Surprising little adventures are waiting to be discovered every day. Serendipity is a happy, lucky coincidence that is not sought after. And the wonderful thing is that life is full of serendipity. However, we miss most of it because we are so busy pushing and pulling through our days, trying to morph and shape our schedules so they resemble the perfect life. In the meantime, we are missing out on the sweet life. For it is only in the open, quiet space that you can hear clearly. You can’t force serendipity. It happens by a chance discovery. Even though you cannot plan, organize or schedule serendipity, you can curate a life that invites it in when it quietly knocks on your soul’s door.
15 ways to invite serendipity into your life
- Leave White Space in your day. Instead of scheduling your calendar until you cannot breathe, leave blank spaces that are openings to adventure and surprise.
- Say “yes.” Quite thinking of all the reasons that you cannot do something and say “yes” when opportunity presents itself. You will miss lots of little adventures if you wait until it is convenient.
- Be ready. It reduces your chance of creating excuses. If you stay up on your routine maintenance, you will be more open and ready when the opportunity knocks.
- Unpack your brain of all the commitments and responsibilities that take up so much valuable real estate there.
- Release your fears: fear of failure, fear of looking like a fool, fear of being wrong, and fear of the unknown. Let it all go.
- Follow your nose and see where it takes you. Let the wind lead you instead of your calendar for a change.
- Let your imagination soar. Imagination allows you to look at things from a unique and colorful perspective.
- Say hello. You never know where a conversation with a stranger will take you. It could be a friend in waiting or just an interesting conversation that opens up your thinking.
- Take the back roads. The freeway seldom leads to serendipity. Ah, but the bumpy backroads lead to the unexpected.
- Leave judgement in the dust of your footsteps – the judgement of others if you do not follow the expected pathway, but also our own judgement.
- Be brave and willing to make mistakes. Perfection is not the path to adventure and surprise.
- Curate a creative life. A creative life fosters serendipity and serendipity ignites your creativity.
- Take the less worn path. The one that does not have a safe, predictable outcome.
- Stop long enough to feel what is tugging on your soul. Follow where it leads you, even I it doesn’t seem practical.
- Eliminate the word “should” from your vocabulary. One seldom meets serendipity while wrestling with what they should be doing.
Now that we are retired, we have more open hours in a day. More time to let serendipity in. Yet, I forget. I get so focused on the task at hand, and the task after that one, that I get tunnel vision. With spring just around the corner (O.K. – I might be overly optimistic) I am trying to be more available to the present moment and whatever gift that it provides. Allow myself to be caught up in the moment and where it leads. It is time to invite more serendipity into my life. Be more aware of the simple joy of the unexpected. And what better time than Valentine’s Day to start living the sweet life.
This is a challenging list & a work in progress for me. Saying yes more often was a product of retirement when I didn’t have the constraints of a formal work schedule. There’s certainly more white space & what shows up. Yes, there’s a lot of shoulding. Why do we humans should on ourselves?
Hi Mona –
It is obviously a work in progress for me as well. I am not sure why we “should” ourselves so much, but I am trying to break free from it. If you figure out how to do that, please let me know. 😊
“Yet, I forget. I get so focused on the task at hand, and the task after that one, that I get tunnel vision. ”
Great reminder, something I struggle with, as well. I find myself getting frustrated by being “too busy,” then pause and realize it’s all a choice. Thanks for the reminder to stop and smell the roses and invite Serendipity (my favorite word, btw).
Hi Fritz –
For me, one of the big surprises in retirement has been how busy my days are. But as you mentioned, it is a choice we make. And how lucky are we to have that choice! Now I just need to choose a little more space in my days for serendipity.
Thank you again for a very insightful and inspiring message. I really want to live that sweet life. I believe a little piece of heaven presents itself every day, but as you mentioned, it is up to us to take note of it and stow it away in our hearts.
Hi Janie –
I think most of us want to live the sweet life, it is just that responsibilities, commitments and worry get in the way. It takes conscious effort every day to be open to the beauty and wonder that are present, instead of rushing past it. I like your idea of “stowing it away in our hearts.”
Your blog was so timely; serendipity brings so much unexpected joy! I went on a 2 day birding trip and our schedule was open; we wandered in the rain and saw a porcupine in the tree, we wandered in another direction and saw a flock of black crowned night herons. Our serendipity as we prepared to leave brought us to be in the right place at the right time to see hundreds of lesser scaup fly over with a great whooshing sound as they turned and banked; some landed, some, in their own serendipity, flew elsewhere. The total unexpectedness of the numbers and the sound was something to be treasured.
Thanks for the reminder of letting serendipity have the opportunity happen.
Hi Claire –
I love the term “wandered.” It fits perfectly with serendipity. What a treat to be able to wander through the woods and take notice. Your description of the woods and animals makes me feel like I am there. Birds experiencing their own serendipity… I like that thought.