(1)
In my opinion, I believe hard work is the most important element to be successful. The meaning of success varies for different people. As for me, success is being financially well off and being emotionally happy as well. And hard work is the gateway to success.
The main reason why people are successful is to work hard. A hard worker is able to follow directions from superior, act in obedience to the orders given to him. And in most cases, works set goals for themselves. But the difference that sets hard workers apart from regular workers is hard workers make any effort to accomplish their objectives. Hard workers are well aware of their goal and do not stop until they achieve it. Consequently, success is due to those who truly work hard.
A good example of this is Tiger Woods. He is a person who has been extremely successful. Maybe he possesses some natural talent, but in fact, he spent a tot of time and efforts on practicing, and finally became an excellent golfer. He did not just rely on luck one day and win a championship in a tournament. It is the years of dedication and hard work he put into golf that leads to his success. Natural talent can only get you to the entrance of the field.
Hard work provides consistent or sustained power to become success too, because people do not necessarily depend on chance factors, such as luck. Hard work is something people work at doing. They are in the process of pursuing success instead of relying on luck to give them a break. If success is the goal for a hard worker then they will achieve it, and they will be sure to. Their hard work will lead them there.
(2)
At one time I regarded hard work as more important than luck, but now I think chance is of the great importance for success. Luck, or chance, comes about not by design but accidentally. It is the reason why many unqualified people are successful. This success, from the financial perspective, is a matter of chance.
In the movie industry, a lot of actors and models were discovered by chance or owing to some type of luck in many countries around the world. Some of the situations might be that they were sitting next to an agent or a director at lunch, or when they were walking down the street. Someone spotted them. Under Such circumstances, these people were picked out because they happened to be next to the one who could help promote them into a better career and situation. They may then have successful careers and make a lot of money just because of one chance lucky meeting. They were lucky indeed.
Assuming a real world situation. A man owns a restaurant, and he works hard every day to run his business, but the result turns to be that he does not make much money. One day, he gets a call for a special food delivery order. His employee delivers the food to the customer, who is the owner of another large restaurant chain. The franchise owner especially enjoys the food, hence he offers the man a deal that the man is invited to join in the restaurant chain. Then, the man, who was struggling, becomes successful. It was very lucky for the man that the chain restaurant owner tries the food; as a result, he gets the opportunity to achieve success. I believe a lot of people work hard, but do not benefit from luck. Though they do a great job at work and try their very best. If they do not happen to have a certain lucky situations, they may never be successful.