Openness Begets Serendipity

One thing I’ve noticed about my entrepreneurial journey is the role that serendipity has played. I’m a planner by nature and that’s helped me a ton, but I’ve also benefited from more than my fair share of unexpected positive events. For example, I was once in the kitchen of our coworking space casually chatting about what I was working on and a role I was looking to fill. The person I was talking with—whom I didn’t know well—knew someone he thought could be a good fit. He introduced us, we agreed, and that key hire accelerated our strategic progress over the next year.

I have many more stories like this. And I’ve realized they have something in common: being open with someone preceded, perhaps triggered, serendipitous events. Talking about my successes and failures and what I was thinking has often been followed by positive, seemingly random events.

I’m an extremely private person, so telling other people my business doesn’t come naturally. Over the years, though, I’ve learned that the pros of sharing far outweigh the cons. Serendipity is one reason for that.

Wherever you are in your journey and whatever you’re working on, consider sharing it with others. You never know where those conversations could lead!