I will prepare and some day my chance will come.
Meaning
This quote connects preparation with opportunity. You cannot always control when your chance will arrive, but you can control whether you are ready when it does. Preparing means building knowledge, practicing skills, learning from mistakes, and doing the work before anyone notices. Many opportunities look sudden from the outside, but they often reward people who have been quietly getting ready for a long time. The deeper lesson is that preparation gives you something valuable beyond skill: it turns uncertainty into readiness, so when the right moment appears, you can act instead of wishing you had started earlier.
How to Use
- Learn and practice now rather than waiting until an opportunity forces you to perform.
- Improve your work even when nobody is watching. Progress made privately can become an advantage when your chance arrives.
- Maintain an updated résumé, portfolio, savings plan, notes, or other resources that could matter when an opportunity appears.
- If your desired opportunity has not arrived yet, use the waiting period to become more capable of handling it.
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I will prepare and some day my chance will come.
— Abraham Lincoln
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Frequently Asked Questions
What does “I will prepare and some day my chance will come” mean?
The quote means that opportunities cannot always be predicted, but readiness can be developed. Instead of waiting passively for good fortune, use the time available to build the knowledge, skills, and discipline you will need when an opportunity appears.
What is the main message of this Abraham Lincoln quote?
Its central message is to prepare before success arrives. A person may not control when a valuable opportunity appears, but consistent preparation can make the difference between being ready to use it and being unable to take advantage of it.
Does the quote say that preparation guarantees success?
No. Preparation cannot guarantee that a particular opportunity will appear or that every effort will succeed. Its value is that it improves your readiness and gives you a stronger foundation when circumstances eventually create a useful opening.
How can students apply this quote?
Students can prepare by studying consistently, practicing difficult subjects, improving communication skills, and building useful knowledge before exams, interviews, scholarships, or career opportunities arise. Preparation turns a future possibility into something they are better equipped to handle.
What should you do while waiting for your opportunity?
Instead of spending all your energy wondering when your chance will come, identify what that future opportunity would require. Then start developing those abilities now. When circumstances change, you will have something concrete to offer rather than starting from zero.