Leaving the house at 6am I was struck by the sight of a beautiful sunrise. Because it was so early I was able to stand in the middle of the road to take a photograph. That then set me off on a train of thought which has led to this week’s inspiration.

If you enter the words ‘staying prepared’ into Google the first page is full of tips on how to avoid the recurrence of a disaster: ‘Tornado safety tips’ was at the top of the list followed by earthquakes. Pointers for staying safe over Halloween were the only topical reference.

The first thought that went through my head was ‘relevancy’ and the fact that most of us won’t experience a tornado or an earthquake in our lifetime. My second thought was one of curiosity. Why, I wonder are all the articles about the prevention of a repeat disaster?

Stuff happens in life and learning from our mistakes; from personal tragedy or even from a natural catastrophe is a sensible thing to do. Nevertheless, what about all the unforeseen opportunities awaiting us of an entirely positive nature? The random meeting with a stranger who turns out to be your best introducer of business; the unexpected photo opportunity or the person you chat to on the train platform that sparks a gem of an idea for a new venture.

There are moments of opportunity all around us; and we can ignore them, take them for granted or we can seize the moment and decide to do something with them. Not every single one, as clearly that would be overwhelming. There are literally millions of bits of information coming at us every minute of the day. But to ignore them all is a natural disaster in my book and it makes life harder than it needs to be. Why, because whilst we’re scrabbling around for ideas and fixes, we often miss the ideal solution that is staring us in the face.

Which opportunity is looking back at you right now?

This week’s link is I.N.S.P.I.R.I.N.G for those interested in identifying opportunities and resources available to you that will move you forward.