Hoping to win the lottery is not a sound plan for your financial future. It would be great if it happened, but it’s probably smart to earn and save on your own, too.

You can wait to write your book, build your app, or record your music once you get a publisher, investors, or an agent. Or you can just make your very best work, put it into the world—a blog, a PDF, or YouTube—and see how people respond to it.

If you want to make it as an actor, you can move to Hollywood and network tirelessly in the hopes of meeting the right industry insider at the right party at the right time. But your chances of success are better if you relentlessly work to become the best actor you can possibly be by taking classes, acting in community theater, and really honing your craft.

And you can hang your hopes of future success on getting admitted to a highly selective college. There’s nothing wrong with wanting big things for yourself.

But like state lotteries, fame, and other windfalls, the mathematics don’t lie—your odds aren’t good. And hoping that somebody else picks you gives them all the power.

The surest bet is to gamble on yourself. Learn as much as you can. and take an active interest in your education. Pursue things that interest you so you can make discoveries about yourself and your talents.

Gambling on yourself pays off no matter which college says yes.