the better.
It sounds like you need to change your mindset then. Learn to flow with life instead of trying to control it; accept that you don’t always have the option to control. Acknowledge the rejection and the pain of it (and it is painful for everyone), but move on. Don’t dwell, make the choice not to desire “it” all the time, make the choice to find fulfillment in other ways. Happiness is hard enough to come by, don’t make it more difficult on yourself.
This one is part me, and part my husband. My husband has a teaching degree, but could not get hired anywhere, even though he’s highly qualified and has great experience. He applied to several schools throughout the school district. No dice. So we started our own non-profit, in which he teaches and tutors at-risk kids, and kids of our culture, in the way we want to. We’ve been able to employ several of our friends who were also having a hard time getting hired elsewhere. So it’s been multiple blessings for many. Hard work, granted, but such a blessing to work for ourselves.
Like when Microsoft tried unsuccessfully to buy Yahoo for $44.6 BILLION dollars in 2008. A year later, the company’s stock tanked, and was worth about $19 billion. Asked about their unsuccessful attempt to purchase Yahoo, Microsoft replied, “sometimes you get lucky.” They actually ended up collaborating, and Microsoft got what it really wanted, for a lot less than $44B
This post is a great reminder. I have been in transition with my career for quite some time, appling to various jobs and at times, becoming frustrated that nothing has happened. But maybe it is just a “stroke of luck” and something better is around the corner. Thanks!
This has helped me in the past, I would often ask for things that are negative to my health, such as cigarettes or alcohol, and not getting them would usually upset me, but often times, after I got over that upset I came to learn that my health was more important