An opportunity is a favorable situation or moment when conditions are right for doing something you want to do or achieving something important. When your teacher announces that anyone interested can join the robotics team, that's an opportunity to learn about engineering and work with like-minded students. When a store has a big sale, it's an opportunity to buy something you've been saving for at a lower price.

Opportunities often require action: they appear, but you have to recognize them and decide to take advantage of them. If you're hoping to make the basketball team and open tryouts are announced, that's your opportunity, but you still need to show up and give it your best effort. Some opportunities are obvious, like scholarship contests or auditions for the school play. Others are quieter, like noticing that your elderly neighbor could use help raking leaves.

Just as sailors had to adjust their sails to catch helpful winds, you have to be ready and willing to act when opportunities arise. People sometimes say “opportunity knocks” to describe how chances present themselves, but sometimes you have to go looking for them rather than waiting for them to find you.