Many people argue that success results purely from hard work, dismissing luck as a decisive factor. In my opinion, I largely disagree with this specific view about success. Although hard work is essential for genuine achievement, luck significantly shapes career opportunities and personal outcomes. This essay presents reasons and examples showing that success emerges from both effort and favourable external circumstances. Firstly, luck grants access to opportunities that hard work alone cannot create for any person. For example, talented graduates who work hard still depend on meeting supportive mentors, and such fortune amplifies their effort into visible achievement. Furthermore, external factors like environment, education, resources, and network shape whether personal effort truly leads to success. Admittedly, hard work builds skill, talent, determination, perseverance, and motivation that raise the probability of career success. However, ignoring luck overlooks how uncontrollable circumstances and chance shape a person's ultimate achievement. For instance, athletes who work extremely hard face injuries and judging decisions that determine whether their effort yields success or failure. Consequently, this debate about hard work and luck reveals that success also depends on timing and privilege. Moreover, overcoming challenges and turning failure into learning and growth requires favourable luck alongside sustained effort. Therefore, a healthy attitude, self-belief, and confidence prepare a person to seize a lucky opportunity when it arises. In conclusion, hard work forms the foundation of success, yet luck converts genuine effort into real achievement and career goal. Ultimately, twenty-first century stakeholders should recognise that both hard work and luck jointly make a person successful.

The debate over whether success is only due to hard work is contentious in the workplaces, engaging employers and regulators and highlighting its advantages and disadvantages. This essay critically assesses these perspectives, defines doing hard work, and agrees that gaining success through hard work and not by luck is pivotal to productivity and service quality. There are a myriad of arguments in favour of achieving success through hard work. Recent research, including a report published by the World Bank in 2023, highlights the impact of improved quality of life. Clear examples are evident globally, particularly in developing nations; for example, India implemented the policy of enhancing standard of living in 2024, resulting in improved economic conditions. These merits of doing hard work help employers and regulators achieve productivity and service quality. However, salient concerns about becoming successful or unsuccessful by luck. Critics cite the potential drawbacks of doing hard work, which significantly impact health problems, leading to burnout for employers and regulators. For instance, a recent study by the Stanford University in 2024 explicitly raises concerns associated with doing hard work, including negative impacts on staff productivity. Hence, some experts remain sceptical about the advantages of doing hard work to become successful rather than depending on luck. In conclusion, although luck does not make an individual successful or unsuccessful persists in the workplaces, the cumulative evidence indicates that a person doing hard work to achieve success remains indispensable to productivity and service quality.