EMBRACING SERENDIPITY… Allowing Chance to Move You Towards Professional Success Presented by Gina Alexandris

Leading Ladies (Toronto)

November 14, 2012

© Gina Alexandris (photo credits)

Sometimes when we walk along a familiar road...

…we fail to notice other paths that we have not yet explored.

“If we do not change our direction…”

“…we are likely to end up where we are headed”.

Chinese proverb

From now on when you notice these paths…take the chance…and see the new wonders that open up for you!

Serendipity means a "happy accident" or "pleasant surprise"; specifically, the accident of finding something good or useful while not specifically searching for it.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serendipity

Serendipity is the “faculty of making fortunate discoveries by accident”.

http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/serendip/about.html

Who do we thank for this wonderful word?

In a letter dated January 28, 1754, Walpole described a discovery relating to a portrait as:

“…almost of that kind which I call serendipity, a

very expressive word, which as I have nothing better to tell you, I shall endeavour to explain to you: you will understand it better by the derivation than by the definition. I once read a silly fairy tale called The Three Princes of Serendip: as their highnesses travelled, they were always making discoveries, by accident and sagacity, of things which they were not in quest of… now do you understand serendipity?"

http://livingheritage.org/three_princes.htm#

Horace Walpole (1717-97), fourth Earl of Orford, son of Prime Minister Robert Walpole, connoisseur, antiquarian and author of the famous gothic novel, The Castle of Otranto (London, 1765).

But are such “happy accidents” entirely… accidental?

Louis Pasteur (1822-1895) The inventor of the process of pasteurization

“…chance only favours the mind which is prepared…”

1854, as Dean of Faculty of Sciences at Lille, speaking of a physicist and the almost "accidental" way in which he discovered the basic principles of electro-magnetism

http://www.pasteurbrewing.com/articles/life-of-pasteur/louis-pasteur-chance-favors-prepared-mind/173.html and

http://www.biography.com/people/louis-pasteur-9434402

• Vacation, travels and adventures…

• Scientific discoveries…

• But what does this have to do with our careers and professional lives?

The Prepared Mind of a Leader : Eight Skills Leaders Use

to Innovate, Make Decisions, and Solve Problems Bill Welter and Jean Egmon

For flexibility, innovation and change, apply these skills:

• Observing • Reasoning • Imagining • Challenging • Deciding • Learning • Enabling • Reflecting

And don’t forget about…

serendipity…

an actual career theory!

John D. Krumboltz: The Happenstance Learning Theory

“The Happenstance Learning Theory (HLT) is an attempt to explain how and why individuals follow their different paths through life…In a nutshell, the HLT posits that human behavior is the product of countless numbers of learning experiences made available by both planned and unplanned situations in which individuals find themselves”.

Krumboltz, J.D. (2009). The happenstance learning theory. Journal of Career Assessment, 17(2), 135-154.

Krumboltz :

“learn to engage in exploratory actions as a way of generating beneficial unplanned events.”

“learn to reframe unplanned events into career

opportunities.”

John D. Krumboltz: The Happenstance Learning Theory

• Think about a chance event you wish would happen to you.

• What can you do now to increase the likelihood of that desirable event?

• How would your life change if you acted?

To move towards professional success:

• Spend time on self-reflection

• Be curious, ask questions

• Learn about things and people that interest you

• Be prepared to act on an opportunity that suddenly presents itself

• Take chances and do not fear making mistakes

• Stay open to new ideas

Thank you…have an amazing day… …and embrace serendipity! Gina Alexandris gina.alexandris@utoronto.ca gina.alexandris9@gmail.com