March 30, 2013

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A Special Kind of Luck

“March Madness” usually returns to normalcy long before the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament is finished. During the first few days of the tournament, productivity declines in offices across the country as employees fill in their brackets and follow the opening games on the internet. It does not take long, though, for an upset or two to “bust” most of the brackets, damping the interest in the remaining games and bringing the business world back toward normalcy.

The odds against predicting even the majority of the games correctly are daunting. Still, I always feel a twinge of regret when the team I chose to win it all is eliminated in the Sweet Sixteen or Elite Eight round. Although I do not follow college basketball, it seems that I should nevertheless be lucky. Simply because I am “special” (everyone thinks he or she is “special”), the Universe should conspire to have the games played according to my predictions.

So far, the Universe has not cooperated. After the twinge of regret passes, I lose interest in the tournament – and I remember that there have been lucky times throughout my life. Continue reading →