Five Mile Creek is stalked by a yellow crowned night heron. Every morning she fishes there for crawfish, wading its waters looking for a good spot. One morning, I took my camera so I could watch her more closely. This is what I saw.

The heron perched on a submerged rock and waited, watching. For long minutes, she stood motionless. Water bugs and leaves floated past her. A school of minnows swam by. Still she stood there, statuesque.

Abruptly, she plunged her head through the surface of the creek. Just as quickly she pulled herself upright with a crawfish wriggling in her back. She tilted her head back, and the prey was gone. Then she returned to her stillness.

The heron used her experience to scout a fishing spot where she was most likely to succeed. She found a narrow channel where the water was funneled between two rocks. The current ran a bit stronger there, but her critters beneath the surface had little room to move laterally and avoid capture.

She was patient. She didn’t take the first thing that came along. She didn’t settle for less that she had set out for. She waited. When her target made its appearance, she was poised to strike.

The heron made her own opportunity. She did not sit in her nest and ruminate about how hungry she was. She did not wait for her partner (assuming for the sake of illustration that yellow crowned night herons have partners) to bring back for her the breakfast he had caught. No, she got out there early in the morning and positioned herself so when the crawfish awoke and started their morning, she would already be in place. She wouldn’t disturb or alarm them by getting into position. She made her opportunity and increased her likelihood of success.

Do you have a new practice area you want to expand into? A new client you want to work with? A new business or litigation strategy you want to implement?

Make your own opportunity! No one is more interested or invested in your success than you are. Do your market research. Discern how you might be able to build up trust equity with your potential client and begin to form a collaborative relationship. Do your work and position yourself for success. Do what is necessary to make your own opportunity and then capitalize on it.