Page 187 - Wake Up and do Your Thing

NICHOLAS BOOTHMAN
connections. Without the willingness to engage with people we don't know, we miss out on all of these possibilities and more.
When I met Thomas all those years ago, it seemed like fate had brought us together. But was it fate or just coincidence? I"d been working alongside a guy I barely knew in London. He"d just got married and inherited some money and wanted to make a fresh start with his bride somewhere !exotic” and asked me if I wanted to join them and one of their friends. I said, !Sure, sounds terrific.” It was the of many steps that led me to a little post office on the Algarve coast sending a birthday card to my mother. One thing always leads to another.
Perhaps it was more than just a chance meeting after all. Perhaps it was serendipity. Serendipity is often defined as a fortunate coincidence. It's when you stumble upon something good or valuable by chance while you are busy looking for something else. And while it may seem like serendipity is just a matter of luck, there's actually plenty of science to back up the idea that serendipity is real. A study from the University of Michigan found that people who are open to new experiences are more likely to have serendipitous moments. This is because they're more likely to notice unexpected connections and see potential opportunities. This is backed up by another study, published in the journal Nature Neuroscience, that found people are
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