PetSmart warehouse stores for dogs, cats, and other critters weren't always so user-friendly. When a store opened near Labrador-lover Mary Riley, she was one of the first to check it out. All she bought on that first visit was a collar for Amos, her fast-growing Lab puppy who already weighed 40 pounds. Mary had underestimated the girth of that strong, furry neck, so she took the collar back and purchased the largest size. This time it was too big, so back to the store she went. A simple purchase had become a doggone nuisance.

Mary vented her frustration to the clerk, who suggested she bring Amos to the store and fit him there. The next day, Mary and her pup - a bright-eyed, eager, friendly animal the color of just-baked bread - strode into the store. As Amos frisked about, licking all the hands and faces in his reach, customers were amused and delighted: How cute to see a dog shopping with his owner. The buzz wasn't lost on the manager, who encouraged other shoppers to bring their pets along on future visits to the store. Other PetSmart stores quickly followed suit, and today you might encounter hamsters, parrots, and an occasional boa constrictor on your pet-supply shopping errand.

Luck = variation + observation + action

PetSmart was lucky ... but three things have to happen before you can experience that kind of "luck."

First, getting lucky requires some random, unpredictable variation. Look at the lottery: Whether you win or lose, whether you're lucky or not, depends on a totally random event. If you could somehow predict all the Powerball numbers, you could win easily. (You wouldn't be lucky, but you sure would be rich!)

Second, getting lucky requires that you make sense of apparently random variations, seeing patterns where other just see haze. If you're playing blackjack in Las Vegas, you'll be "luckier" if you understand the odds and keep track of the cards played. The player next to you won't understand why you're winning and he's losing his shirt. You both see random variation, but you look beyond it at things other people overlook. As the saying goes, "The smarter you get the luckier you are."

Third, getting lucky requires action. If you figure out the game but don't place your bet, you'll never be "lucky." Taking action doesn't guarantee you'll hit the jackpot, but it moves the odds in your favor and eventually you'll walk away a winner. You will have turned what others consider a purely random event into a situation you can influence and use to your advantage.

PetSmart got lucky and you can too!

For luck to find you, allow and even encourage some random variation in your business. That's the only way you'll even have the chance to get lucky. What if PetSmart's policy had forbidden animals to come into the store? What if the clerk hadn't thought to suggest that Mary bring Amos with her? If you want to get lucky you need to let loose, permit some flexibility in what you do and how you do it. Chance events are the engines that generate opportunities.

Now that you've loosened up, the next step is to open your eyes and start making sense of what's going on. That's what Management-By- Wandering-Around is all about -- being in the right place with your eyes open and your mind receptive. PetSmart might still be a typical ho-hum store if the manager had been in the office instead of on the floor or had tuned out the excitement Amos created. Vision and insight are what turn chance events into opportunities.

But opportunities are only possibilities until you act on them and take advantage of the good fortune that has come your way. That's what the manager did, when he issued an open invitation rather than reprimanding the clerk, fretting about messy floors, and posting a "No Pets Allowed" sign on the door. He took action - and that's what turns opportunities into successes.