When I first met Adam Tank, we were both newly transplanted gringos in Rio de Janeiro. He looked like the typical midwestern American guy: tall, with a big smile, great teeth, sporting a baseball cap, shorts, tennis shoes, and a super-uber positive attitude towards life.
That, however, was the only typical thing about him.
Adam, unlike many expats, fully immersed himself in the Brazilian culture. He had left a stable job at a top American consumer goods multinational to work as a production supervisor at a Brazilian food company in the poorer, northern part of the city. He was making friends with folks from the favelas (Rio’s slum) and learning Portuguese.
I would not have guessed (but maybe I would), that 13 years later, Adam would become a founder of a successful startup, selling technological tools to the water and power infrastructure industries and a published author. Adam is also a husband, a father to a toddler, and a foster parent.
Hearing that Adam published a book, Luck by Design: The Science And Serendipity Of A Well-Lived Life, two thoughts came to mind:
"How cool!"
"How did he find the time with his busy life???"
Adam says he uses writing as an outlet to relieve stress and explore curiosities, which makes it fun and creates a self-reinforcing feedback loop to keep going. “You would be amazed what you can accomplish with just 30 minutes of dedicated focus time each day,” he adds.
During the 18-month writing process, Adam used a paid accountability partner. He worked with an author/editor (shoutout Amanda!) who helped keep things on track and produce high-quality content.
He has since applied the same lesson to his fitness journey - he pays for a trainer - because he knows he will make excuses not to work out when work gets busy or life gets in the way (p.s.: The same approach has been transformative for me in the past 4 years).
You can get more details about the book writing and marketing process in this podcast interview with Adam.
Where did the idea of writing Luck by Design come from?
Adam is an avid book reader and collector and has always wanted to write a book inspired by works such as Think & Grow Rich, The Power of Now, and The Tipping Point.
The idea of studying the science of luck and why some people are so seemingly lucky while others flounder has fascinated him since his early college years; despite being a microbiology major, he randomly entered and won an entrepreneurship competition.
The itch to study this topic and write about it just never went away. As he started to put his thoughts on paper he fell in love with the idea of publishing a book about it. Once the process began he was in too deep to stop!
Battling Imposter Syndrome
I asked Adam whether he had concerns about suddenly publishing a book about his passion topic. He responded:
“YES. And I still do. For everyone who was not my wife and two or three close friends, this book came out of nowhere; I didn’t tell anyone I was writing it and didn’t ask for friends' or family's feedback before it was published. Part of that was I did not want to spoil a big surprise, but if I am being honest with myself, the bigger aspect was that I felt fear of being judged for writing on a topic I have not built a brand in. I also had a newborn daughter and a highly demanding startup lifestyle. I was worried it would raise questions in the eyes of investors and customers about my commitment to the company.I heard a line many years ago about being afraid but doing the thing anyway. That is ultimately what helped me quiet those voices. I only have one life to live, and I have always wanted to publish a book, so I just needed to do it and avoid any future regrets!”
The Big Leadership Idea: Luck by Design
Opportunities to create luck for ourselves happen all the time - but it is up to us to take advantage of them. These opportunities are ‘catalysts’ - single, fleeting, seemingly ‘random’ moments in time - that happen to us throughout our lives. Too often we let them pass us by but they are the most powerful chances we have to create positive, lasting change in our lives and the lives of others.
This may sound very ‘woo-woo’ or ‘power of positive thinking’ but the book is far from that. As a microbiologist turned tech entrepreneur, Adam wanted to prove these ideas using research and scientific evidence.
The book shares the stories of famous people like Stephen Hawking and Coco Chanel, illustrating how seemingly minor or impossible situations can lead to successful trajectories.
Despite his ALS diagnosis, Hawking credited a chance meeting with his future wife as the turning point in his life. Their engagement motivated him to complete his PhD and pursue a career in astrophysics, ultimately leading to his groundbreaking work on black holes.
During World War I, Coco Chanel turned fabric shortages into opportunities by using men’s jersey, overlooked by most designers, to create practical, elegant womenswear and introduce pants as a staple. Her resilience, shaped by a challenging orphaned upbringing, helped her adapt and build skills like hat-making that launched her career. Singing in cafés to supplement her income earned her the nickname "Coco," which she turned into a powerful brand, becoming one of the wealthiest and most iconic female entrepreneurs in history.
The book also challenges us to rethink situations at work. For example, in a large corporation, most employees stick to their tasks, with a few high-achievers taking on extra work and slackers doing the bare minimum. But what happens when the high achievers suddenly disappear? Would the slackers step up to fill the gap, or would the organization crumble?
Researchers at the University of Arizona tested this concept in 2015—not with humans, but with ants. They marked ants based on roles: green for hardworking foragers, yellow for diligent groomers, blue for wanderers, and red for the inactive ones who did nothing. After removing the top 20% of ants (the high achievers), they observed whether the colony could adapt.
The results were unexpected. Within a week, the inactive ants stepped up to take on the roles of the missing foragers and groomers, keeping the colony functional. This experiment reveals a profound insight into adaptability and latent potential.
Just like the ants, people in a workplace might seem disengaged, but under the right circumstances, they can rise to meet challenges. Leaders’ success lies in creating an environment where everyone feels empowered to contribute and is encouraged to realize their full potential—even before a crisis strikes.
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Read other stories and find more inspiration in Adam’s book: Luck by Design. If you want to learn more about Adam, check out his website: www.adamtank.com, or follow him on LinkedIn for insights about utilities critical infrastructure.
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