I can best describe this week as one of “following my hunches” and allowing amazing acts that follow, and specifically, following your hunches to share and to seek.
ACT 1: Follow Your Hunch to Share
You’ve heard similar stories before: you saw a quote or read a passage in a book, and you remember it for some reason. Later that day or that week, you meet someone who was the receiver for that quote or passage you paid attention to.
When you pick up a clue that puzzles you because it doesn’t fit you at this moment, pay attention anyway. You may be called to help someone else.
One evening I was “chatting” on Plurk, a microblogging site that I use. I decided to share a blog entry I had written more than a year ago, in 2007. The post was based on a hypothetical question, “if you were to die next week, what would you do?”
I hesitated to share what I had written, because it was quite long for a “microblog” (that limits each new topic or response to 140 characters). I felt a bit weird to open a topic and then post such a long series of responses to myself. It was like talking to myself, but in a public place where everyone can watch… a bit embarrassing.
Still, I felt like I needed to share this particular entry, I didn’t know why. I did know, however, that the words I had written weren’t meant for me, at least not at that moment.
An hour and a half later, I received a private message from one of my Plurk friends. He had much on his mind professionally and personally. What I had shared helped him put things into perspective, so that he can choose what to let go of, and what to keep dear to his heart.
I told him that he was the very person I was sharing these words for.
ACT 2: Follow Your Hunch to Seek
Sometimes an idea or a question pops into my head. I don’t know the answer to the question and I don’t know why it showed up.
If you ever wake up with a question from nowhere, pay attention anyway. This question from nowhere may eventually lead you somewhere.
I hesitated to ask this question, because it wasn’t something I am interested in, at least right now. I felt a bit weird to ask a question and then admit that I didn’t now why I wanted the answer. It was like asking for directions to a place I wasn’t going to at the moment, but in a public place where everyone can watch… again, a bit embarrassing.
Still, I felt like I needed to ask this particular question, I didn’t know why. I did know, however, that the best place for me to get substantive responses from a diverse group of people was on Plurk.
(I also admitted to my Plurk buddies that I didn’t know why I was asking the question, and they helped me out.)
Within 48 hours of asking my question, I was a speaker at the November 2008 PodCampAZ. I will be speaking on social media as a personal development tool. This opportunity will propel me into a new and emerging arena, where I can create new connections with people leveraging social media tools in their personal lives and for businesses.
This may be the tip of a broader scope of what my question wanted me to explore for the future.
Photo credit: Fog by Pniti Marta
Comments (4)
Jane Chin
As I mentioned on Plurk. This is too spooky. Another topic you brought up that struck accord with what I am experiencing at the moment. Love your writing! Think you are my crystal ball. Haha … I will tune in closely haha.
I relate to this as following my intuition, same idea. Great blog. I am linking it now to my Facebook profile.
:Laurent
Wow- these seem like great examples of serendipity to me. It is very fortunate that your friend was able to take some suggestions from your first topic and take a positive direction in his own life. It’s as though he was casting about for solutions and your ideas just struck a chord.
That second occurrance shows just how d**med LUCKY you are- fancy mentioning something, then someone immediately allows you to publicise it and it fits with your career direction!
You have a great knack for “the right thing”!!
Grumba,
the first thing about this synchronicity is – my friend was NOT asking for solutions; this was something he kept to himself (as many do, on the public timeline), and privately told me that what I shared was what he needed. That was why I hesitated at the beginning about sharing what I’d shared, I wasn’t sure who it was meant for and there wasn’t a public “call” for it.
As for the second, I’ll agree with you that I’m very lucky and that I’ve had great knack for the right thing. I’ve found that when we are heading in the right direction and aligning our actions with how we may best serve at a particular time, we tend to get consistently “lucky”.
Laurent,
Thank you!