The Bad Luck I Needed

25 years ago my little life fell apart. 

I was Football Secretary of my local professional club. It felt like the perfect job. My career was taking off. I was ambitious and was even looking to buy my first home. 

The future looked bright. 

Then I got a call to the boardroom. “Sorry, David. Finances are tight and all that. Nothing personal. You can leave via the side entrance. No need to make a fuss.” 

The shock. The shame. The questions. Did I do something wrong? What will people think? How am I going to manage? 

I was unemployed, with few prospects, connections or ideas. But plenty of debt. I heard friendly voices lamenting, “poor David”. I was embarrassed and scared. 

The future looked decidedly gloomy. 

Then, a little ray of sunshine poked through. 

Calming down, I recalled an older, bigger dream – to work in government. Within months I moved to Ohio, USA for a masters degree. That led to work in Washington DC, a stone’s throw from the White House, rubbing shoulders with presidents and prime ministers. That helped me secure my first job in the UK government as a policy advisor. My dream had come true! 

The future looked bright again. 

It was about to get brighter. 

Fast forward another 8 years and I felt in need of a refresh. I wrote a one-pager of a new life goal: ‘To live with someone I choose, in a place I choose, doing work I choose”. 

Spookily, an old friend from Ohio got back in touch after a 10-year absence. She was coming to London – would I like to meet up? We had a wonderful time, and she invited me back for a return visit to her home in Hong Kong. A decade later, I was a proud husband, father of two, and HK permanent resident, with an exciting third career. 

At the time, redundancy felt like the day it all went wrong. It turned out to be just the nudge I needed. I now look back with thanks. 

You never know what the future brings.

That goes for the good things too.