Opportunities are not always handed to us. Sometimes, they don’t exist in the world we find ourselves in. But that doesn’t mean we should wait for them to appear. The most successful people don’t simply react to what’s around them; they shape the world to fit their vision.

Creating an opportunity is about identifying a gap or inefficiency, then positioning yourself to fill it. In some ways, it’s like building a bridge where there’s no road yet. Many of the most successful startups were born this way, because their founders saw something missing and made it. Airbnb didn’t just wait for the travel industry to change. They realized that people might prefer staying in homes rather than hotels, and they built the platform that made that possible.

The same holds true for ideas. You don’t have to wait for inspiration to strike; you can cultivate it by thinking through problems deeply, making connections between different fields, and staying curious about how things work. If something you need doesn’t exist yet, you can build it. Often, the best ideas come not from luck or sudden inspiration but from deliberate effort, working through versions, failures, and tweaks.

Waiting means relying on others to set the pace. Instead, you can set your own pace by creating the very things you seek. It’s not just about being proactive; it’s about being a builder in a world full of consumers.