Seeking Serendipity

Serendipity is one of my favorite words. It’s a word that rolls off the tongue, almost like you can’t help but smile as you say it. For me, serendipity invokes thoughts of fatefully meeting a long-lost love or auspiciously discovering a letter that forever changes the course of a life. It also makes me think of that basement restaurant in New York’s Upper East Side and the most delicious, frozen hot chocolate. If you’ve been, you know what I’m talking about.

The word originates from one of the letters written by 18th century English author, Horace Walpole. He coined the word from an old Persian tale, where a slue of princes traversed through Serendip, now modern-day Sri Lanka. In their sojourns, the legend’s heroes had “discovered, quite unexpectedly, great and wonderful good in the most unlikely of situations, places, and people.”

Even though Walpole doesn't describe the good these princes found, it's more important that the princes opened their eyes to see it. Some may think that there’s an element of fate or destiny in serendipitous encounters. In actuality, serendipity doesn’t require faith or mystic knowledge. It requires a keen eye and attentive spirit to making connections and seeing hidden possibilities. Why is this important? Because the ability to forge connections is the harbinger for new ideas. Take for example, the yellow 2-inch notes you have sitting on your desk. When testing for tape adhesives, a 3M research scientist came up with a seemingly non-useful glue—it only stuck with intermittent contact. Six years later, scientists in product development wanted a short-term sticky type of bookmark, recalled the lousy glue, and discovered it was the perfect solution for their new product. They're willingness to turn something unuseful and make a new connection was an act of serendipity. Today, that bookmark is affectionately referred to as the Post-it.

Are your eyes ready and willing to see the good? Do you surround yourself with people, activities, and practices that see the joys and pleasures of life? Don’t just stumble upon serendipity. Seek it. What unexpected, great, and wonderful good awaits you?